December i, 1887.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
373 
It is used for adulterating cane sugar, canuing fruits, 
manufacturing artificial honey, and in the making of 
Am rieau confectionery, of which so much is now saen 
in Europe. 
With rogard to beet sugar, it is generally assumed 
that the success of the industry of its manufacture 
is mainly owing to tho bounty system. The miking 
of beet sugar has, without doubt, been force 1 into 
unnatural proportions by bounties on export ition, and 
tho ultimate and inevitable heavy losses to those 
engaged in it will, for this reason alone, be only a 
question of time, uot very remote. In many instances 
the losses have already been serious, especially in 
Austria and Russia. It must not be forgotten, how- 
ever, that tho sug;vr cine industry his often been, 
an 1 is even yet at places, forced by artificial methods 
which wore and are not only as economically unsound 
and hurtful to a community as the beet bounty system, 
but inonlly hurtful also. Fifty years ago cine sugar 
was entirely grown by slave labour, aud to this day 
the gro.vers of this produce — in British Colonies 
chiefly — maintain that they cannot raise it successfully 
by really free labour; they say they require a specially 
imported low-priced labour, under restrictions — con- 
ditions entirely incompatible with what Britons deem 
to be the rights of free labour iu a free community,* 
A system of bounties for growing beet might have 
served a purpose at the time of its iuception (tho 
beginning of this century), and its continuance would 
have been less hurtful had the Governments not been 
le 1 astray by tho interested clamours of manu- 
facturers who sought illicit profits. A bounty on the 
growth of beet for home consumption only was the 
original intention, and there wis something to be 
said in its favour in those days when colonial trade 
in sugar was forced by the owners of colonies into 
certain channels by restrictive laws, and cine sugar 
was consequently scurce and dear, and held by mono- 
polists. But when beet sugar manufacturers sub- 
sequently perceived that a drawback on o.xpor'atiou 
would leivo them a larger profit duo to miscalcul- 
ations — chiefly mado purposely — of drawbacks, than 
they could obtain by the home sale, they eagerly 
seized the opportunity, and forced the export market 
to tho front; and the struggle since then has been 
chiefly in this direction. It is inexplicable how the 
enlightened Governments of Prance and Germany 
should hive allowed this development to its present 
huge proportions. The consequences are that the 
French and German, instead of profiting by the beet 
industry, are actuilly enormously heavy losers by it, 
and it wonld hive been preferable for them now 
had there never been any such industry. This is' not 
the usual view taken, but it is the true one. The 
French protect their corn industry, but only on c m- 
ditiou, or at least ou the assumed condition, that 
bread be no dearer in Paris thai in London. They 
do not Bucceed in this, becaus i the duty on corn 
and flour does enhance the price to the consumer 
very materially. Ha l the manu: a'.ture of beet sugar 
been protected as a home industry for home con- 
sumption only, like corn growing it would similarly 
cost the Fronch people a good doal to keep it up. 
But now they have not only to pay this cost, which 
meins paying in e e than douhlo it. real mark -t valoo 
for all the sugar they use, but they have been 
paving simothing like 32,000,000 francs a year to 
foreigners for taking that portion of their hona^- 
muuufactured sugar which by right they should have 
taken themselves. 
In the Unite I States the su?ar consumption is 
abou 52 lb. por heulayear. Tho am mnt of duties 
levied on sugar and molasses per hea I of population 
is about 90 CO its. But, of course, the retail i>uroh:ia»r 
will havu to pav more than this uddod duty. E.vry 
rhnrgo ad lad to tho prime cost of an article iu the 
United states enhances its ret >il cost to th" cju-.ii dt 
by nt least one-third nioro. This will make American* 
P>y a bo ut 1 dot. '20 cents per head for keeping tho 
* Tho true state of tho oasu is that nt the ram "l" 
wages demanded by tint nejroes the sugar industry 
in tho West Indies oould not bo carried on. Hunao 
bnpotttd Inbour for which employers pay.— lio. 
system on foot. This is equivalent to a tax of a 
dollars per family. Notwithstanding all hin Irances, 
the consumption of sugar is increasing ia the States, 
ami it is estimated that iu ten years, with a popu- 
lationof 70 millions wanting tho same supplies p sr li tad 
as Britons do uow, nearly do million huu Ire (weights 
of sugar will be r squired each year. This would 
necessitate an increase of about 70 per cent in the 
present cane growth of the countries which export 
cane sugar. 
Tho object for sugar growers everywhere should be 
to keep bteadily in view, and to prepare the way 
for the future supplies that will be needed iu tho 
world, and not to make offorts, which will be futile 
for any permaueut purposes of individual or national 
wealth, to restrict supplies from any quarter. The 
markets of the future will be under such conditions 
of supply and demand that the national losses mado 
by those couutries which pursue the bouaty system 
ou exports, an 1 which are being more heavily felt 
year by year, will be too great and too manifestly 
purposeless to be kept on foot, no matter how power- 
fully supported they may be by the interests which 
now profit by them. There is something to be said 
for Russia, usually not deemed more forward than 
its neighbours in economic questions, that its Govern- 
ment should have recently abandoned bounties ou 
sugar exports as soon as it became manifest to the 
understanding of its financial guides that they served 
no good purpose, while they weighed so heavily ou 
au already over-taxed population. — Scotsman. 
Jamaica. — We learn from the Colonial Standard 
that the banana cultivation in this island has sus- 
tained much damage by heavy rains which fell dur- 
ing the 22nd, 23rd and 2ith of last month. On one 
plantation alone 1,500 treos, nearly all of which 
were in bearing, were blown down. — A local Fruit 
Company has recently been started, and it is anti- 
cipated that it will be the means of breaking iu timo 
the foreign monopoly in the fruit trade which has so 
effectively kept down the petty cultivators of fruit. 
Dominican, Aug. 25th. 
That West India.v Sugar Estates unencumbered 
can be cirriel on with profit, even at the present 
low prices, we have ample proof from the trustee's 
repjrt in re the estate of Messrs. A. Am bard & Son. 
After allowing for lo9s by exchange, the working of 
tho "St. Augustin Usine," under the receiver, shows 
a surplus of 1,400/., besides the profit on the sugar 
manufactured from purchased canes. Indeed, the 
bankruptcy assets are likely to benefit to the extent 
of nearly 4,000/". through the cultivation having been 
carried on by the trustee. Then, with regard to the 
•' Trafalgar " estate, the property of Mr. L. F. Ambard 
and Mr. G. A. Oadett, the crop, about finished, 
will be 070 hogsheads of sugar and 4iX) puncheons of 
molasses, which, at S/. per hogshead aud «.!) per 
puncheon, will not about $29,000. The outlay, therefore, 
of $2,708 88, which would have been lost to the credit- 
ore had the e-itate not been carried ou, will not only 
be recouped, but there is likely to be a surplus for 
the creditors of <>1,600, which will be further in- 
creased by the proceeds of canes from outlying lands 
sold to St. Augustin Usiue. The estates of " Golden 
Grove" aud '■ Florisaute" are also expected fully to 
cover the expenses, including the extra money spent 
upou them by tho trustee. Under these circumstances, 
it is not surprising that many of the largest creditors 
on this side should be anxious that the workiug of 
the .states should be continued under the receiver 
for another year in the hope of further improvement. 
Already, we believe tha' Messrs. A. )i itfcr k Sous, 
Mr. James Nourse. Mr. Elwtrd Carpenter, ou behalf 
of tho Colonial Bank, au I Mr. B. G.Gray, on behalf 
of tho Merchant Biasing C impauy of L >ndoo, have 
sigael a document to this «tT -ot, aud an impression 
900001 to prevail th*t the majority of the continental 
and .Vm.-rictii ere iii,,-, ,vi,i m Inrn' tbi-. v. .-.v. Wo 
should aid tint it is not propose 1 that " Too St. 
Augustin Usine '' should ba continue I to be worke I 
by the trustee— Coltmia ojuI India. 
