dent delivery certificates, and now that every kind of sugar is subject to a 60 fr. duty. No premium is paid, of course, on raw sugar for export which has paid no duty and which is accompanied by a permit. Duty-paid raw sugar and refined sugar are entitled to a rebate certificate of exportation which represents exactly the value of the duty paid, viz., 60 fr. per 100 kilog. refined.

There has therefore never been any indirect bounty on exported sugar since the abolition of the system enacted by the law of 8th May, 1864, and the system of nuances, i.e., since 1875.

VII.

Direct Bounties on Export.

THE law of April 7th, 1897, gave direct bounties on sugar export, and remittances of duty on sugar which had come from afar (détaxe de distance), or on sugar carried by coasting vessels (détaxe de cabotage). To cover this, the same law imposed a refinery tax of 4 fr. per 100 kilog., and a manufacturer's tax of 1 fr. per every 100 kilog. of raw sugar which is not sent to the refinery. Exported sugar is not subject to these taxes; on the contrary, the law grants bounties of 3 fr. 50, 4 fr. and 4 fr. 50, according to quality, on all sugar for export. But it is specified by article 12, that if during the season more money was thus paid out, than would be received from the taxes put on manufacturers and refiners, the quota of the premiums for the coming season would be such as to reimburse the Treasury for the difference between payments and receipts under this head. According to that same article, 12, the reduction of the scale of premiums is decided upon by the Cabinet, whose decision. must meet with Parliament's assent.

In 1897-98, the premiums were granted in their entirety, but a deficit of 4,079,000 fr. was discovered at the end of July, 1898. Hence, on August the 18th, 1898, it was decreed that premiums for 1898-99 would be reduced to 2 fr. 42, 2 fr. 77, and 3 fr. 11. For July, 1899, the balance sheet showed still a debit of 2,441,000 fr., so on August 10th, 1899, it was decreed that premiums for 1899-1900, would be respectively 2 fr. 76, 3 fr. 16, and 3 fr. 50 per 100 kilog.; then on August 14th, 1900, another decree put them to 2 fr. 22, 2 fr. 54, and 2 fr, 86, for 1900-1901.

In the report which prefaces the decree, it is stated that the deficit which has to be made good for 1900-1901, is computed at 7,160,000 fr. From the first of August, 1899, to the 31st July, 1900, the quantity of sugar exported, benefiting by the export bounty, amounted to 490,409,000 kilog.

VIII.

Détaxe de distance and détaxe de cabotage.

THE law of April 7th, 1897, grants other premiums, such as the détaxe de distance, amounting to 2 fr. 25 per 100 kilog. of refined sugar from the French West Indian colonies and 2 fr. 50 from other French colonies. The result of this rebate is to draw the sugar from its natural market. The French West Indies instead of sending their sugar to the United States and Réunion, instead of sending her product to Mauritius, or India, or Australia, ship to France. The aim of the law is, of course, to favour the refiners at the French seaports.

Raw sugar, travelling from a French seaport on the Channel to a seaport on the Atlantic or the Mediterranean, with the object of being exported from there after it has been refined, enjoys a premium of 2 fr. This

is called the détaxe de cabotage. This premium is likewise granted on sugar coming from a factory which is situated 250 kilometres from the seaport where it is to be refined and exported. For refiners in the interior the distance is increased to 300 kilometres as the crow flies. But nearly all sugar factories are situated at less than 300 kilometres from the inland refineries. There are consequently in France two duties on sugar; 60 fr. for the refineries at Paris, 58 fr. for the refineries at the seaports-plus the tax on refining, which is 4 fr. in both

cases.

IX.

The Legislation on Refineries since 1864.

IT is, perhaps, not unnecessary to give here in a few words the history of the legislation on refineries since 1864. This will show that the various legislative measures have been influenced by sugar manufacturers who, while pretending to defend the interests of the agriculturists, complain always that the price of beetroot is too high, and that refiners take advantage of them.

In 1864 a conference was held in Paris with the object of submitting to the same regulations all refined sugar exported from France, Belgium, Holland, or Great Britain. The outcome of this conference was a convention for ten years. When, by the laws of July 8th, 1871, and January 22nd, 1872, duties on sugar were increased by 50 per cent., bounties granted to refiners were increased at the same rate. The refiners in England began to complain, and the sugar manufacturers in France joined the Englishmen. They, the French manufacturers, were submitted to the severest control from the excise authorities, whereas the refiners were getting a rebate of duty on the four standard types on exportation.

French manufacturers supported the English refiners in order to get their custom, and in order to create a competition between the English and French refiners for their sugars.

*

Conferences were held in Paris in 1872 and 1873, but proved abortive. French refiners continued to benefit largely from rebates on refined sugar, and to increase their exports, which amounted to 143,000 tons in 1872, 154,000 tons in 1873, and 188,000 tons in 1874. According to some valuations it was estimated that the loss to the treasury through refiners' rebates amounted to 20 million francs.

By the law of March 21st, 1872, excise supervision was imposed on all refineries. But that law was not put into operation at once on account of other international conferences. By the law of December 30th, 1875, saccharimetry was substituted for the type system, and thus the refiners escaped from excise supervision, though they lost some of their advantages under the old system. But the classification system was not abolished. The duty or the yield applicable to each class corresponded with an intermediate range between the limits of that class. Thus the class, comprising Nos. 7, 8, and 9, which were legally stipulated to yield 80 per cent., included sugar ranging from 76 to 84. Of course the refiner tried to get from the manufacturers a sugar as near as possible At the same time the manufacturer was induced to manufacture low class sugars, as these, including a good many numbers of range, gave a wider margin for the work of the refiner. In order to get the high premiums granted to these sugars, they had to be put en admission temporaire, and sent abroad as refined sugar. From 1875 to 1878 the average exports of refined sugar were 185,000 tons, whereas exports of raw sugar decreased from 92,000 tons in 1875 to 22,000 tonsin 1879.

to 84.

* See Dictionnaire des Finances, article Sucres. By Messrs. Dechaud et Boizard.

The manufacturers insisted on excise supervision in the refineries as well, but the government was afraid to risk the arrest of our exportations by having recourse to it. It therefore tried to aid home consumption by removing part of the duty. In this the law of July 19th, 1880, was quite successful. On the other hand it had abolished the class system and enacted that, for the future, raw sugar would be dutiable, according to the probable yield in the refinery as determined by the analysis of the saccharimeter. Manufacturers who had the benefit of the surplus yield, as established by the law of 1884, insisted on all refineries being subjected to excise supervision. They obtained this by the law of August 6th, 1890, followed by a decree of July 25th, then by the law of July 26th, and the decree of August 30th, 1893.

This régime has not shown the dutiable surplus yields, but it caused the suppression of the working of molasses in the refineries, and a decrease of French exports.

X.

The Law of 1897 and the Refiners.

THE authors of the law of 1897 declared openly that that law which gave a direct export bounty was directed against the refiners. M. Gadaud was careful to point out in his report that "the refining industry was more important in the amount of business it transacted than in the number of its representatives," which implied of course we need not be afraid of dealing with this industry, for it cannot produce any electoral action." He was quite indignant at the idea that anyone could suppose that "the law had been framed so as to favour refiners, for if it were so, we should have to acknowledge

66