London, Mar. 5.)
Viscount Elibank, in the Hous of Lords to-day, urged publication of the report of the Commission which inquired into the condition of the West Indian sugar industry. He complained that the Chancellox of the Exchequer would not state his: policy on this question, Lord Passfield, Secretary for the Colonies, said he was unable to reveal secrets of the forthcoming Budget. He could say nothing about the policy of the government on this question, save to repeat the assure ance that, so long as the tax' om sugar remained, there would be no, of the preference given'
dian sugar, He yielded to none, he said, in this estimate of the gravity of the:
colonies. it in all sugar producing Lord Passfield pointed out that overproduction of sugar throughout the world amounted to between one and two million tons. The difficult ies of the West Indian planters were thereforegnot only due to apprehension about the preference granted by Great Britain being withdrawn when the Chancellor of the Exchequer made "his Budget statement on April 14. The poste tion was such that it might not ba within the power of the Gover ment to find a remedy. There wi hope of persuading the Chane cellor to bridge the enormous gap between world prices of sugar and the cost of production in the West Indies and Mauritius.
"The Government was not" only ready but eager to give any, assistance which might be practice able to enable the West Indian growers to reduce their costs of production, but there seemed to be little possibility of so. reducing costs as to enable them to produce at the world-price at the present Until the Government had to a decision as to what they were going to do, they would not publish the report of the Commise sion asked for by Viscount Elibank, Wireless through Reuter.
Tariff on Cuban Sugar Increased Havana, Mar, 5, It is officially stated' that 1,761, 000 tons of sugar to date, a dec compared the corres period of last yenr.—Reuter Washington, Mar, The Senate has increased the tariff on Cuban raw sugar to two cents per Ib. It has rejected a pro posal for a direct bounty to domestic sugar-growers and manufacturers, The House of Representatives has already voted for an increase in the tariff on Cuban raw sugar to cents per Ib. The rate, which between that and the tariff of two cents voted by the Senate, is to be discussed by a committee appointed for that purpose—Reuter,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.