PARAGRAPH 279-PINEAPPLES. BRIEF BY E. E. MILLS AND MILLS BROS., CHICAGO, ILL., ON PINEAPPLES. The COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS, House of Representatives, Sixty-second Congress. GENTLEMEN: Mr. E. E. Mills and Mills Bros., of Chicago, importers and wholesale dealers in Cuban pineapples, on behalf of their customers and the thousands of American consumers of this fruit, make the following statement and recommendation in reference to the tariff on fresh pineapples: Section No. 279 of the present tariff law provides as follows: "Pineapples, in barrels and other packages, eight cents per cubic foot of the capacity of barrels or packages; in bulk, eight dollars per thousand." We recommend that this duty be removed and that no duty whatsoever be imposed upon the importation of fresh pineapples into the United States. STATEMENT OF FACTS AND REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATION. 1. History of duty on pineapples: Act of 1890, "pineapples free, no duty"; act of 1894, "twenty per centum ad valorem." Act of 1897, "pineapples, in barrels and other packages, seven cents per cubic foot of the capacity of barrels or packages; in bulk, seven dollars per thousand." Act of 1909, section No. 279, "pineapples, in barrels and other packages, eight cents per cubic foot of the capacity of barrels or packages; in bulk, eight dollars per thousand." The standard pineapple crate is 10 by 12 by 36 inches and contains approximately 24 cubic feet, weighs approximately 80 pounds, and under the Payne-Aldrich Act as now enforced, after deducting 20 per cent on account of reciprocity with Cuba, these crates, when filled with pineapples, are assessed at a duty of 16 cents each. 2. The main sources of supply for pineapples consumed in the United States are the islands of Cuba and Porto Rico, the Hawaiian Islands, and the State of Florida. The only portion of the United States in which pineapples are now raised is a small section on the east coast of Florida, and here the fruit is raised under practically artificial conditions, and the climate of this portion of the State of Florida is such that the temperature is so low at times as to produce freezing, and this condition is at any time apt to ruin the entire pineapple crop, and there is no other soil or climate now known in the United States suitable to the raising of pineapples otherwise than under these same hothouse conditions as at present prevail in Florida. Enormous quantities of fertilizer are required before the Florida land can be made to grow pineapples, and this must be renewed yearly, and, while it is possible to raise pineapples in Florida, they are raised practically under artificial and hothouse conditions and at high expense. Bananas could be raised in Florida under the same artificial conditions, and it would be just as reasonable to have a high duty on bananas, so that they could be raised in Florida at a profit were it not for the fact that bananas have been heretofore more widely consumed than pineapples, and to increase the cost of bananas would immediately cause a protest from the thousands of consumers all over the United States. In the tariff hearings before the Committee on Ways and Means of the Sixtieth Congress held in November, 1908, testimony was submitted to that committee by the growers of pineapples in Florida and their different associations, advancing their reasons why the tariff on pineapples should be increased (see the tariff hearings under Schedule G at pages 4048 to 4069, inclusive, held before the Committee on Ways and Means of the Sixtieth Congress), and we are setting forth as a part of this brief certain portions of the testimony given by these gentlemen at that time. Particular attention was directed at the former hearing to the fact that nearly all of the parties asking an increased duty on pineapples were Republicans of Florida. If these parties appear again before your committee we are anxious to know whether they will advance again as one of the reasons for increasing the duty or retaining the present increased duty the fact that they are Republicans. As Republicans, they might contend consistently that they have the right to increase the cost of every pineapple consumed by the people of this country in order to support an industry not fitted to their land and climate, but will they make this argument to a Democratic Congress placed in office by an overwhelming majority of the voters who look to it to use its best endeavors to give all the people fair treatment and, if possible, to lower the cost of living? 3. In order to prove to your committee that the raising of pineapples in Florida is accomplished under the most avderse conditions and at the highest possible cost, we desire to quote certain portions of the testimony given by the Florida growers before the Ways and Means Committee of the Sixtieth Congress, as follows: PARAGRAPH 279-PINEAPPLES. Mr. E. P. Porcher of Cocoa, Fla., representing the Florida pineapple growers, makes the following statement (see pp. 4052, 4053, hearings on Schedule G): "The matter of pineapples is the point that I want to touch on forcibly, although I may repeat in part statements that have been made. We produced last season on the east coast 690,000 crates, while the importations from Cuba were about 840,000 crates. In addition to that we had importations from the Hawaiian Islands which have not been mentioned at all. We had importations from Porto Rico, and we had importations from Jamaica to contend with. "The pineapple situation with us is such on the east coast that we produce out of that 690,000 crates, 640,000 crates; in other words, all the rest of the State produces but 50,000 crates. That is produced now on the mainland because the storm of a few years ago swept away the products of the keys. It is in a section of the country where it has been necessary to go to extreme expenditures in the matters of not only preparing the land, which has been done, but in the cost of fertilization, which runs up as high as 4,000 pounds per acre per annum. In addition to that, with the increased cost of labor, the increased cost of crate material, we find that about an average of 90 cents, even running up to $1.10 according to other averages made, is the cost to produce a crate of pineapples and deliver it on board the cars. The pineapple industry is more subject to frost than oranges, and for a frost to get into an orange tree requires what we term a freeze, but a frost will get into the pineapples just as it would into a tomato plant, for it is a very tender plant. "Now, that section of Florida has this competition with Cuba: The Cuban product starts in a little earlier, but it practically continues throughout the season, barring only severe rains, which make their fruit not carry well. When those rains pass they start picking again, and they are enabled with this present tariff to get their product in and take the markets away from us to a degree that we are not able to make reasonable profit on the result. And under those circumstances we are going to ask you gentlemen to accord us the same rate that is applied upon citrus fruits at the present time, which certainly will not be excessive. "And, just as a wind-up, I would like to say that the question has been brought up by one of the gentlemen here, touching upon the question of the Board of Trade of Jacksonville, and I would like to say that there are two points with reference to that. Our association is three-quarters Republican, and the Board of Trade of Jacksonville is no doubt half, or possibly five-eighths or three-quarters, Republican. But let me go further, gentlemen, and say this to you--that if you will eliminate the three clauses- the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth amendments to the Constitutionthat we object to in the South we would not have any Democratic Party." The same gentleman, again representing the Indian River and Lake Worth Pineapple Growers' Association of Florida, on December 1, 1908, submitted a supplemental statement, in which he says (see pp. 4058, 4059, hearings on Schedule G): "The cost of production with us is heavy; and with the price of land at $100 per acre, the cost of clearing and preparation more than equaling the original cost, with no other product possible on this land except pineapples, with fertilizers used at the rate of 4,000 pounds to an acre per annum, and with labor receiving from $1.25 to $2.50 per day, we are in need of a fair protection against the cheap lands and labor that produce the foreign pineapple. "It is shown that the cost of producing a crate of pineapples, f. o. b. cars, is from 70 to 90 cents per crate, this cost varying with soil and weather conditions; and it should be borne in mind that after caring for these plants eight years at an annual yearly cost these fields have to be replanted, with as high or higher cost per acre for removing the old plants, preparing the land anew, and replacing some of the lost humus, as was the original cost of the land." Mr. F. G. McMullen, of Walton, Fla., who desired an increase in the duty on pineapples in his statement (see pp. 4053, 4060, hearings on Schedule G), says as follows: "Now, with respect to the pineapple situation, I will say that it is a little bit out of its native element as to soil in Florida. We run some chance in having our investments swept out of sight in one night by a freeze. But the industry has been established there for the past 25 or 30 years, though some 15 years ago it only amounted to about 90,000 crates. Up to that time the Cuban pineapple did not compete with us after the 20th of May; that is when the rainy season started in; the fruit would not carry, so they could not ship. They are now planting on high land, and are able to compete with us throughout the entire shipping season of Florida. "Relative to the cost of production in Cuba, we have the statement of the Cuban Horticultural Society reports, which states that they can produce for 20 cents a crate. PARAGRAPH 279-PINEAPPLES. We can not produce a crate of pineapples in Florida under 70 cents under the most favorable conditions, in the field, not packed, and on up to 90 cents. We strike an average of 75 or 80 cents. "Now, we only have one advantage in Florida, and that is by fertilizing, our fruit carries up and holds up better. After their rainy season sets in their fruit does not command the price that ours does, but they have five or six weeks' advantage in the earliest market, during which time we are not competing with them. After the 20th of May or the 1st of June, and the rain starts in-it is not that the Cuban pineapples make most of the money after that time, but because of the cheap cost of production, the cheap transportation; they ship everything. I understand that from 40 to 60 per cent of the crop goes into New York after that time, showing much waste. "Now, a 70-cent duty on pineapples would not be prohibitive. That would not put us on a parity with the cost of production in Cuba. I am not speaking of the immense amount of money that it takes to produce an acre of pineapples in Florida. If we have a duty on there, I do not believe it would be an injustice to the Cuban producer, for he keeps shipping and shipping and shipping, and is dumping and dumping and dumping, putting a cheap article on the market, which only makes a glut, so that it is almost impossible for the Florida producer to go into Chicago or New York territory. "That land can not be applied to the growing of anything else, for it will not produce anything else. We have practically to produce our pineapples with fertilizer." "Mr. BOUTELL. To what extent are you canning fruit in Florida? "Mr. MCMULLEN. None at all. "Mr. BOUTELL. Why not? "Mr. MCMULLEN. It is on account of the price of labor; and then again the supply of fruit is not sufficient to keep the canneries running. We have nothing to keep the industry going all the year round. The fruit comes in by itself, and it is in a territory by itself, and if we shipped we could not pay the local freight of 25 cents per crate. "Mr. BOUTELL. Then you can not have canned pineapples down there? "Mr. MCMULLEN. No, sir. "Mr. BOUTELL. How are they eaten; are they eaten raw? "Mr. MCMULLEN. Yes, sir." Mr. McMullen, representing the Indian River Pineapple Growers' League, on December 1, 1908, making a supplemental statement asking for increased tariff on pineapples (see pp. 4060, 4061, hearings on Schedule G), says: "GENTLEMEN: The Indian River Pineapple Growers' League is a voluntary association whose purpose is to secure better commercial conditions for the Florida pineapple industry. This association during the past year endeavored, before the Interstate Commerce Commission, to have the freight rates reduced, which decision will be referred to later. "A pineapple crate measures 10 by 12 by 36 inches and contains 2 cubic feet; weighs 80 pounds when packed. "The cost to establish an acre of Florida pineapple is "After a field is established there is an annual charge as follows: For fertilizers.... Labor and depreciation $70 75 145 "The Florida pineapple is somewhat out of its natural element as to soil and requires a large amount of fertilizer, and through this demand helps in a large way other American industries. PARAGRAPH 279-PINEAPPLES. "The pineapple is in no sense a necessity, but a luxury, and for this reason will be purchased by its regular consumers at a fair price; hence the amount of duty received by this Government if the present duty is increased to 1 cent per pound will be $640,000. This great benefit to the Government will impose no hardship and will be paid willingly, and at the same time protect a large American industry which consumes a large amount of American products in its production.' The honorable Commissioner Prouty says, page 502, before the Interstate Commerce Commission, Florida Fruit and Vegetable Shippers' Protective Association v. Atlantic Coast Line Railway Co. et al: "Pineapples are imported in large quantities into the United States from Cuba. They come by water to various Atlantic ports and are transported from there to interior destinations, and they are also brought into the gulf ports, reaching the Middle West and as far east as Buffalo by this route. The cost of water transportation is low and the rates made to interior points, especially from the gulf, are also low. It is said that the low cost of labor in Cuba, the natural fertility of the soil, which requires no fertilizer, the abundant crop, enable the Cuban pineapple to drive its American competitor from our markets, and that unless the rates of transportation are reduced in Florida the industry in that State can not sustain itself. "It is no business of these defendants and no part of the duty of this commission to establish such railway rates as will, at all hazard, enable the American products to compete with foreign product. Undoubtedly these competitive conditions must be considered and rates made, when that can properly be done, which will enable the traffic to move, but when reasonable rates have been established it is for Congress to say whether the foreign products shall be admitted to our market. If the present duty is not sufficient these defendants can not be required to reduce their charges for the purpose of keeping out the foreign article. "The pineapple is mostly owned by people who have come from the Northern States and represent every State north of the Potomac River and west of Colorado. The majority of these people are Republicans and favor a protective tariff. Why should Republicans in Florida in favor of a protective tariff not have it on an industry they largely control?" We call your attention, particularly, to the statement above showing that the pineapple growers of Florida state that the pineapple is in no sense a necessity, but is a luxury and for this reason will be purchased by its regular customers at a fair price We submit that this statement should not be correct. The pineapple is not as much of a luxury as the peach or the pear because the pineapple, like the banana, is raised the year round, can be used the year round and is not confined to any two or three months of the year, and is in the market at all times in some form. It should be a part of the bill of fare of the most humble laborer and is only placed in the class of a luxury to adorn the tables of the rich by the greedy advocates of a high tariff. Why convert a pleasant article of food that should be common and cheap into a luxury by the imposition of a tax? Why attempt to grow an article of food not suited to the soil or climate under artificial conditions when the same fruit can be grown under natural conditions at a cost that will allow its daily use by every citizen of the United States? Why not let the growers of Florida raise crops suited to their soil and climate? 4. The above statements clearly show that the growth of pineapples in Florida is under artificial conditions requiring the greatest expenditure of time and money, and that the present tariff was imposed to enable the Florida growers of pines to carry on a business not suited to their lands or climate. The result has been to increase the cost of pines to the consumers, lessen their use due to higher prices to the consumer, and reduce the natural production in Cuba, where this fruit can be produced at a minimum cost. This high-tariff procedure may please the Florida grower, but how about the ordinary citizen of the United States who desires to use this health-giving fruit as a part of the daily diet for his family and who wants to secure it cheaply, without paying tribute to a hothouse industry. Why not let the east coast Florida land owner raise crops that were intended by nature to be grown in his climate and on his soil? Why not treat the pineapple like the banana and give the American consumer the benefit of this fruit at the lowest price and thereby reduce the cost of living? 5. Cuban pineapples do not in any particular degree conflict with the Florida pineapples for the reason that the heavy part of the crop of Cuban pineapples begins to arrive in the United States from about the 15th of March to the 1st of April, and the heavy part of the crop of Florida pineapples begins to reach the markets on the last of May-after the bulk of the Cuban pineapples are gone. What Cuban pineapples come after the last of May invariably are sold to the canners of Baltimore, who do not 78959°-VOL 3-13-63 PARAGRAPH 279-PINEAPPLES. buy Florida pineapples for canning purposes, because of their inferior quality for canning, and because of the difference in quality and time of maturity they can scarcely be said to be competitors of each other; so why increase the cost of Čuban pines by any duty? The attention of the committee is called to the well-known fact that the Cuban fruit is considered the best and most suitable in the market for canning purposes, and the market relies upon Cuba for fruit for such purposes. The present high tariff greatly restricts this canning industry and adversely affects the interests of the canners of pineapples, as well as every housewife who now wishes to can pineapples as she cans peaches and pears. The largest canners of pineapples in the United States are located in Baltimore, and on January 6, 1909, through Hon. Isidor Rayner, then United States Senator, submitted their petition to the Committee on Ways and Means of the Sixtieth Congress (see pp. 4068, 4009, hearings on Schedule G), in which they say: COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS, Washington, D. C. GENTLEMEN: The Canned Goods Exchange of Baltimore is composed of individuals, firms, and corporations engaged in the canning of fruits, vegetables, and oysters. The largest canners of pineapples in the United States are located in Baltimore and are members of this body. Your honorable committee is petitioned by this exchange to recommend to this Congress the abolition of the duty on fresh pineapple (pineapples in their natural state). About 15 years ago a duty of $7 per thousand was laid upon fresh pineapple. The State of Florida had just then entered upon the cultivation of the fruit. It was thought at that time the State would be able to supply at least a quantity equal to that which was being imported from Cuba and the Bahama Islands, hence the duty. But Florida has never yet grown near a sufficient quantity of pineapples to supply the demand of the United States. At this time the importations from Cuba and the Bahamas exceed the Florida output by more than 50 per cent. No dependence can be placed on the Florida crop from one season to another. The growing fruit is in continual danger from frosts and cold weather, which have practically ruined the entire crop in past years. We learn, also, the area for cultivation is very small and can not be increased. For manufacturing purposes we must needs depend upon Cuba for a full supply. The Bahamas furnish but a small portion of fresh pineapples, though a large quantity of the canned pineapple is imported from the latter islands, the duty being reckoned at 25 per cent ad valorem. This condition makes the present duty very burdensome to the manufacturer in the United States. Your committee must know that very large quantities of pineapples are canned in the Hawaiian Islands, as also in the Island of Porto Rico, and that this canned pineapple is admitted in the United States free of duty. The large quantities of fresh pineapples annually grown in both these islands and the very low cost of labor required to produce the finished article (canned pineapple) make it almost impossible for the Baltimore canner to compete with this pineapple of foreign growth. We learn from the newspapers a petition has been presented your committee from the Florida growers asking that the duty on fresh pineapple be advanced. We frankly state if this is done it will actually prohibit the packing of pineapples in this city and render useless the plants of the firms engaged in this great industry. We feel as if the canning industry of Baltimore City should at least be on a parity with the large importations of canned pineapple from foreign soil and that we should not be subjected to an extra cost of production by the payment of a duty which at once cuts out the manufacturer from all competition. We therefore pray your honorable committee to strike out entirely the duty on the fresh pineapple coming from the Bahama Islands and the island of Cuba, making the importation of fresh pineapple into the United States entirely free. GEORGE T. PHILLIPS, President Canned Goods Exchange of Baltimore. In the former hearings before the Committee on Ways and Means in 1908, the Florida growers charged that one of the reasons that they were unable to compete with the Cuban growers of pineapples was that the freight rates from Habana to the market were less than freight rates from Florida to the market, and in this testimony they set forth that they were charged from a point in Florida to Jacksonville a rate of 25 cents per crate, and that this rate took away from them the opportunity to make any profit on a crate of pineapples. We submit that if this the case, that it is unfair to raise and |