Chadbourne Home

Back from Europe last week came tall, handsome Thomas Lincoln Chadbourne, the able Manhattan lawyer who undertook to play daddy to the Cuban sugar industry by obtaining a production agreement among the sugar producers of all the world. Long and laborious have been his efforts (TIME, Aug. 18 et seq.). At a conference in Amsterdam he accomplished the difficult task of convincing the men who control the huge East Indian sugar crop. In Brussels he drew an agreement from the beet sugar growers of Europe although all were frightened by the bogey of "Russian dumping," a bogey which made cooperation seem futile. Then he saw his plan verge on failure when the German delegation marched stubbornly back to Berlin. In Paris last month he was told that the Germans were ready to hear from him again. A compromise was soon reached.

In essence, the Chadbourne plan is simple. Its quota scheme provides that each country shall reduce production for the next five years by the extent to which there was overproduction last year. In addition, one-fifth of the accumulated surplus of each country each year will be regarded as new production for five years. For example, Cuba in 1929-30 produced 4,670,000 tons, which exceeded consumption by 800,000 tons. Its surplus is 1,500,000 tons, which will be marketed at the rate of 300,000 tons a year. Production will be reduced by the sum of excess production. Thus the marketable quota will be restricted to 3,570,000 tons.

In addition to Cuba having a surplus of 1,500,000 tons, Java has a surplus of 500,000 tons, Europe one of 2,184,000.

The biggest European stock of sugar is in Germany where 812,000 tons are available for export. Czechoslovakia has 761,000 tons; Poland, 428,000; Hungary, 109,000; Belgium, 74,000. By Cuban and Javanese cooperation, a way had been found to eliminate all but 200,000 tons of the 1,350,000 world surplus production. The balance was done away with by cutting Europe's quota from 1,445,000 to 1,229,000, or about 15%.

From Paris, Lawyer Chadbourne went to London, was surprised to find there that a Soviet delegate approved of the plan, promised to help. The U. S. S. R. needs sugar, yet exports it because the need for money is greater. Mr. Chadbourne will attempt to obtain a loan on Russian sugar. Said he: "I anticipate little difficulty. . . . United States banks have not lost a cent on Russian short term loans for the last eight years." To European sugarmen this slaughter of the Russian bogey represented an amazing accomplishment. When Mr. Chadbourne embarked he said: "I will return to Europe within six months, after I have had a rest. I have spent the last six months working 15 hours daily, including Sunday. . . . My Cuban friends, fortified by the cooperation of the entire sugar world, may face the future with full confidence." By "Cuban friends," Mr. Chadbourne really meant the U. S. tycoons who have invested $750,000,000 in Cuban sugar companies, either personally or through certain banks. Next step of the Chadbourne Plan will be to form an international commission with the power to revise export quotas as world prices change. This commission will also attempt to increase the consumption of sugar in countries where it is low, particularly China. Countries joining in the agreement will have to enact laws giving their governments control over ex ports. But these problems loom slight against the original problem of getting all the sugar countries to sacrifice some of their own interests for the common cause.

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