The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1860-10-04
Correspondence Of the Pacific Commercial AdvertiserI
The Manufacture Of Sugar.

| now conn to P.'s letter dated July 2Sth. lie
ommences with an assertion which is simply not
true, for. not only was the cane not indigenous to the
West Indies nor indeed to any part of the Western
hemisphere, having been imported into Hayti by one
Pierre d'Etienne, but the English planters did not
find cane at all in the colonies. They brought it from
Brazil to Barbados in the year 164l, and from Bar
BADGES it was distributed TO the other islands. (See
Porter on the Sugar Cane, chapter 1st, and the Ency-
clopeiia Americana, Art. Sugar Cane) Nothing can
be clearer than the manner in which the progress of
the cane from East to West is traced step by step.
The name of the first importer is known, and also the
names of those who first expressed the juice and made
sugar from it in the West; and yet, in the face of
such positive evidence to the contrary, we have the
assertion that the cane was indigenous to the West
Indies and that assertion comes from one who has
put himself forward TO instruct others
With his remarks on the necessity of ascertaining
the best kinds Of cane l cordially agree; he seems,
however, to have the idea that we require a general
nursery, but l consider that each plantation ought to
try every kind of cane, as in different localities a diff
ferent growth will be observed; for instance, the white
cane grows most vigorously at Makawao, but at Ulu-
palakua, on the same island, it is altogether worthless.
The use of the saccharometer is merely a matter of
curiosity to ascertain the density of the juice, but its
leading to any material results is more than doubt
full, rs the density may be caused by the presence of
other matters besides crystallizable sugar in the juice.
Molasses may be diluted to the density of cane juice,
but that would be no sign that the former contained
rs much crystallizable matter as the latter. So with
cane juice, the density may be caused by glucose,
mucilage, gluten or other impurities, as may be in
ferred from~ the fact, that different juices of similar
density require different proportions of alkali for ella
rifcation. The instrument has been proposed as a
guide in the administration of lime, but, like the
in concentration, it is eminently calcu-
lated to mislead. The saccharometer is of really
practical use only where it is necessary to bring the
juice to a certain density for some preliminary opera
ton to concentration; or, where, rs in reineries, the
sugars are dissolved TO a certain degree of density
preparatory to filtration.
Will p. please to inform US what he means by an
(" English sa~ccharometer ;" 1t may be something
different from the one used on the islands, which is
the instrument in general use in the English and
American re6neries, and on the Louisiana planta-
tons. and is a French not an English invention, viz.
Beaume's.
If p. wishes to obtain Tahiti cane plants, he can be
accommodated at Makawao. Ulupalakua or Wailuku;
We have also saccharometers at Makawao.
I now come to his corrected run statement. He
now says that II pounds Of molasses produce only
lne-half gallon Of rum. One gallon Of molasses
weighs about IL pounds; the quantity Of molasses re-
iuirei in the production of a gallon Of rum, is there
ore % pounds, or = Gil gallons, say p. Appended
o Porter on the Sugar Cane i an extract from
lajor Moody's report to the British House Of Com
mons. giving the receints and expenses Of a planta-