Abbeville press. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1860-1869, 1866-06-22
HOW SUGAR Is MADE.

fsctiop. BY the timo the crop is ready,
the mill and all tho machinery have been
carefully examined, the walls OF the boil
ing house white washed, aud the pans and
tanks cleaned and cleared Of tho thou-
sands OF rats and cockroaches which have
been attracted to them by the remains Of
molasses.
Tho few days before work begins arc
kept as holiday by black and white alike
time even for necessary sleep being hard,
to he had after that date.
In reaping each cane is taken of with
a knife as close as possible to the root,
cut into two or three pieces Of about a
yard long, and then thrown back, to bo
gathered into bundles by the attendant
women and children, and carried in bull
lock carts to the mill. There it is passed.
under iron or steel rollers, from which it
comes out in the form Of crushed mass,
having yielded, however, little more than
half its juice-an amount Of WAS te which
it has hitherto been found impossible to
materially lessen.
Tho juice is now thin green fluid
closely resembling tho white of an egg,
and capable, like that, Of throwing up a
great proportion Of semi-solid matter when
submitted 10 great heat. This is effected
by passing tho liquid from one to another
Of series of copper pans ranged over
fiue which extends for forty or fifty feet
from the furnace at one end Of the sugar
house 10 the chimney at the other.
AS soon as the juices grown warm in
the first of these, little cream of lime is
added, which congulate and brings to tho
surface the vegetable alb,men, at the
same timo changing the color from green
to yellow.
w hen the scum is removed, the iuice ia
ladlod into the next vessel, until, as the
evaporation proceeds, tho thickenei syrup
finally arrives Mt tho smallest pan, which
is placed directly over the furnace How
long it should remain in this last stage is
matter OF extreme nicely only to be-
learned by experience, but az soon as it
has boiled sufficiently, it is turned out into
shallow wooden trough and left to cool.
When cool the contents, now dark brown
mixture Of sugar and molssses, are put
into casks with perforated bottoms, through
which the molasses drains away. After
thirty days of this discipline, the sugar is
considered as sufficiently puro for ship
ment, and the casks are closed up. Sugar
thus prepared IS known to tho trade as
| I'm uscavado."
Another aud better class goes by the
name Of "clayed," and with this different
process is adopted in the lattar stages of
the manufacture. Instead Of being put
into the cooling trough, the juioe is at
once tnrned in'o cone-shaped moulds of
metal or earthenw are, holding from 80 ID.
to l2O lb. each. These are turned upside
down, and n mixture Of clay and mortar
spread on each. The molasses drains away
through the apex, and the water dripping
from tho clay percolates through, the sugar
and helps to carry away much Of the i'm.
pure and colored matter, which is consider
ably moro soluble than sugar itself.
The object Of mixing clay with the wa
ter is to make the passage Of the latter
more gradual, and so diminish the other
wise enormous waste. In one or other Of
these forms most Of tho sugar we import
reaches here.
Tho conversion iuto this purcr state is
usually effected in this country, as, to be
successful, it needs greater mechanical
skill and more complete mechanical appli.
ances than are to be found in tho West
Indies. The process commences on the
7 top story oftheir refinery, where the sugar
is first collected in heaps, ''and then shovel.
ed into a rectangular iron vessel capable Of
holding thousand or more gallons, called
tho "blow-up.cistern." Water is then
; turned on at tho same time, and the whole
rapidly heated to boiling point by the
passage of a current of steam.
@Blowing up" causes great deal Of
scumto rise to tho surface, especially
whom, as it is the case with all but the We
! ry purest sugars, bullock's blood, or, as the
!, re6ners call il, "spiee,' is added to tho mix
ture. Phis scum is remov ed by filtration.
, the liquid being turned from the cistern in
} to q shallow tank, whence it passe:
, through a series Of canvass bags, and
when perfectly bright, is allowed to flow
on to bed of animal charcoal. Il is now