New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1871-04-15
BEET SUGAR IN ENGLAND
PROFITABLE EXPERIMENT CONDITIONS On
SUCCESS 49, PROGRESS OF THE EEEr srn.
INDUSTRY IN EUROPE
ON
IFROM OUR owns CORRESPONDENT

INDUSTRY IN EUROPE '"
| IRROh OUR Own CORRESPONDENT
LONDON, March i8.-'Ihe great success ~ ~,
beet sugar culture on tho Continent has begun 10 e,t,
attention IN England. Some experiments have -.
been made. and enterprising farmers are p,sbtn, .,
quiries into the feasibility OF attempting the cui,,..
the sugar beet and the Manufacture OF tho suga, on
largo scale. II Is well understood that nothing can =,
done except by considerable outlay, and thu, II "a no,
worth while 10 20 into the business IN drble,s To-.
considerable experiment OF which have heard i, tia, -,
Mr.. Duncan, at Layenham, in Suffolk who made ,soa
tuns Of beet sugar astyear began four years ago.
ddNe moro better each year, and sets down his ,t
! a. commercial success Scientific looking iDt.
the subject and paper has been read before the socet,
Arts b. Or. VOelcker y. r. g. filed with facts Of tho
highest interest the English farmer. discussion en-
sued and from the report Of thai, and Of Mr. Clrd,s
speech and u Dr. yoeckes paper, collect the folov.
ing facts:
First can sugar be grown In EngaDdi In other Words
arc the conditions 81 climate and so favorable 10 tho
production Of beet which, taking the average OF SEQ
sons. shall be rich enoligh in sugar 10 Dc probably
manufactured on the Continent Is settled INA. Zee,
sugar can compete successfully with cane sugar Prot
yoelckers analysis Of English roots shows that they give
an equal yield OF sugar with those OF the Connenthls
result being obtained from Mr.. Duncans crops, and
proving that the coil % Layenham and The climate q
suffolk give the desired product. AZ 10 tIo cost % pro-
cheaper labor about the same coal which enters largely
into the question OF manufacture Is about the sans
TIE roots themselves. however, are about one tenh
dearer Experiments IN cultivation ofthe sugar bed have
been tried also in Ireland by Mr. Agar Ellis On 0srent
farms on Lord Cl.!On's estate IL Kilkenny, upon deep
heavy coils limestone mari Nine specimens ,10wa
IN 1867 yielded rs per cent Of cryatailized sugar.
The following year better, giving as
average Of 1913 per cent from ten ~ 'inens.
At Iayenham in 1870 the produce OF clean oos
was from Il 70 Il tuns 1hcy fcchc: s. tun.
and though the farmers Gid not think their profit ccat
one they al agreed 20 supply Mr. Duncans factory this
year at the same price. They report thcs crop lxhs
one the suglrbeet rather difficult than the
uangeI and costing to harvest. After the sugar
has been extracted they repurchase the squeezed pulp
at 8 a tIn Dr. VOelCker estimates that one tun II this
pnIp EQUALS one and IA half OF beet 50 that in effect ths
farmer buys back for 8 beet pulp equivalent for - Hing
and manure 10 beets that ne had previously sold 20
Then can the land bear the continued removal " thu
beet cg0pl DR.. VOelcker's answer is thit me beet
much less exhausting than tho potato, since quantity
OF pulp of which the feeding yalue Is nearly equal 70
onethrd Of the whole crop back 20 the farm.
has been found or the Continent that whore the beet cub
ture has been prOftaby introduced there has been IN
increased production Of wheat and fat cattle in the SAINT
districts Possibly the price Of meat may rise 50 hiss
in En- Gland that it will pay better to feed the roots 70
cattle than 70 make them into sugar. bu d.. Yoec'1Ts
belief is that and cattle can be produced together
still more adyautagcOusly.
OF course, 1t Is not in al parts Of England or
Ireland that this culture be carried on July,
II il not likely to In the moist districts Expert
monts in Deyonshire have failed, owing 10 the superb
hundauce OF water in the soil. Kilkenny, where IN
Ellis worked much drer than the average OF Ireland
The best soil "is deep. good soil, not pea'y-al the
better chalk-deep, and inclining TO heavy and
Tins po-sessiug resources OF potash" Whether near
railway or OF little consequence, a. roots VIII not
bear cost Of transportation more than few mes' This
difficulty about carriage has been met IN France by er-
tracing the Juice where the beet Il grown and convey
Ing it to the factory through iron pipes and Dr. Vocker
thns that this system which Is precisely that Of large
cheese factories. in the end lead TO the abandon
mont Of small factories.
And this brings to the cost OF manufacture Large
factories the cheapest. The smallest that can %
expected 10 pay requires capital OF $4,000 IL VIII no'
do 70 rely on converting the beet into syrup since the
syrup T. not always easily saa5e. If shere Il goed
supply OF roots 100000 may be proGtaby invested in
factory IL has been found that the increase Of profit
bears exact ratio to the increase OF capital up
certain point. Thus, II factory making 600 tuns gves
profit OF 81 80 tun, factory making 1000 tuns ought
10 give profit Of O. rs tun, and one OF 5000 tuns n
The limit depends on the supply OF beets but maybe
extended by the system OF pipes aforementioned
Mr. Duncans capital employed last year in the man
ufacture at Lavenham 10000 and his net prohti
IS per cent. I'm addition 10 equal sum written on fo'
interest and depreciation. Mr.. Duncans testimony Is OF
the highest value. being that OF man who Il D"
heorzing but experimenting What he says Is, that his
factory was capable Of converting much larger qusn'
tty roots, and that the net return would have bees
greater II he could have had all the roots he wanted
But he considers the last seasons yield OF sugar above
the average. ." He feels entire confidence after tnes
years experience in the quality ofhe roots producedh
that part OF country being quite equal 10 the average Of
the Continent and that the conversion OF such roots ints
sugar will prove successful operation If conducted with
economy AMI skil.'
II can hardly be necessary explain that the fscss
and estimates above given relation TO the manufacture
OF the sugar are derived except in the Of SIR Dan
can and Mr. Agar Ellis, from Continental experience
does not appear from Dr. Yoecker pasr that any otha
important experiments have yet been made In England
The whole subject Is here, and the proyerbia
unwingness OF the English and especially OF the aver
age English farmer, to make change In their ha0ltS
will render the general introduction OF the sugarbees
culture and manufacture slow operation. There are,
however large capitalists among the hrmers, men OF
great energy eager for IDEAS such Mr. Card
and Mr. Mech, who may take hold Of the beet and do
much for It in short time. Certainly the facts which
Dr. voelcker has collected respect beet culture and
manufacture the Continent are OF the moss
encouraging kind France. Germany. Austria Russia
Belgium. and Holland are the countries in which mos'
ha. been done and the successful results obanedi
but all parts OF all those countries not equally
adapted 10 this cultivation. The middle and south o.
France for instance hot. What has been done
IN the Last four years is shown by the following table.
giving the known produce in tuns. except for 1870,
WIN" " 1867. 1865. 1869. 1870.
France. ...............22tt ~. 2l'.e 1870 1850
Austria iUl l, 800, 80