The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1878-05-06
Beet Sngar.
Introduction of HIS Manufacture in
Maine.

PREsQUE ISLE, May 4, 1878.
Daring the last few weeks have seen many
large tracts of land which would make most
excellent beet land, and If adopted for that
purpose, other lands laying idle at present
might take its place for the usual crops, thus
adding most valuable agricultural production
without particle less of former crops Farm
ers everywhere express themselves in favor OF
raising beets for thu manufacture of sugar, and
If it was not so late in the season, contracts
could be made for beets suff1 ,ient to keep many
sugar houses busy during the next year.
There will be undoubtedly great many beets
cultivated this year all through the state of
Maine, a large portion of the same intended for
sugar making, so it is confidently expected all
the beets for the beet sugar works in Portland
will be had, and if the crop should fall she~Ss
from other parts of the state, AIoostooK county
will furnish whatever balance is required.
Hardly farmer has ever expressed himself
otherwise than greatly pleased and interested,
and though he may be too timid to contract
himself for the cultivation and delivery of
beets for sugar production, every one is anxious
to try it con small scale," go as to be ready
and prepared for next year.
The question most invariably follows: How
ars-the sugar beets to be cultivated? Those
having in former years raised roots generally,
as uaRd VI AduSot WuTlZel, are not so
much at loss how to proceed, but others are
unnecessarily afraid of the immense work it
might entail aud want all the information they
can get To state which wonld be the best
method of cultivating sugar beets in Maine
under all circumstances Is impossible The
condition of the soil and the habit of the
people influence greatly the methods of culti-
vatlon. In Europe wherever the sugar indus
try has been introduced the early beginning OF
the field work was done by hand labor. BY
degrees this-chapged and out of it the different
systems have been developed which at the
present time are followed in the different coun-
tries
In Russia, where the warm weather Of spring
brinos often 10 less than As hours millions of
insects of every imaginable variety on a square
ward of land, it is of the utmost importance to
have the young plalt grow rapidly as pos
sible In other countries where such draw
back does not exist less atten ton is paid to this
part. In most cases We find local Influences
have dictated the peculiar method which has
been adopted and brought to final perfection
Which are the circumstances most resembling
ours, and which mode would be most advisable
to initiate, is the question to be solved this
year. But one thing may be considered certain.
just so much as farmers in the different states
in Europe did at the beginning incline to hand
work, Just so much do all our farmers incline
even now to machine work. In Europe the
hand work on the beet field has altogether been
| superseded by machine work, but machines
| which have been specially constructed to work
\ large tracts cannot be used for an acre or two,
or for even less, as the contracts generally are.
| A machine for planting beet seed in Europe
| has distance from wheel to wheel of nine
feet, planting five rows at one time having the