The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1879-03-21
THE BEET SUGAR INDUSTRY
IN THE
United States Of America.
BY ERNEST TIL. GENNERr.

ened in nearly every State of the Union,
East, West aud North even on the Pacific
slope, in California, Montana and Oregon,
shows that the time will not be long before
it will secure foothold amongst our farm
ers as permanent as has been the case in
every country in Europe.
The unqualified success with which the
first years work of the Maine Beet Sugar
Company has been crowned, has convinced
many that the Beet Sugar is destined to be-
come q home product before many years
have elapsed. If any one doubts this, the
steps taken by so many State Legislatures to
assist its Introduction in the various States
ought to convince him of his error.
In view of these facts, it behooves us to
examine the different methods adopting in
Europe to ascertain which is best calculated
to combine all our advantages, and which
exposes us to the least disadvantages. But
before the methods of the different countries
in Europe are referred to, and compared
with the advantages and Disadvantages to
the Beet Sugar industry within the United
States, 1t is necessary to refer to the quality
of the sugar beets produced on American
soil. Ofsll the trial. made on large scale
in the United States, not solitary one has
met with the obstacle of inferior or unfit
beets Sugar factories have been working
aud making sugar by the ton in Massachu-
setts, Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa, California,
Maine, Province of Ontario, and probably
in other States lin some Of the States, In
several factories or different places), and in
no case were amongst the obstacles these es-
Adjustments had to contend against, those
of inferior sugar.beets. In each and every
case where genuine sugsr.beet seed had been
planted, even with inferior or Indifferent
cultivation, the land in every State of the
Union ha. produced a. rich beets, and in
nany case, ,ufS rior to those raised and pro.
duced in Europe under similar circumstan.
ces.
But this cannot be said of the many ex-
periments made on a small scale. The re-
suits of many have been discouraging. yet
in each case 1t can be directly traced to
worthless seed. One case. out of hundreds,
will suffice to illustrate this The Depart
ment of Agriculture distributed beet seed,
amongst other localities, in the Chemung
Valley, State of New York. Three differ.
ent varieties raised therefrom were absolute.
ly worse than worthless Beet Sugar produce
tion, and Of but very little feeding value
fpr cattle, containing iu 1000 parts 914
parts Of wafer, which the farmer or sugar
manufacturer might have drawn from riv-
OF or well with considerable less work and
greater profit The fourth variety was a genu-
inc sugar bee, which, when analyIed, showed
from l23 to IA per cest, of sugar 1t was
the variety known as vilmorin, requiring
very highly manured land, or else the yield
is but small and the roots grow very pronpy.
As refer to the propagation of sugar. .beets
and the production of the seed at the end of
this little essay, need not refer to it any
further in this place.
The intelligent Beet Sugar manufacturer.
when he examines the different methods
adopted in the different countries in Europe.
will invariably come to the conclusion
that the best method under certain circum-
stances i. not the best method under
other circumstances, and there is no method
known which is the best under any and oil
circumstances. Having sscertained, beyond
the shadow of & doubt, that sugar. beets or
superior quality for the manufacture of su.
gar or for cattle feed can be produced from
good sugar beet in any State of the Union
or Canada, it remains to examine the diff.
ferent methods followed by the successful
sugar manufactures in Europe, which have
been dictated and adjusted by and according
to local conditions and advantages We have
to contend against in Arerica, brought
about BY our peculiar method of farming and
geographical conditions.
In Germany, all of the beets manufacture
ed into sugar, 80 per cent. are raised by the
owners of sugar factories, and only from Is
to 20 per cent. are produced by outside
farmers and sold to sugar factories. About
! of the number of sugar factories in Ger
many are owned by the high nobility and
large landed proprietors, and one-third are
cooperative societies of farmers, commonly
called pessant-factories. The sugar works
of the former are in the centre of the estates:
those of the latter adjoining their little viii
ages (which are again in the centre of their
territory. Transportation, therefore, hardly
ever enters into calculation, and it is not as
serting too much to say that, of all beets
manufactured into Sugar in Germany, Aus
tria, Russia and Belgium, 95 per cent, are
so manufactured within FIVE English miles
from the field on which they have been pro-
duced, and while, therefore, transportation
amouns to very little, the question of fuel is
of immense importance. In France, where
the fuel question is of as great and perhaps
even of greater importance than in either of
the first named countries, the land question
is altogether different from other countries
The largest per centsge of beets produced
there are grown by outside parties or by su-
gar manufacturers on hired land, aud in
some instances over large extent of terri.
tory. Although the country roads are gen.
orally very good in France the transporta.
ton is an important item in the cost of pro-
ducing sugar, hence We find France is the
only country in Europe which has resorted
to central factories with small branches scat.
tered all over the country which branches are
connected with the 'fabrice central, with
cast-iron pipes to conduct the beet Juice be.
low the ground for many miles in order to
save transportation.
While the experienced Beet Sugar manu-.
facturer, after examining the different meth.
DDS as adopted in the different countries in
Europe, has to admit that the diffusion pro.
Cess appear to be the best in Austria.
the same and the double press process
has been most successful in Germany,
The continuous press process has founl
most and exclusively advocates in France
while those sugar factories which follow
only the single press process in Russia have
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