Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1879-12-24
Agricultural Meeting at Montpelier.
EVENING SESSION.

Ie salu NC was happy 10 meet his friends
if for no other reason. to prevent results
past and prospective which seemed almost
inconceivable, yet to his most candid re-
searches seemed inevitable. The import
anee Of the matter could hardly be over
estimated. He was further aware that
scientific investigation was often more
anxious to prove certain thing to be true
rather than to prove what the truth is, and
he wished to test by the practical sense OF
the farmer, the correctness of his conclu-
sions.
He first gave some statistics of the
sugar production and consumption in the
world and in the United States The
product of the world was, in 1875 cane
sugar 2,140,G00 tons, beet sugar $4,000
tons. The Uuited States imported, in
1877 Sl1,7G7 tons at cost OF S73, 780, 1929.
Notwithstanding the enormous amount of
the import, he believed that in five years
we should import no sugar, and that we
might in ten years expert us largely us we
now import. He spoke of the little atten-
ton paid the industry years ago, He
doubted whether there had been ten anal
yses of agricultural products made five
years ago, but twenty-eight analyses were
made Of corn by the department in the last
year, The analyses show an average of
l.G3 per cent Of tie weight Of the crop is
ash, OF the mineral constituents of the soil
Ofthis crop over 20 per cent OF the value
is present in the potash and phosphoric
acid in tic ash Of tho crop. His tables
showed the decreased average yield per
acre in corn, in eleven of the western and
ten of the eastern and middle states. OF
the western states corn had fallen of
20 and one half per cent and in wheat
Il per cent, while the eastern and
middle states had practically held their
" IN in corn, and lost only ~ per cent i'll
wheat. We are now importing 900, 100000
p'naGs OF sugar, and we might export, if
there were IL demand for it, 1000, 100000
pounds and our soil grow 10 worse but
i1rhaps better. lie had tried this season
four kinds Of sorghum, early amber, Chi
ncse, white Liherian, Honduras and pearl
millCt. The amount Of ground which
could be had was one row of 200 feet long
for each kind. He gave it as an interest
leg fact that the committee on agriculture
in the last congress (not the extra, but the
regular SESSION. did not hold single ses.
sion; but rs little ground rs he had he
considered those four rows worth million
Of dollars Il row to the country.
lie next gave account of the times and
methods of analysis, which embraced tests
from an early stage, ill after frost came
and the stalks cut in two and the tops and
butts each analysed. OF these the early
amber showed the best results, and the
time in which the best results were OBJ
TUNED did not vary materially from the
18th of August till the first of November,
during which time the juice showed from
l4.G7 10 II per cent of cryslaIlizablc sugar
and from l.54 down to 60 at the middle
OF September, and LILO October 29th oil
glucose or sugar not crystallizable. This
result is better than any analyses given of
sugar bects, and us good rs those of the
sugar cane growers in louisiana The
professor also showed SOME fine sugar
made from corn stalks, which when ripe
after the corn had been harvested. yielded
Il juice showing 1000 per cent of crystal
lizable sugar. lie gave the results achiev-
cd by Mr.. A. j. Russell of Crystal Lake,
ILL.,, who had made last season over 1000
barrels Or $4,000 pounds of raw sugar
from cane he raised, and which he sold
for 10 cents per pound.
lie detailed his experience in getting
these results, and the means ut his COM
mand, and considerable amusement and
some disgust was manifest ut the statement
that it was not known where the amount
OF $1,000 necessary to pay for tubs to hold
the juice was to be obtained; the old worn
out mill, and the borrowed tank, etc, with
which these experiments were made.
With these appliances he worked up 20
tons of stalks, in about 45 experiments,
and his conclusions are that these canes
will yield anywhere we can grow corn, an
average equal or above the yield of the
cane fields of Louisiana.
OF the canes the Honduras gave the
heaviest crop, but it was only fitted for
the southern states, as it does not ripen its
seed at Washington. The early amber will
grow any where corn eau be raised, and
with good cultivation and good machin-
cry would yield two tons of sugar per
acre. Illinois could produce all the sugar
we import.
lie gave experiments with corn stalks,
showing full average amount of sugar
from them, and he wondered why SO little
had been done in making sugar from corn
stalks, where so much had been known of
it, and told how II man In Vermont Years
ago had made fine syrup or honey from
wi II o't1ho' "A lllfu III TGCUpilCk, NH. |
canned last year 250O acres of corn, can
ming 70 acres per day, the stalks of which
were made no use Of and he had no doubt
but the stalks were worth more thin the
corn which WAS canned. The process was
not at all difficult. There should be a
good strong mill to get out the Juice
which as soon as got out should be heated
nearly to boiling point, and Stacked lime
mixed 10 the consistency of thick white
wash should be added; after which il
should be brought to boiling, and the
scum taken off us is usual in maple sugar
making. After this it should be taken off
and allowed to cool and settle, where the
clear liquid could be drawn off and then
boiled down in an ordinary pan or evapo.
rator, and by this process nineteen-twen-
tieths of the sugar could be secured. lie
IL