The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-04-04

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Average for five years. 57.56 per cent Juice
from cane.
Mr.. Dymond called attention to the fact that
the answers to the questions about seed cane
were all absolute, but they assigned no rea-
sons for the different views expressed. He
thought that they would be more interesting
and prove of more benefit If there we're reasons
assigned for the different opinions.
It was suggested by Il member that in most
cases the answers were based on experience
III d not on theory.
Mr. 7. 8. Wilkinson took the floor and read
the following paper on ..M..-@
DOUBLE MILLS.
The success Of sugar planting depends 10
great measure ON three things:
4. To obtain the largest possible Q uant,.a;y -
ripe cane from the ground. or proper cuieiSS-
2. 70 secure the greatest quantity q Juice
from the cane. or proper grinding.
3 ~ obtain the greatest anaintlhfy q ts sugaF III
lts manufacture after 1t leaves the mill.
Iii the FIRST Of these essentials, the Lon,slana
sugar planter seems to me 90 be more advanced h
than III the others Lag sums are we'll OK
pended annually On those fertilizers that have
nean found to bs most beneficial TO, sugar cane
Hs pdT and e sabb r aree ne meet eeen aP
every section of the sugar region; and many
plantations ii this State will TO- day exhibit in
their broad fields, the tilth more OF the garden
In the last essential also that 1 have men
toned. the manufacture of cane leice into
sugar. the Louisiana sugar planter cannot be
accused of being wanting in progress. Each
year, as 1t passes by sees improved machinery
erected-sses plantations that formerly made
products that were fit only for refining. now
arrive Mt such perfection In their manufacture,
that what an. old planter once boosted of bis
crop seems almost true that each grain with It's
brightness. and sparkle-that each grain was a
Indeed. Louisiana may be said in one respect
to have led the beet root factories of 81 Europe:
for the fuel-saving double and triple effects for
Juice we're first Introduced in
The system was invented and patented by one
Of her sons, and even now among all the bright
intellects that adorn the history of the manu-
facture Of sugar. there is none whose name
shines with q brighter splendor than that Of
Rill 9 TX.
seems to be max Ing progress in keeping with
the other pursuits Of the age, in the second
essential that have mentioned, 1t Is to be la
mGnted that there has been no general progress,
and the extraction Of juice from the. cane re-
mains, In VAS majority OF cases. as imperfect
and Incomplete as it was thirty years ago. So
unsatisfactory w TO the general results OF our
grinding that attempts We're made a few years
agoto substitute for II the, diffusion process Of
y tue s II be b
proposed to pnt . large amount Of water Ia the
juice. and lis the planters found 1t difficult
enough e. get rid Of the water al eady there.
This seemed to be an almost insu perabls oblec-
ton. AT amy rate without going intnth merits
or dement's OF the system, will merely remark
that 1t proved disastrous to the parties con
cerned in it, AID that system may be said to
have received its quetus in Louisiana,
The extraction Of cane Juice, by pressure
T. With IBIS mehod i Of
ton. as it is ordinarily pursued. but little over
onehalf of the juice In the cane is extracted.
We are all familiar with the fact that the plant
We cultivate contains about 80 per cent of Juice
and about 70 per cent of woody matter. Our
best single mills seldom average over 60 per
cent. or two-thirds of the Juice In the cane and
the great majority Of mills in Louisiana do not
obtain over SO per cent OF juice from a given
quantity of cane or fiye-ninths Of the juice that
this cane contained.
Numerous efforts have been made both here
and in Europe to overcome the generally I'M
satisfactory results obtained from mills. A
noted French chemist. Mr. Payer, suggested
steam Another. suggested two additional
rollers. but placed in The same housing. with
steam applied to tho bagasse while and just be-
fore passing through tho last pressures. This
mill with five rollers In one housing was found
10 be too com plicated aud costly: other double
mills were built, but they DC net seem to Eaye
hagasse was needed for fuel. and 1t made o
hotter fire and was more easily hauled when In
longer pieces and containing more sugar. In
Louisiana. however, we consider. sugar as a
rather too costly fuel. and feel d deep interest
In extracting all the juice we can get out.
But here there has b.en. and even is now
pressure. because it is said to 1njure the quail
ty OF the sugar, by extracting more gum and
coloring matter. That prejudice went 50 far
at one time that | heard of a sugar maker.
years ago. who was experimenting sugar max
Ing In a sugar house where there was u second
mill, who caused all the cane from that mill to
be run into the skimming ditch.
The objection that tight pressure causes the
juice TO make poor sugar Is eHectually dis
proved by the fact that the largest sugar houses
usually have the largest mills and grind the
tightsst aud those houses nearly all make fine
sugars.
The advantages Of double mills from my own
eapefience. are incontestable. On the Myrtle
Grove plantation. in the pari-h OF Plaque
mines. one has been in successful operation for
the last two seasons. 1t consists of five rollers.
The usual style of mill first takes the cane. then
10 two additional rollers, where 1t Is drawn In
by the rollers themselves. All the rollers are
A feet long, the first three q inches. the last
driven by one engine, and since their erection
think there are few If any mills Of that size in
the State that have been SO little out OF order
and given 50 little trouble.
The speed Of each Of those mills Is two and
one-auatter revolutions pei. minute. AZ com
pared with the previous mill tone Of four feet
BY twentyseyen inches ia diameter that this
tired one Or two facts atseemed at first glance
singular. One OF these was that with the same
number OF men putting caGe on the carrier as
formerly, this mill made suice for from 80 TO 40
per cent more sugar II Q given time; another
was that the old mill took three bagasse carts
constantly to carry tie bagasse away while the
new mill. making 80 to 40 per cent more sugar
in day. required only two hagasse carts to
perform the same work. This certainly looks
as If there was much more sugar made from q
given quantity of cane. and much less bagasse
lett to be carried away.
+, TO make an accurate experiment carefully
weighed ten loads of cane, as we'll as the bagasse
from these ten loads. The ton loads of cane
weighed % l35 pounds: the bagasse weighed
$40 pounds the juice weighed 1895 pounds.
Thus the weight of the bagasse was 27A per
cent and that of the Juice 72l4 per cent of the
amount of cane weighed.
When we come to consider that this Is 90 per
cent more. than the results OF our best single
mills; that a crop of 500 hogsheads. with a
good single mill. ought to make crop Of 600
with good double mill: when we G nsder
that the expense of cnltivating the GOO hogs
heads of the double mill is the same as that OF
the 800 of the single mill; that the cost of cut
ting and hauling is the same. and that almost
the only expense of making this Extra loo
hogsheads consist of two extra rollers and
gearing to make the additional grinding and
the extra fuel and labor necessary to manutac-
ture this 100 hogsheads after it is ground
when we consider these things seriously. II
seems to me we should try and arrest this
waste. and let our Lands bring forth their treas
ures to better purpose than to be labored for r
screening sun and freezing bias and winter
storms-to b. gathered even within our factor,