The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1880-10-13
Varieties of the Sugar-Cane.
NUMBER XIV


NUMBER XIV
Simmons. A.
The great superiority of the Maui
ritius sugar arises from the manulac-
ture by Dr.. Icery's process OF purln'
cation by monosulphite OF lime WITH
out filtration by animal charcoal
ME svrups remaining from the tur"
hinaoe ;of sugar when treated WITH
monosulphite Of lime give mosC a au-
vantageous results. Under the lnnu-
ence of this agent, syrups become
purified, decolorized, and crXstallzed
With remarkable facility. Manutac-
tured by this process, syrup sugars
have a perfect grain and iine color,
not entirely due to the direct influence
Of the substance employed, but to the
preparation to which the veson or
Juice has already been submitted,
and the absence in the syrup OF those
foreign soluable matters which are
the principal obstacles to the crystal,
lization OF the sugars OF the second
boiling.
In Mauritius by the processes used,
all things being equal, the proportion
OF sugar from barrel of cane juice
(Which weighs from $50 to 544
pounds) will depend not only on the
relative richness of the liquid, but
also on the various circumstances In
which the manufacturer may be
placed. The average yield may be
taken at 95 pounds of sugar per
barrel Of juice, and the average yield
of sugar per acre ranges from 3,5oO
pounds to $500 pounds.
DR.. Icery made numerous analyses
upon the different species OF mature
canes cultivated in this island, but
growing in localities differing In soil
and temperature. The result OF his OBJ
servations was the following average
percentage Of the composition OF
Juice =
Water Si.0o
m1nerat s Substances. OBS
Total 10000
STRAITS SETTLEMENTS.
In Province Wellesley consider
able improvements have been made
in agricultural operations of late
years on the estates OF European
planters while the Chinese are
entering largely into the cultivation
OF. sunar--and are obtaining steam
machinerv 10 replace the old cattle
mills, which they have hitherto en-
ployed in grinding the canes. In
1871 there was an increase OF 5O,OOO
piculs over the exports OF 1870.
PHILIPPINES.
The sugar-cane is cultivated in
Negros, Panay, Cebu, Luzon, and in
nearly every part of the Archipelago;
the yellow variety being generally
raised in the province of Pampanga
Muzon), and the purple in Negros
and Panay. The shoots are planted
in the month of February, and the
crops are cut in January following.
The Weld of raw sugar from cane
planted in an Indifferent soil is about
Twelve piculs Fifteen hundredweight)
per acre, in the best soils about forty
piculs. the average therefore being
abou, twenty piculs. The best quality
is from Pampanga, and the worst
from Taal or Batangas. The native
apparatus for crushing the cane,
which consists of two stone cylinders
with wooden teeth, is now being
superseded in many places by iron
rollers from England. Steam sugar
mills have also been erected on sew
eral estates. 1t is impossible to com
pute the total production, as there
are no statistics on the subject, and
We can only get at few particulars
OF the shipments from different ports.
In 1868 there were twenty iron
cattle mills in Panay, and torty-three
in the nelghboring province OF Ne
gros, but the demand for them was
steadily Increasing, the native planters
finding their superiority to the prlm-
tive mills with wooden rollers TO be
very marked. Steam mills had also
been erected for crushing cane, four
being then at work at Negros or es-
tates which produce collectively 1900
tons OF sugar, and would double that
quantity when tur,Ler improvements
in deeper blowing and less back
ward mode OF general cultivation was
adopted. There were in that year
twenty-three Europeans engaged in
planting at Negros. The united
crops Of Negros, Iloilo, and Antique
m.orn nvnnctnd 10 vicld ahnui u 900