Weekly Chillicothe crisis. (Chillicothe, Livingston Co., Mo.) 1878-19??, 1882-09-21

| | y nall uOZen miles ABOVE cape MAY
along the West Jersey Railroad SOM
. twenty-five or thirty farmhouses, chief
Y rather ancient on es, are strung on
along the pike. To this struggling stretcl
, OF bucolic abiding-Places the name Rit
Grandc was given many years ago
When northern capitalists undertook
the production of molasses and sugar
sugar cane was discarded and sorghum
was used instead. This is planted frou
the cane seed, which it produces, as
does any other cereal, in the form OF
boards or heads. But inasmuch rs
there are at least eighteen varieties OF
sorghum, some of which contain COM
parativcly little saccharine matter. a
great many original northern planters,
after considerable asSiduity and patience
were rewarded with crops which could
only be utilized as cattle fodder. This
obstacle having been overcome, anoth-
er and more insuperable one was met
with; for, while from the saccharino
matter finally evolved molasScs, and
even moIasScS sugar could he manu-
factured, yet crystallization could not
be effected and sugar could not be pro-
duccd. 1t remained for Charles NJ. Hill
CERT, the recently defaulting Philadel-
phia sugar rctiner, and his chemist,
Henry A. Hughes, after numberlcss ex-
perimcnts, to discover certain reliable
methods TO secure the much desired
crystallizatiOn. Previously sugar crys-
tails had been produced in the north,
but it had ever been matter of acci-
dent. One effort might be successful,
while the next dozen attempts would
prove failures. Mr. Hilgert and his
chemist succeeded, however, in reduc-
ing the factor of uncertainty in produc-
tiOn TO minimum. This obstacle hay-
ing been overcome, they looked around
for tract of land where the conditions
of soil and climate were adapted to the
raising of sorghum. Cape MAY county
having been strongly recommended, |
because of the dryncss of the soil, it |
was decided to settle therein, and in
1880 4 temporary sugar refinery was
constructed at Benefits Station, two
and half miles below Rio Grandc. A
small piece of ground was planted with
sorghum and fine crop was raised.
This was passed through the various
processes necessary to sugar produc-
tion, and the result was successful be-
yond all expectation.
Quite large brick refinery was i'm
mediately constructed at Rio Grandc,
which was fitted up as completely as
can be found outside of Cuban re-
iinery. To insure the production of n
crop by the neighboring farmers,
bill was passed by the New Jersey
Legislature offering premium of one
dollar per ton upon each ton of cane
produced by the farmer, and n pre-
MUM OF one cent per pound upon each
pound of sugar manufactured by the
reilncr. Eight hundred acres were
planted with sorghum seed by the neigh
boring husbandmen, and 4 fair crop I
was realized, but the cane from only q,
25O acres ever reached the refinery, the !
balance being used by the farmers for /
cattle fodder, a drought having ruined ,
The corn crop pretty thoroughly. The ,
venture of 1881, while not as satisfac- :
.ory as had been anticipated, was so :
profitable that immediate /
steps had been taken looking to an en- a
ension of the enterprise before an +
other year, and ii was concluded to a
combine the work of production with +
hat of manufacture. Accordingly fl
he Rio Grandc Sugar Company was /
Incorporated, with Geo. b. Potts as h
president, James b. Scott, a son of che n
ate Colonel Thomas A. Scott, as treas 4
lrer, and Chas. NJ. Hilgcrt as general q
Immediate measures were +,
hen taken toward securing sufficient h
and for planting purposes. Farm after /,
arm was purchased outright until fif- Il
cen hundred acres in all passed into n
he hands of the company, of which :,
200 acres We're placed under cutiva- n
ion. The plantation was divided into Il
our sections, each under the charge of I,
foreman. Just now the plantation is II
n magnificent condition, as the cane is is
aSt approaching ripened stage. cl
luch of it is ten feet high, and some A
; considerably higher than that. At ii
he present time there is no cane even IN
Il Virginia which has attained so for VI
rard u state. The small lot of Orange fl
ane, especially, is in spleudid CON n
ition, and next year this cane will be A
lmoSt exclusively used in place of :,
mbcr, as the latter does not usually cl
row TO so large size. Within n week, In
the cutters will 20 into the II
nl1s onI thn ,vnrl. nf Lnr,,ogt;,,s. ,,,;l | -