Wichita eagle., 1888-11-04
SORGHUM SUGAR.
WICHITA THE NEW ORLEANS OF
THE WEST.
The State Sugar Inspector on the
Kansas Sugar Industry. and
Wichita'S Relation
Thereto.

Prof E. B. Cowgirl, state sugar inspec-
tor. spent few hours in Wichita yester-
day on his return from Conway Springs,
where he had just inspected about $1,000
pounds of sugar, which graded IS per cent
pure Mr. Cowgirl says the Conway
Springs factory is making success IN
spite of several adverse circumstances, in
Guiding a late start, limited capital and
some unforeseen difficulties.
The work at Conway Springs settles
several points heretofore considered un-
certain. One of these is the fact
that this section produces cane Of
uniform and and unprecedented
richness in saccharine matter and
determines south central Kansas as the
home of the new and rapidly developing
sugar industry. according TO the tests Of
the government chemists, who, thanks to
the efforts Of Senator Plumb, have spent
the season at Conway Springs, the juice OF
the canes worked in the month OF October
contained an average of 1918 per cent OF
sugar, or each ton of topped and cleaned
contained about 235 pounds of sugar. The
actual yield obtained is about 100 pounds
of sugar and over twenty gallons Of mo-
lasseS
The Conway springs company have about
100 acres of cane to work yes and the
prospect is that they will work it. Their
factory has already run nearly week
after all others have shut down, and will
run for week or two yet. 1t is safe TO
say that counting the two weeks which
our season opens earlier than at topeka,
and the two weeks later Occurrences OF
freezing weather, this section mas an adj
vantage Of at least u month in the length
of working season.
Perhaps the most important matter set
tied by the Conway Springs success Is the
fact that the sugar industry is not de
pendent upon occult, secret or patented
processes. Everything is open a. day ut
Conway. Only two of the men eyer worked
in sugar factory before. or course much
credit is due TO these men namely super
intendent L. w Damming and Sugar
boiler Mert Kimball, for their energy ana
persistence in surmounting obstacles and
making a success which the eyes of the
state are watching with eager interest.
Replying to questions Of market for this
sugar Prof Courgill stated that there IS
no difficulty in disposinI of the product OF
this season at renumerative pr.cas. but as
the industry develops into larger proper
tions it becomes necessary TO refine most
of the sugar, because our people are too
fastidious to use anything but pure white
sugar except in limited quantities,
while our demand for refined
sugars is practically unlimited.
The reilners Of the United States import
annually about one hundred million dol
lars worth of foreign sugars, on which the
duty is over fifty million dollars, or our
domestic demand for sugar exceeds the
the home supply by aboutS 50,00),0 600 every
year Yes, refinery in Kansas is ne
cessitv Of the immediate future. 1t need
not be large one ut first, and can Doubt
less best be connected with a sugar factory,
much of the machinery used in the refinery
being identical with that used In the fac
tory Such "A factory and refinery ostab-
liShed Immediately at Wichita viii deter
mine this as the sugar center, the New
Orleans OF the west.
Professor Cowgirl is preparing full
report of the sugar industry, in which ma
chinery and methods will be fully cousid-
cred and illustrated, with view to pre-
venting the costly mistakes which have
been made for lack of such information
as this report will contain. It viii appear
in the biennial report of the state board Of
agriculture.