Daily Yellowstone journal., 1888-02-08
AMONG THE SWEETS.
Now Sugar is Handled on the spacisss
Levee at New Orleans.

Now Sugar is Handled on the spacisss
Levee at New Orleans.
Now that the busy season is opening,
the levee will soon become the scene Of
hustle and activity. The whistle od
steamboats,, the yelling Of boss stevedores
the whooping of drivers as tley back up
10 load and unload freight, crl, king their
whips about the ears Of the mules OF rails
ing welts along their sides with the lash,
the jam Of carts, wagons and loats al
ways heralds the approach of W nter On
the levee and the resuscitation }. trade.
From the middle Of October uItil the
balmy breezes of spring are aboui often
ing into the airs of summer the work on
the levee is almost continuous.
The principal commodities handel are
the staple products Of the state-co-ton,
sugar and molasses. A hogShcad Of sugar
Is huge arrangement of slaves, hoops
and heads, weighing, when filed with
sugar, from 100 TO 1900 pounds. The
| cooper shop and the plantation together
| produce the hogshead Of sugar. Whom
the cane has been cut and pressed and the
juice boiled into sugar the sweet stuff is
packed into the hogsEead, put on board O
steamboat and shipped to this city, con-
ngned TO the factor representing the
planter. On arriving at the landing the
sugar is unloaded on the wharf, where it
Is allowed 10 remain for twenty-four
hours, and even longer when room ia
/ plentiful. Then, il not hauled away, it is
! rolled into the sugar sheds at the expense
Of the owner.
Open kettle sugar is sold to the deale,
on the levee. The factor is the seller,
whether he employs broker or Lot. The
majority Of factors have the services Of q
broker 10 attend to the sales on the land
ing. The first hand factor or broker only
sells in lots. and the bids are either made
openly. as the buyers gather around the
hogsheads, or the sugar is sold on private
offers if thep price proflered is the highest.
The party selling the sugar generally
does the sampling, either in person or
through clerk or other employe. This
Is done by means Of long steel instru-
ment known as the gimlet which is run
through the bunghole down into tho
sugar, twisted about, and drawn out full
Of the saccharine matter. This operation
b performed several times, until a suf-
hcient quantity Is obtained % clearly
show the quality of the article. These
samples are generally piled up 70: the
time ON the hogshead they are taken out
of for the critical examination Of the
buyer. After they have answered the
purpose they are put into little paper bags
and kept by the broker or dealer as a type
for reference, or sent 10 the consignee.
1t is while the sampling process is GO
| hg ON that the buyers gather round. each
In his turn making ms offer. The buyer
generally attends the sales 10 personally
inspect his purchase, but sometimes sends
for samples, and then, on receipt Of his
goods, compares them with the samples
furnished him.
Although the first hand broker sells
but round lots, in case uf damage Of any
portion Of a lot or il showing up rs an in
ferior grade. he takes a reduced price for
IL; still the buyer must take the entire
lot. Second hand brokers sell in any
way, by the whole " broken lots. Clari-
fed sugar is sold by sample in the Sugar
Exchange, The supplies are collected
and taken to the exchange, where they
are spread out on the table for the inspec-
tion Of buyers.
After the sugar is sold il is weighed
and gauged and is then ready for ship
ment after the first cooperage. It 10
swung from the scales by means OF
barge hooks that catch ON the chimes OF
the hngshead so that when the beam is
pulled down the hogshead is lifted from
The ground and the weight ascertained.
Four men usually constitute the weigh.
ing gang. together with the clerk taking
the records OF the weights. These hogs
beads as a general thing run from 100
10 1000 pounds. but in weighing open
Kettle sugar the figures give the five and
ten pounds. Thus, If bogshead weighs
l,2l4 pounds il goes down as i.2le
pounds. Then II per cent. is knocked
ef from the gross weight. In cladaed
sugar the actual weight goes.
When tho hogsheads have lcen coon
cred the boss drayman or his clerk, with
bis teams. appears on the scene The
sugar Is marked, rolled ON the floats.
ard hauled 10 its destination IA the civ
or to the point Of shipment. in case il is
being forwarded TO some other port, do
mestic or foreign. The low float is driy.
en- up close 10 the lots TO bc handled, a
skid Is hooked into the iron brackets az
tho side Of the float, and the teamsters
strain themselves in rolling up the great
sogsheads on to the bottom of the wag-
ON. After this handling the sugar SON
comes into use on the table or In tho
pantry.
Molasscs is disposed Of in the same
way rs sugar. The brokers always come
down 10 the lcveo 10 see the samples of
molasses, as they are not taken 20 tho
exchange. Immediately on their arrival
tie barrels Of molasses are coopcred BY
the first hand cooper, 20 as 10 keep them
tight and prevent leakage. New Orleans
Tmes.Democrat