The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1888-09-13

Such was the condition OF affairs when
I came to take charge of the department
of agriculture at Washington. Having
been giving careful consideration to the
manufacture of beet sugar, I felt satisfied
that there was enough saccharine in sor'
ghum to make it a profitable plant from
which to raise sugar. During the very
first interview I had with President
Cleveland, before my appointment, l stat
ed to him that if placed at the head of
the department of agriculture, I would,
in my humble judgment, be able to DEM
onstrate before my term Of Office expired
that this country would be independent
of every nation on earth for its sugar.
[Great applause he gave me some
words of encouragement, but told me
that / was taking very big task upon
my hands. I spoke of the Importance
and magnitude of the subject; of the drain
which was going on from the pockets of
our people, and I presume that the very
fact of my evident interest in the matter
had its influence in securing my appoint.
ment. 1 had not been in my seat two
weeks before I determined to use every
exertion in my power to solve this sugar
problem.
STUDYING THE METHODS OF OTHER
COUNTRIES.
I sent Prof. Wiley, the chief chemist Of
the department Of agriculture, to Europe,
to visit the beet sugar producing factories
in France and in Germany, in order to
get plans, specifications and drawing of
the entire apparatus and machinery in
use there. He came home with these
drawings from. ten or twelve different
factories. He became convinced that
success could be obtained, sooner or later,
by adopting the beet sugar methods. We
finally agreed upon plan, the one Of
Pusey & Jones, Of Wilmington, Delaware,
manufacturers of sugar apparatus and
machinery. We told them Of the battery
of cells which we wanted constructed, and
complete diffusion plant was prepared
at that establishment, to be placed in the
Fort Scott works, in Kansas. That vas
during the second year of my term of of
fee.
We made some sugar. But in all new
enterprises great many unexpected OBJ.
stacles occur. and we found difficulty
after difficulty to encounter. As an Oh.
stacle of the greatest magnitude We found
that by the diffusion process the juices of
the leaves we're as thoroughly extracted
as the juices of the stalk !; that there we're
certain chemical principles in the leaves
which we're obnoxious to the production
of q good sugar. We had therefore to
adopt some other method, and nearly all
of our time was consumed in trying to
overcome these difficulties. During the
first year Of our labor We had not sur.
mounted them, ncr succeeded as I fondly
hoped.
FINE YIELDS OF SUGAR.
We then had to adopt some system to
get rid of these leaves Where cane is
raised as in Kansas, by the thousand
acres, employees canuot be obtained to
strip the cane before putting it into the
mill as you do, where you raise two OF
three acres Of cane. We finally hit upon
the plan of cutting the stalks into strips
three inches in length, carrying these
upon an endless chain, and passing them
through tanning mill, which blew of
the leaves aud left nothing but the pure
cane. That first battery of cells which
we had manufactured at Fort Scott was
put into operation after Kidding ourselves
of these difficulties. We commenced
making sugar, aud we made there last
year 235 900 pounds Of as good sugar, l
believe, as you ever put down your
throats.
No Touring mill ever turned out
more certainly it's full complement
of flour to the busbel of wheat than die
this cane mill turn out its full compile
ment of sugar to every ton of cane tha
was put in it, which in the FIRST working:
amounted to over 100 pounds of sugar
to each ton of cane and in the secopt
workings to about 20 pounds, aud in ad
dition there were left to each ton of cane
about 10 gallons Of molasses.
This waa done by what is called tht
"difasion process" which consists il
cutting up the cane on plan pecisel!
similar to that of cutting up the beets
sliciog the cane into thin pieces. Thi'
is done so rapidly that your cane can b
sliced as fast as it can be ground or rollet
in any mill in South Carolina. Ihes'
slices, ofthe tbinnest sort, are conveyed
into round cells holding one or two tons
A battery of twelve cells is so constructed
that hat water is forced from one cell t
another until the juice stalks are ex
hausted of every particle of sacchariot
which they contain. They are thel
carried out and thrown into pile b!
this endless carrier system.
THE VERY BEST QUALITY.
Although we had adopted many of th'
processes used in Europe and which wer'
essential to success, such as carbonization
the injection Of acid, the German sugar
process, and many others, we found aftel
we got the pure juice upmixed with tha
of the leaves that it made of itself. with
out any carbonization or filteriDg, The
6roet o,pootoat and heat itIica and tht