The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1888-10-23

practical address, delivered by Hon.
N. J. Colman before the Inter State
Encampment at. Spartanburg, S. G.,
on the It'll Of last August, and which
is published in the Cotton Plant.
Mr.. Colman had watched with in
~terest, experiments made to produce
sugar from the sorghum cane and had
devoted much thought-to the methods
and processes by which sugar was
made in Germany and France. He
was appointed by President Cleveland,
and among his first official acts was
the sending Of Prof. Wiley, Chief
Chemist of his department, to Europe
to investigate from a scientific stand
point the methods practiced for making
sugar. The, final results of these OBJ
servations, matured through a series
of experiments, was the adoption and
substitution of what he terms "the
diffusien process for "the roller
process He had. his machinery and
apparatus put up BY Pussy & Jones, Of
Wilmington, Delaware, and planted
the establishment at Fort Scott, Kan
sas. With patience and labor they
overcome such difficulties as attend all
new enterprises, and in the year 1887
they produced 235,OOO pounds Of
sugar. of a superior quality. They
were enabled to dispense with many
of the costly items of the complicated
processes in the European mills. Large
sugar makers in Louisiana pronounced
it equal in all respects to the best
quality of Louisiana sugars. Our lands
in the South will easily produce eight
to twelve tons of cane per acre, and
he claims that for each ton, he obtains
l20 pounds of beautiful sugar and 10
gallons of molasses. For each ton, he
claims two bushels Of seed, equal to
corn in value, for feeding stock. Col.
E. II. Cunningham, a large sugar
planter of Louisiana, was somewhat
skeptical as to this new rival of his,
and taking a sugar expert with him,
he went to Fort Scott and remained
there a month, watching and investi-
eating it. He went home thoroughly
Observation-Disclosures the old process
and put in 700 acres of sorghum in
addition to his ribbon cane. The pro-
cess evolved by Mr.. Colman was
thoroughly tested with the most adj
vanced and approved processes known
to the Louisiana planters, and in every
instance was found to be superior to
them, For example: where the very
best Louisiana mill, selected by a
committee, extracted one hundred
and seventy to one hundred and eighty
pounds of sugar per ton, the Colman
process extracted two hundred and
thirty pounds. This process threatens
to supercede entirely the old process
in that State. Mr.. Colman is expert
menting this year in New Jersey and
has erected a mill costing from $4,000
to $1,000, but he estimates that to
put up a good mill it will cost $25, 900
to $4,000. He wisely, as we think,
advises u people not to rush into
this business, as it requires skill and
knowledge of the business to succeed.
He advocates the establishment of a
school where men may be taught this
important work. Valuing the sugar
at six cents per pound, the molasses
at twenty cents per gallon, and the
seed at fifty cents per bushel, he esti-
mates the gross product at s1o.2o per
ton of cane. At this very low estimate
and placing the yield at the low figure
of eight tons per acre, it will be seen
that the product is $s1.6O per acre.
The farmers of Kansas get from So to
So per ton, leaves and all, cut fresh
from the field. But the farmers,
by cooperation, should build and own
and run the mills themselves and thus
getrthe full measure of profits. North
Carolina alone consumes annually not
less than $4,000, 600 pounds, which at
a cost of eight. cents, amounts to the
sum of 81, 900, 000., We can grow
rorceh,,m cono oil o1or Tho Ctato and