The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1890-06-06

The department of agriculture has just
issued o report dealing exclusively with
the agricultural situation in this country
at the present time. An interesting feat
ure for the northwestern states is some
general suggestions made regarding the
introduction Of the sugar beet industry in
these states. The report says the evolu-
growth of the present century. 1t was
fostered carly in the century by science
and government Though invention and.
bounty, yet half of its development has
occurred during the last decade. Profit
ing by European experience, this country
has a less difficult problem to solve.
There have been no satisfactory expert
periments in the manufacture here until
the success Of Alvardo in California.
Those of Maine, Wisconsin and ILL
nois we're preliminary and inconclusive.
They were necessarily failures from lack
of skill and completeness of preparation,
and still more from failure of farmers to
cooperate. In the Maine case the aver
age contracts were for only o fraction of
an mere, a garden patch receiving ordinary
field cultivation, without knowledge of the
necessary culture or fertilization, and with
out the adjunct of cattle feeding and utili-
cation of the by-product.
The report adds that there promises to
be a general revival of the experiment. in
the northwestern states since the repeated
successes in California, with high promise
of continued enlargement. Nebraska has
already entered tie lists. 1t would be an
ignominious acknowledgement to admit
that the manufacture can be carried on
successfully throughout Europe and can not
be a success upon the continent of North
America, when o good yield Of beets having
q high content of sugar has been repeatedly
grown from the Atlantic to the Pacific,
and good sugar has been made year after
year at q profit.
This agricultural writer believes that the
farmers of this country have some respon-
sibility in the development of the sugar
industry. The product cannot be made
without beets. which must come from the
fields of the farms. Hence the farmer has
q large stake in the skill aud technical
knowledge which yields the best results.
The most extensive preparations for beet
buStI pIOOuCIlOu citot VI GlS 4loCAy WouAs
tains are to be made this season at Grand
Island, Neb., and Mediocre Lodge, Kan.
At the latter place beet sugar was made
last year.
The report goes on to say that the pre-
vailing error il agricultural practice, as in
some other lines of effort in this country,
is to look only to the present hour, and get
the largest return to-day, without a thought
of the future. The beet sugar industry in
wolves something more than the price of
a ton of beets the present year. 1t in
cludes:
J.. Rotation, which insures large yields ana
clean cultivation.
2. Symmetry in rural development, variety in
production.
8. Fertilization, providing in large degree the
material through cnttle feeding.
A. Fine filth and thorough cultivation.
s. Increased value OF land, from it's enlarged
capacity for production, and the cheapening OF
cost Of product and resulting increase Of net
profit.
1t would be easy to show the relative ad-
vance in value of lands in beet sugar dis
~tricts, the increase of agricultural wealth,
and the general prosperity enhanced by
this industry. Rotation is a necessity, the
soil must be enriched, though fertilizers
must be applied to preceding crops and not
to the crop Of beets dire city. Sugar beet
culture is only one link in the chain of
production which gives variety and pros
perity to agriculture.
Secretary Rusk and his aids are certain
that the general results of the experiments
made this year in raising the beets will be
highly successful.