The Hot Springs star. (Hot Spings [Hot Springs], Dakota [Dakota Territory, i.e. S.D.]) 1886-189?, 1890-06-06
SUGAR BEET INDUSTRY
SECRETARY rusK CONFIDENT
OF ITS FINAL SUCCESS.

The Farmers of America Have Some Re-.
sponsibiiity in the Development of tho
1ndustry-Sugar To 1Bes Made In Grand
Island, Neb., This Year-A Government
Report.
The department Of agriculture has inst
issued q 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 tho
introduction Of the sugar beet industry in
these states. The report says the evolu-
ton Of the beet-sugar manufacture is o
growth of the present century. 1t was
fostered early in the century by science
aud government Though invention and
bounty, yet half Of its development has
occurred during the last decade. Profit.
ing by European experience, this country
has o less difficult problem to solve.
There have ben no satisfactory expert
periments in the manufacture here until
the success of Alvardo in California.
Those Of Maine, Wisconsin and Illi-
nois were 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 a fraction Of
an acre, n garden patch receiving ordinary
field cultivation, without knowledge Of the
necessary culture or fertilization, and with.
out the adjanct of cattle feeding and utili-
cation of the by-product.
The report adds That there promises to
be o 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 the lists. It would be an
ignominious acknowledgement to admit
that the manufacture can be carried ON
successfully throughout Europe and can not
be u success upon the continent OF North
America, when o good yield of beets having
n high content Of sugar has been repeatedly
grown from the Atlantic to the Pacific,
and good sugar has been made year after
year at u 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.
sugar production cast of the Rocky noun
tains are to be made this season at Grand
Island, Neb., and Medicine Lodge, Kan.
AT the latter place beet sugar WAS made
lust year.
The report goes on to say that the pre-
vailing error in agricultural practice, as in
some other lines of effort in this country,
is to look only to tho present hour, aud get
the largest return to-day, without O 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-
clndes:
=. Rotation, which insures large yields and
clean cultivation.
=. Symmetry in rurnl development, variety in
production.
D. Fertilization, pro yiding in large degree the
material through cutie feeding.
4. Fine tilt!l and thorough cultivation.
.. Increased Nmlue of land, from it's enlarged
en- acity for production. and the clennening OF
cost of product nMd resulting increase of net
profit.
1t would be easy to show the relative I'D.
vance in value of lands in beet sugar dis
tlicts, the increase of agricultural wealth,
and the general prosperity enhanced by
this industry. Rotation is a necessity, tho
soil must DO enriched, though fertilizers
must be applied TO preceding crops aud not
to the crop of beets dire city. Sugar bee,
culture is only one link in the chain OF
production which gives variety and pros
pcrity 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.