Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1891-04-10
ANALYSIS OF MAPLE SUGAR.
Statement of the Work Being Done Mt ih e
Agricultural Experiment station.
To he Ed of he Erae preaa.


Agricultural Experim ent station.
To the Editor of the Free Press
The experiment station is receiving so
many samples of maple sugar for analysis,
that it seems necessary to make some state
ment of the work it is now doing in this
lue
The last Congress passed a law giving
bounty OF IL cents pound all sugar
testing 80 degrees or over by the polariscope.
AS our farmers have had no experience with
the poeriscope and have no means of know
ing how much their sugar will test it is ma
tural that they should turn to the expert
ment station for help. Consequently we
have received food OF samples for the last
few months. 1t soon became evident that
there was an urgent need of doing some
thing more for the farmers than could he
done by analyzing these single samples that
came in without any history. 1t is neces
sary to know not only how much sugar a
givon sample contains, but especially how
shall syrup be handled to make a sugar that
will test 80 degrees by the polariscopo. 1t
is TO answer this question that tho station is
now working.
1t is we'll known fact that as syrup is
boiled down the temperature rises. AS a
Thermometer is cheap and easily use |, it
has seemed best to make this the standard
for the farmer. Pure water boils at PIP
degrees, sap fresh from the tree at about
the same, but as the sap thickenS to syrup
the temperature increases: at about 226 1e
grees it forms a syrup nearly ike that or
dinarilv so d in the market and by the tim,
the temperature reaches 23S to 2l0 degrees
the whole mass viii crystalli2e into cake
sugar. AT 226 degrees the syrup viii Ger
talny not test 50 degrees by the polariscope
and at 23S degrees, if well made, it certain
! ly will test more than this. Somewhere be-
tween these limits is the point we wish to
/ lind where the sugar Will test little above
50 degrees. But as this point varie, with
the way the syrup is handed it, purity
and the time OF the season, it will he nece--
sary to make large number of ana yses to
determine the limits OF these variations.
| the station has already collected over a
| hundred samples this spring and will more
| than double this before the sup ceases TO
run.
These samples will lc labelled with their
/ history and analysis and exhibited at each
OF the county fairs in the State next IA l.
! 1t is hoped that in this way it will he posi-
ble to suow every sugar maker in Tue state
| what he will haze TO do to draw the bounty
next spring
As this work is taking much more time
| and labor than had been expected much OF
| the other work of the station has had to
give wa" for the pre- ent, and we have ha /
/ to stop analyzing the lamp OF sugar sent
/ by individuals throughout the State. 1t j,
hoped that they will not take oilen~e at our
being unable to analyzs the samples tor
| them, since 1t Is not intended is any dis
courtesy, but in tne end the wori. We arc
| now DONG Will benefit them rs nu IA, and
probably more than if we had .p-nt our
mo in ana,yz.ns tLeir single samples The
work viii probably he competed 50 that ".
can make II report some time IN June.
W. ". COOKE, Director.
State Agricultural. Experiment Station,
Buriing ton, VI, April /, 1881.
RENE dis ia the hn -r rs a family medicine,