The record-union., 1891-08-17
MOLASSES AND FUEL
Louisiana Planters Planning to Sui
Sfituta IL for Coal.


The large crop of sugar which Louisi-
ana is raising this year has greatly COM
plicated the problenl as to what to do
with the molasses. With a crop of 550,
100000 pounds of sugar, there will be
100000 barrels, p, 7,5OO,0 600 gallons or 300,-
OO0,00 pounds of molasses, which the
planters do not know how to get rid OF.
The output of molasSeS in Louisiana is
now so great that there is no market for
the lower grades, and it does not pay to
sell them. Last year the molasses got
down to &c, &c and &c a gallon. The barrel
in which it was put cost often twice as
much as its contents, and the freight to
New Orleans was great deal more than
the molasses was worth when it got there.
Consequently many planters gave it
away to any one who would send them
barrel and pay the freight. Others
dumped it in big reservoirs in the hope
that the prices would rise. Tens of
thousands of gallons were emptied into
the Mississippi River and Bayou Teche.
The overproduction of molasses this
year will be even greater than it was last
year, and the planters are trying to find
some use for an article which formerly
was one Of their most valuable pro-
ducts, but now Is a nuisance. 1t has
been proposed first to manufacture the
molasses into rum or to use it for fuel.
Originally most of the Louisiana
lilOldSSSS was Iudut l1lO Dub lulS,
industry was abandoned almost GEN.
tury ago. The rum project to-day would
involve expense for machinery, distiller-
les, etc. 1t is calculated that one gallon
of molasses should make gallon of
rum, so that the use OF materials for
the rum would be five to seven cents
gallon, and Louisiana would be able to
turn out 100000 gallons of rum annu-
ally. There would be great profit in this
but as the industry is new one, and it
would require considerable capital and
skilled labor, and the planters need all
the labor they have in the sugar planta-
tions, 1t is not likely to be tried on any
large scale.
More remarkable is the proposition of
the Planter, the organ of the sugar inter-
ests here, that the molasses should be
used for fuel in the place of coal in the
sugar house. IL calculates that molasSes
would be much cheeper than the cheapest
coal and would be good fuel. Here is
its calculation on this subject:
''The lowest grades of vacuum pan
molasses contain from 20 to 25 per
extracted by existing machinery.
Estimating a barrel of such molasses to
be worth, net, so cents or 81, and q barrel
to hold $50 pounds of molasses, the mo-
lasses would be worth one cent or two
cents gallon and from Ill cents to Is
cents pound. Pittsburg coal, brought
to the sugar-house furnace, has for about
ten years cost 1-5 cents per pound"
| This molasses burns with high heat in
combination with wood or wood fiber, so
that by sprinkling it on the bagasse (the
| dry stalks Of the sugar cane after the sac
charine juice has been expressed from it,
an excellent fuel Of great heat power is
obtained. In this way, estimating that
only half the molasses produced is used
for fuel, substitute will be furnished for
| $1,000 to 100000 tons of coal. That is more
than enough for the manufacture Of all
the sugar of Louisiana.
AS the Planter insists, something will
have to be done, as molasses is the bete
noire of our sugar campaign. 1t takes up
| no end Of tank room, warehouse room,
etc., is in the way of rapid handling of
! barreled sugar, befouls the sugar house
floors, stains neat and clean sugar packa-
ges, calls for an extra force of warehouse
men and hampers the warehouse work.