, 1892-10-01
SUGAR MANUFACTURE IN BRAZIL.
(Louisiana Planter, goth Apg.)

This part Of Brazil is tbickly studded with
"~Ingenhos,' as the mall sugar works are
called. Large central factories are called
"fabricas." Passing along the railway, there
al g practically no other roads you see ingen-
hos in every direction, about half mile apart.
Almost all have the same general appearance,
large, broad tiled roofs, rising from brick
walls about eight feet high, surrounded by q
few 0uthouses or laborers' cottages. Til "
look more like farm buildings than sugar
works. and have an aspect Of calm delibera-
ton, not to say Incidence, that is in marked
contrast to the impatient, energetic air worn
by the galvanized iron buildings Of Hawaiian
sugar mills. The rollers, the boiler Gf
there is one). the teaches, and sl the appara-
tus, are under one roof. The ingonhos are
very SINH ar in arrangements and m thods
except that some grind their cane by steam
power, and some by oxen, None have va
cuum pans or centrifugals, and all the boil
ing and evaporating il done over q naked fire.
The vacuum cleaner and Williams patent fire
bar are yet unknown in these parts.
As many Of my friends on the islands who
have never seen sugar mills driven by cattle
power may, as l have done smile contempt
uOusly at the mere thought Of such things
existing in this last decade Of the 18th oentu-
ry. | will shortly describe the first one that I
visited. Entering the buildings, Major Alves,
the proprietor, a stout amiable gentleman Of
about 50, was found seated in a comic table
chair, beside q table on which was q glass and
porous earthenware water bottle. On my
indicating that | wished permission to see
his Ingenho he pleasantly acquiesced, and
offered q glass Of water, which he recommend
Cd as cool and of good quality, apoIogising tor
the absence of brandy, which is the spirit
most affected by the upper classes in Brazil.
1t is a common practice for the owners to sit
in their Iugenhos when they are in operation /;
they do not, however, as @ rule make any
effort to push the work on. AS the mill
was out Of cane at the moment of my arrival,
the opportunity was favorable for a close in.
s~pection of it.
The rollers are two et nine inches long by
one foot three inches diameter, and when the
cane arrived it was surprising to see that
good crushing could be lone by them when
properly fed. The cane is fed in by hand and
very irregularly, yet | dare sdy the mill was
extracting between 65 and so per cent. of
juice, and with good feeding could no doubt
do over 60 per cent. The rollers were driv-
en- by ak yoke of oxen, attached to three
over head arms, two yoke to each. There
was q driver to each two pair, and he rode
on the arm between the cattle. The animals
were in splendid condition, and did their
work remarkably well, inspiring me with a
much higher respect for bullooks as a motive
power for sugar mills than had had before.
There are numerous advantages in the bull
locks as compared to steam for a NAL mill.
The first cost is less. Bullooks, if they do
go out of order, are less dangerous than a
neglected boiler in careless hands. Absence
of a steam engine simplifes the machinery to
the utmost. If the mill runs short of cane
the oxen meanwhile recuperate themselves by
eating cane tops, or chewing megass SO that
if time is lost. it is not So extravagantly
wasteS as when a boiler is blowing off steam
and the pipes are condensing the costly gas
In the on season the cattle are useful fol
many purposes. while a boiler would very
likely be rusting and finally your bullocks