New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1897-04-07
Sugar Beet
Meetin. g.
About Two Hun lred Farmers Attend the
Rally.
Good Speeches Made by Numerous Well
known Experts.
The Possibilities ola Factory at this Point
Discussed.

Between two and three hundred PEG
pie attended the Sugar Beet Convention
in this city on Wednesday. The bad
roads and the fact that the high water
has absolutely cut off the Nicollet PEG,
pie from access to the city explains the
smallness of the crowd. The interest
however, was lively and many questions
were asked by the farmers present.
The following party came in on the
afternoon trpin from Minneapolis: Supt'
Hopkins, General Agent Farmer, Henry
Wallace of Des Moines, Mr.. Fuh1mann
of Nebraska, Profs. Frankforter, Voss
and Snyder, Col. Liggett and Hudson of
the journal.
Peter Scherer as vice president of the
Commercial Union presided and intro
duced MIR. Wallace of Wallace's Farmer
as the first speaker. Mr.. Wallace said
that he came from state that had seen
hard times, and hard lines had set the
people to doing some vigorous thinking.
1t had led them into raising less wheat
and more grass; less raw material and
more cattle, hogs and sheep. 1t had
led them to consider the possibilities Of
the beet sugar industry. He called at
tention to the fact that America was
the greatest sugar consuming nation in
the world, outside Of England, and
prophesied that within fifteen years we
would be producing all of our own sug-
ar. His purpose in visiting New Ulm,
he said, was not to deceive, but to show
the people how to look out for them
selves; to prevent millions of dollars
from going abroad for sugar, that we
might just as we'll keep at home. South
ern Minnesota, he said, was in the very
heart of the sugar beet belt. The soil
was unsurpassed by any in the world.
We have a secretary of agriculture whose
heart and soul is in the work and it was
absolute nonsense to let Germany send
us "compressed air. in the shape of sug-
ar, when we have the facilities and con-
ditions necessary to creating the supply
ourselves, He had absolute faith in the
success of the industry and claimed that
the men to accomplish it are the men
who are the sons of those who raise the
sugar beet in Germany.
Col. Liggett followed Mr.. Wallace
with a few remarks as to the work being
done by the experimental station in
making experiments for the guidance of
Minnesota farmers and introduced Prof.
Snyder, the chemist, who has made the
sugar beet experiments at the farm
The professor said that during the
past few months remarkable interest
has been manifested in the beet sugar
industry, and added that the princi pal
questions to be answered at this time
were whether good sugar beets could be
raised in this state, having the proper
amount of sugar and purity, and whether
it would pay to raise them for the man
ufacture of sugar.
The conditions necessary to successful
sugar beet raising were climate, soil and
rainfall, and in all Of these southern
Minnesota will stand comparison with
other states and countries. That section
of the state, hundred miles on either
side of New Ulm, constituted the best
portion of the sugar beet belt and Brown
county was admirably situated in the
very centre thereof.
The climate during the months O
June, July and August is just right
having an average temperature of 70 de
grees, and the rainfall during the SANE
period is IN the neighborhood of sever
inches, experts agreeing that 6 inches il
necessary to insure good results. 'rh'
loan soil, with a fair amount of sand
and the clay-like sub-soil, which re
ta1ns the moisture is Characteristic 0
this section and makes ideal soil for tn
production Of the beet. Rich prairi
soil, unbroken, was not so desirable.
The speaker then gave statistics Of an
!. alyses Of Minnesota beets raised fror
1883 to 1896 and showed that they ha
an average percentage Of sugar Of a.
and \ purity co-eMcient Of SO. The al
alysis of beets raised in Brown count
showed an average percentage of frol
to 1914.
Reviewing all these facts-climate, sol
rainfall, analyses and practical tests, ii
speaker concluded that we can rails
beets, IS good rs any raised in any po