The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-12-09
SUGAR BEET CULTURE
THE KANKAKEE VALLEY FARMERS
FORM AN ORGANIZATION.
Gov. Mount Advises Them to Go at the
Glass Fires Started.

NORTH JUDSON, Ind, Dec. S.-About
five hundred farmers of the Kankakee val
ley held a convention here yesterday, and
last night organized an association for the
promotion of sugar-beet culture and the
establishment of a factory for the CONVEX
sion of beets into sugar. The following Of
ficers were elected: President, Jacob KEEL
Ter; secretary, H. A. Ellingson; treasurer,
Bert Lightcap. Among those who attended
the convention were: James A. Mount,
Governor of Indiana; Prof. H. A. Huston,
of Lafayette; Richard luncheon, of La
Crosse, who represented 1900 acres of land
in the Kankakee valley; Franklin Landers,
of Indianapolis, representing 1,500 acres;
General Superintendent Raft, of the Illinois
Central Railway; w. L. Ross, general traf-
fic manager of the Indiana, Illinois & Iowa
Railway; j. d. Coulter, chief clerk of the
Pittsburg, Cincinnati, Chicago & st. Louis
Railway; General Superintendent Coe, Gen.
eral Passenger Agent Forward and Traffic
Manager Hackett, of the Chicago & Erie
Railway; Isaac d. Dunn, of Dunnville, rep
resenting 1900 acres; Robert B. Lomax and
George Lomax, of Chicago, representing
$500 acres; j. J. Kleinman, Chicago, repre-
senting 200 acres.
The convention was the largest public
meeting ever held in this part Of the State
in the interest of any industrial enterprise
1t was not the intention that a stock COM
pany be formed on this occasion for the
establishment of factory. 1t was rather
to let the farmers of the vast swamp lands
along the Kankakee river know to what
profitable use those swamp lands could be
put other than to the raising of slough
grass that brings only about So a ton. The
information given those farmers was not
alone general information concerning the
cultivation of the beets. 1t was the result
of systematic experiments, carried on by
twenty-five farmers in Stark county and
Prof. Huston, who is the chemist of the
agricultural experiment station of Purdue
University. The sessions were held in a
hall that was decorated with samples of
the beets grown in Stark county, some of
which weighed as much as eight pounds
each. But such monsters of the sugar
producers were low in the percentage of
saccharine matter contained. Prof. Huston
detailed the results obtained from his ex
periments in several years of familiarity
with beet culture in Indiana and other
States. He briefly sums up the advantages
of this part of Indiana for beet culture in
the words: This is the tenth crop l have
taken off, and during the present year We
nave ndQ a very Inucn greater interest mere
in the matter than ever before The re-
suits are such as to indicate that the Kan
kakee valley Is the most promising section
of the State for the establishment of a
beet-sugar factory. The yields and the
quality of the beets are both satisfactory.
In quality the beets exceed those obtained
this season from any other parts of the
State" Judge George w. Beeman, of
Knox, Ind, followed Prof. Huston.
Governor Mount was inclined to extreme
caution, If not skepticism, upon the project
OF going into the sugar industry without
the example of one of the companies al
ready established in other States first test
ing the Indiana fields. The following are
scattering utterances from his talk: 1.-The
question before you is business problem.
| believe that this State is as favored
locality as can be selected in the United
States for the growing of sugar beets and
the manufacture of beet sugar Notwith-
standing that the United States has been
favorable for the manufacture of beet
sugar, there has been failure in the past
and there will be failure in Indiana Not
every factory located in the State will be
successful. You find successes and failures
in all departments of life. The farmer that
farms to-day by sitting dry goods box
telling what kind of laws should be made
to make success would not make a success
of raising sugar beets. You can grow
sufficient quantity of beets. But will you
do 1t? You must grow beets rich enough
in sugar to pay the manufacturer Will
you grow that kind of beets? The farmer
or the United States farms on an extensive
plan. But the farmer who grows sugar
DeetS must farm on the intensive plan.
Wnen you are ready to grow sufficient beets
and cultivate them properly, you are ready
for a factory. l predict that in the United
States we are going to manufacture all the
sugar that can be consumed here, and /
nope that Indiana will take front rank in
this industry"
Others speakers were e. L. Furniss. of
Furnissville, Ind; F. f. Tissal and II. T.
Furnham. of Chicago and Simon Bybee, of
North JudSOn Ind