La Junta tribune., 1898-04-27
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the Asixsssss Valley.

That the sugar beet agricultural
interest is q paramount one to
Southwestern farmers no one will
for a moment doubt.
The United States imports some
thing like Sioo, 900. 600 worth Of
sugar from foreign counties each
year. There is positively no good
reason for this, for this country is
abundantly able to supply herself
and the world, II need be-with
this indispensable table luxury.
Doubtless there will come time
in the futnre-and not a very dis
tant time either-when La Junta
will have big beet sugar factory.
She is ideally located for maniac
turing and distributing this great
product, therefore short history
of this industry is apropos, and the
culture and advantages thereof ap-
pended below.
Nearly $50 years ago the first ex-
periments of extracting sugar from
beet root were made by German
scientist named MargraH, who
prophesied that Europe would find
in the beet basis of a new indus
try. The chemist in his laboratory
was the pioneer Of the industry,
and the immense production of
beet sugar in Europe at the present
day attests the correctness OF Mar
gratis forecast. When this dis
covery was first made the beet con-
tanned only about S per cent of
sugar; to-day, beets are grown that
contain IS per cent and more.
The growing of sugar be.ts is
the coming agricultural industry in
the United States. Agriculture
makes but slow progress in its
march from its primitive tillage Of
the semi barbarous tribes to the
most enlightened cultivation OF the
more profitable products Of the
soil by enlightened, progressive
farmers. The growth OF the sugar
beet industry in the United States
has been a remarkably slow one.
With hundreds of millions OF acres
OF land adapted to the growth of
this profitable crop, there are, in
the United States to-day, but
seventeen factories manufacturing
beet sugar, and only sufficient
acreage planted Of sugar beets to
satisfy their requirements. With
unlimited quantities of land suitable
to its growth. with money seeking
investment in 3H per cent securi-
ties, and paying premium to get
them, we paid Europe in 1896
twenty-five millions Of dollars for
beet sugar. We imported in the
same year, from all sources, Of the
kinds of sugar, I,73o,33o tons.
During the sixteen years beginning
in 1880 and ending in 1896, we
raised but one-tenth of the amount
OF sugar which we consumed. On
the remainder, which was imported,
we paid varying duty, in many
cases equal to the first cost of the
sugar abroad.
The consumption Of sugar, in
this country is steadily growing,
owing to various causes. First,
lits gradual cheapening; second. the
increase in population; third, its
use in the manufacture of canned
and preserved fruits: nasl s.!
n. We consume more sugar pet
capita than any other people in the
world, and the ratio Of increase per
capita is from six to seven per cent
Eper appum. Under these circum-
stances, it must be apparent to
the most careless student of these
figures that it would take a great
many years for the production Of
sugar TO catch up with the con-
sumption, if importation were en-
ttirely stopped. We pay Overcome
hundred millions:of dollars annual
lly for foreign sugar. which money
fshousd tls. kept among our own
lpeople and distributed between the
farmer and hin laborers, and the