The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-08-10
SUGAR REFINERY DISCUSSED.


plantation ana engaged IN the businesses
of planting and refining all his life. His
knowledge of the subject, he said, was
Intensely practical. from the growing of
the cane to the erection of the mill Capt.
Rose first gave review, showing the
growth and extent of the sugar business
in this country, both a. 70 production and
consumption. The annual product is now
about 10000 tons of cane sugar and about
4O,CG0 tons of beet sugar. This large prod
uct, however, does not begin 10 satisfy
the home demand. The average cOnsump-
ton of sugar in America is about So
pounds per capita, or over 2O0J.O00 tons.
The United States sends abroad every
year more money for sugar than it re-
ceiyes back for wheat exports or for ex-
ports of meat products. The import of
sugar represents half the value of our
immense cotton export. Capt Rose used
these figures to illustrate what an i'm
mense market there is for domestic sugar
in this country.
Capt Rose gave his experience in sugar
raising and refining in North Florida,
where he said the conditions were praCti-
caIly the same as in South Georgia, show
ing that the business had been success
fully conducted there Capt Rose was as
ISOLATED with the Disstons in their large
sugar planting business at kissimmee,
ard said that the business was very sue
cessful until it was converted INTO a
stock jobbing speculation.
Capt. Rose said that there had been
great Improvement in the last ten years
IN the processes used in sugar production
IN Louisiana. With the old-fashioned pro-
cesses 80 pounds of brown sugar and two
barrels Of molasses from ton of cane
was considered good results To-day
with improved machinery the louisiana
| planter gets 1870 pounds of graduated
| sugar and no molasses from ton of
cane. Al present market prices the diff
terence Is about 50 now as compared to
%o'5O then Formerly three cords Of WOOD
| were required for the boiling of every
acre OF cane. To-day no fuel Is used ex-
| cept the begasse or cane refuse
| capt. Rose said that the sugar-cane sun
| Ply or Georgia will compare favorablv win
| mat OF any section The sugar-cane rails
! ca on bottom lands is NOT so rich in saccba-
| rne matter as that raised on uuIands
| there being a very marked difference. he
| gave some results from his own experience
! ana SAID that it was question If the
| smaller yield from the lighter land were
| not more profitable 10 the producer rh1n
! the Yields from the bottom lands with the I.
| smaller percentage of saccharine matter
! lie compared the best sugar growing with
! cane production and said that the former
| was very difficult and required a special
course OF instruction, while the latter was
so simple that any ordinary Cracker could
| raise a good crop of cane.
A quart bottle of Foy, Dutton & Co s
| syrup, prepared for table PURPOSES men
| ton of which has been made in the Morn
ing News in an Interview with Mr.. w. K.
! Pearce stood upon the table in front Of
| capt. Rose. 1t was a very handsome sam
| pie and there was a considerable LAYER
OF sugar crystals at the bottom This
| syrup he said, picking up the s1p7pIe
will produce at least 715 pounds to the
| gallon and probably pounds II is a
very fine sample and syrup of this grade
would readily find a market in New Or
| leans at q to 30 cents gallon / would
| hardly expect the average syrup to grade
so hlgh. From 5la to pounds would be
falr average The crystals in the bot
tom of this sample are almost pure rock
candy and would make the finest kind of
sugar"
Capt. Rose explained that it would be
| more profitable TO the farmers to produce
! syrup to sell 10 refinery than TO boil their
syrup down to brown sugar and sell that
10 the refinery. syrup said Can't Rose.
IS only crude sugar which has not been
boiled to the crystalizing point With the
| crude processes employed by the farmer.
he would get less than half the quantity
IN brown sugar that a refinery would get
IN graduated sugar from the same
| amount of syrup
The first process in converting brown
| sugar into graduated is to reduce il TO q
| thln syrup. after which it is skinned and
strained and put through various processes
TO remove the impurities. The production
| OF sugar from syrup is nothing new. a
| large percentage of the Louisiana outDut
being made from syrup 1t will be more
profitable, both for the farmer and for
the refinery, for the former to produce
! syrup 10 be converted by the latter into
| graduated sugar The ref1neres only pro-
duce graduated sugar, there being no in
termediate' brown sugar stage. tt is true
h.a
Will lose considera ole percentage of the
cane product, but with the establishment
of market for his product the same evo-
| luton Will come about in Georgia as has
taken place in Louisiana. The farmer will
! find that by dispensing with his old crude
| machinery and introducing improved mills.
| eVaporatorS and other modern machinery
| he will MOI only increase the quantity of
his product but improve the quality as
| well and thus insure larger returns for
the same labor and expenditure
Getting down to the question of the cost
of sugar refinery, Capt Rose submitted
an estimate on plant capable of produc-
| ing 100000 pounds or about 800 barrels of
sugar daily. This would mean a consump-
! ton of 500 barrels of syrup daily on pa
sis of six pounds of sugar to the gallon.
! He estimated the cost of the plant as fol-
! lows; Machinery 100000; building $4,000;
| erection of plant, $4,000; total, 100000,
! added. A good location, with water as
| well as rail transportation. would be
needed. he said, and as a venture he es-
! timated the cost Of this at 100000. Most
| of those present however, were of the
| opinion thai a suitable site could be OBJ
tanned for less than half this figure which
! would make the cost of a 30O-barrel plant
| S250,000 Estimating the cost of $500 bar
rels OF syrup at ~ cents a gallon al $780,
| 600 and the cost Of refining taxes and in
surance for 100 days at $4,000 this would
| make the gross expenses $3.50 600 for the
production of 10 100000 pounds of sugar
| AT the market price Of sugar this would
show a profit at the end of the season Of
| $4,000 to $1jO0Ol
Capt Rose based his idea OF operating
only leo days IN the year upon the belief
| that the Georgia syrup could be handled
| only during the winter season. Judge Till
man, Mayor Myers and others informed
| him that he was in error in this as the