The Worthington advance., 1900-10-12

map showing the beet sugar belt of
the country. Within this belt beet
sugar promises to become o leading
industry.
In this country there are at the
present time 80 beet sugar factories
in operation, with daily capacity of
1900" tons 6f beets. Lix new fac
tories are now being built that, when
finished, will add total of 3,1O0 tons
daily to those now in operation, while
five more factories are proposed if
sufficient acreage contracts for beets
with the farmers can be secured.
Charles F. Saylor, special agent Of
the agricultural department of the
government, who has carefully inves-
tigated the beet. sugar industry, says
Of it: .-.r
"Instedd Of crude material, the
farmer should furnish as nearly as
possible finished products. The prin-
ciple applies to the beet sugar indus
try. In no other direction has large
area Of this country, east, north or
west. such inviting prospects; espe-
cfal1y is this +rne Of the Mississippi
valley. It seems we are dest>Aed to
clip our wool and send it to New Eng
land where the busy hum of the fac
tory transforms it into useful tex
lures to clothe ourselves and the rest
of the world. The native of Iowa, for
instance, passes through the various
stages to manhood and down the de-
cline, and his ears may never have
heard the music Of the, spindle. The
beautifully, fnely-developed cattle
from the meadows and pens are sent
away and returned as beef prepared
for the table, thus diverting the bulk
of the profits to others who have con-
tributed very little to the produc-
tion, and preventing tho advantages
which would result from having the
work done by, local labor and capital.
But here In . chance in the sugar in
dustly toesee the factory and farm
side by side, working to produce one
of our articles of food and luxury.
Here is a chance to hear the hum Of
industry, the music which thrills and
inspires the soul Of mana brightens
and gladdens the home, amalgamates
our social organism. We look out and
see those restless volumes of smoke
issuing from chimneys early in the
morning and late at night, denoting
that our own coal, mined by our own
people, is working up product of our
farms in factory manned by our
own laborers, who buy of us the nec-
essaries of life, and we feel compen-
sated to some extent, in spite of the
fact that many of our other crude ma
terials are compelled to seek manu-
facture in other sections of the coun-
try.
"But this is not the only compensa-
ton. We must consider the direct
benefits to the farmer of growing
sugar beets for the factory. It has
been my province during the last
three years TO visit all Of the beet
sugar sections Of the United States,
where bects are being grown on a
large. scale and sold to factories, and
I can speak from actual observation in
regard to the benefits. OF course.
beets grown in different parts of the
United States are grown under diff
ferent conditions, which will affect, to
some extent, the cost OF; production
and the profits incident thereto.
Speaking conservatively, I shall lay
down some general facts which will
give an idea Of the average profits to
the farmer in sections Of the country
where beets are produced under rain
conditions, and where the cultivation.
is similar to that which would. be nee
essary il Iowa, :or instance. a fair
estimate OFT the cost d, Of producing
sugar beets in Iowa would be about
$50 .peraacre. This allows for every
element Of cost entering into the pro-