Hot Springs weekly star. (Hot Springs, S.D.) 1892-1917, 1902-02-07
Out on the Pampas /
BY q. A. HeNrv


laughter at the idea of making sugar with
a mangle. The mangle in question was
part of a patent washing apparatus which
Mr.. Hardy had brought with him from
England, and consisted of two strong
iron rollers, kept together by string
springs, and turning with a handle.
II do think that the mang.e would do.
Clara" Mr.. Hardy said, land we are all
much obliged to you for the idea. | had
thought of the great washing copper for
boiling the sugar, but the mangle alto
gether escaped me. We will begin to-
morrow. Please get all the tubs scrub
bed out and scalded, and put out in the
sun to dry"
"How long will it take, papaY"
"Some days, Ethel; We must only cut
the canes as fast as the boiler can boil
the juice down."
The hex day the work began. The
canes We're cut at a level with the ground,
the tops taken off, and the canes cut into
lengths of three feet. They We're then
packed on a bullock cart and taken up to
the house. They were next passed
through the manglc, which succeeded adj
mirably, the juice flowing out in streams
into the tub placed below to receive it.
When all the canes had been passed
through the mangle. the screws We're
frightened to increase the pressure. and
they We're again passed through. by
which time, although the juice was not
so thoroughly extracted as it would have
been by a more powerful machine. the
quantity that remained was not impor-
tant. AS the tub was filled the con-
tents We're taken to the great copper, un-
der which u fire was then lighted. The
crushing Of the canes was continued I'M
til the copper was nearly full, when MIR.
Hardy ordered the cutting of the canes
to he discontinued for the day. The fire
under the copper was fed with the crush
ed canes, which burned very freely. Mr..
Hardy now added Il small quantity of
lime and some sleeps blood. (which last
ingredient caused many eXcl,Ahations OF
horror from Mrs. Hardy and the young
Ones. The blood, however, Mr.. Hardy
informed them, was necessary to clarity
the sugar, as the albumen contained in
the blood would rise to the surface, bring
ing the impurities with it. The fire was
continued until the thermometer showed
that the syrup was within a few degrees
of boiling, and the surface was covered
with IL thick, dark-colored scum. The
fire was then removed, and the liquor al
lowed to cool. the family now going about
other work, as so large n quantity of liq-
uor would not be really cold. until the
next day.
The following morning the tap at the
bottom of the boiler was turned, and
the syrup came out bright and clear
about the color of sherry wine. The
scum descended unbroken on the surface
of the liquor; and when the copper was
nearly empty the tap was closed, and
the scum and what little liquor remained
was taken out. The. bright syrup was
now again poured into the boiler, the fire
relishtea, and the syrup was kept boiling
to evaporate the water and condense the
syrup down to the point at which it would
crystalline. 1t required many hours boil
ing to effect this, any scum which rose
to the surface being carefully taken off
with Il skinner. At last it was found
that the syrup OH he skinner began to
crystalline and Mr.. Hardy pronounced
it to be fit to draw off into the large
washing tubs to crystalline. A fresh batch
of canes was now crushed, and SO the
process vas repeated until all the canes
We're cut. 1t took a fortnight altogether.
but only five days Of this were actually
occupied in cutting and crushing the
canes. AS the sugar crystalliZed it was
taken out-a dark, pulpy looking mass. ut
which the young Hardys looked very
doubtfully-and was placed in a large ST.
gar hogshead. which had been procured
for the purpose. In the bottom of this
eight large holes were bored, and these
Were stopped up with pieces of ~plaintain
stalk. Through the porous substance of
these stalks the molasses or trcaclc slow
ly drained off. AS the wet sugar was
placed in the cask. layers of slices of
plaintain stems We're laid upon it. as the
SpOngy substance draws the dark color
ing matter out from the sugar. The
| plaintain grows freely in South America.
! and Mr.. Hardy had planted a number of
this graceful tree near his house; but
these had not been advanced enough to
cut, and he had. therefore, procured ii
sufficient quantity from IL friend mt Ito-
sario. 1t was three months before the
drainage of the molasses quite ceased;
and the Hardys We're greatly pleased, on
cmptying the hogshead and removing the
plaintain stems, to find that their sugar
was dry and of IL fairly light color. The
sugar canes did not require planting
again. as they will grow for many years
from the same roots; and although the
canes from old stools, as they are called,
produce less sugar than those of the first
years planting, the juice is clearer and
requires far less trouble to prepare and
refine. Before another year came round
the boys made Il pair of wooden rollers of
eighteen inches in diameter, These were
covered with strips of hoop iron, nailed
le%ngthways upon them at short intervals
from each other, thereby obtaining Il bet
ter grip upon the canes and preventing
the wood from being bruised and grooved
These rollers We're worked by a horse
mill, which Mr.. Hardy had ordered from
England. 1t was made for five horses
and did n great deal of useful work
grinding the Indian corn into fine floui
for home consumption and for sale II
ncighboring settlers. and into coarse
meal, and pulping the pumpkins and root
for the pigs and other animals.
Mr.. Hardy also tried many other cXper
iments. as the climate is suited to almos
every kind of plant and vegetable. Anon,
them was the cultivation of ginger, of TIN
vanilla bean, of flax, hemp and coffee
In all of them he obtained more or les,
success; but the difficulty of ~obtainin,
labor, and the necessity Of devOting NOR
and more attention to the increasin,
flocks. herds and irrigated land prevent
ed him from carrying them out on
large scale.