The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1904-04-08
PROMOTING BEET SUGAR INDUSTRY.
More Factories Promised Than will Ever
Be Built.

More Factories Promised Than will Ever
Be Built.
If all we read in the daily papers about
what the beet sugar promoters are doing
be true, it is quite evident that a great
many promises are being made that will
never be fulfilled. Almost every CON-
munity is told they can get a sugar fac
tory if the farmers will only grow beets.
People do rot stop to think that every
sugar factory means an investment close
to million dollars and yet they are told
that money is ready to put them in as
thick as hop poles when the farmers are
asked to subscribe to the intended acre
age. Inducements are held out to the
farmers that there is big money in beet
culture and to the cities that the factory
is great thing for the town, so between
the two influences the promoters have
strong. combination working for the
acreage contracts The danger of this
is that great many farmers will grow
the beets to find when they are ready for
market the factory is several hundred
miles away and the freight charges will
eat up a good share of the proceeds.
There is great danger too that. the farm
ers will not be satisfied with the money
returns received from the crop if the
season should not be especially favorable.
This was the cause of the removal of the
Davidson factory from Canada to James
Vile. 1t was also found true among
the beet growers in Nebraska and Colo
RADIO and in some localities of Michigan
where they now find their factories have
been built altogether too close. The
farmers will do we'll not to be entirely
carried away by the craze that is now
spreading over the state. 1t is, new
thing and will be best to try the indus
try moderately at first until they are
satisfied it is the proper crop to grow.
1t is nowise reasonable to expect that
half the factories promised will ever be
built. The disposition of the promoters
to crowd into one another's territory
does not argue we'll for the success of
the industry and the feeling engendered
in the race for acreage will surely lead
to some unbusiness like methods These
promoters change their minds pretty
ing interview with Mr.. Wagner, publish
ed in the Sentinel of Tuesday:
wisconsin will be great producer of
become more densely settled" said Rich
ard G. Wagner, president Of the Wiscon-
sin Sugar company There is room
enough for at least thirty factories, but
the trouble is there is not enough labor
To ho 70 kho re-,
that will be needed by the factories.
Beet culture requires study of sew
eral years before the farmer is enabled
and for this reason do not think a fac
tory will be built at Eau Claire in the
immediate future. We have factory
at Chippewa Falls that will be ready
this fall, and that vii. take care of 600
tons Of beets daily during the four
months it will be in operation; but the
beets that it will consume will come
from almost every part of the state. We
have farmers growing beets for us
wherever the soil is such as to warrant
the experiment, and as we find the farm
ers are sufficiently ambitious to make
success of the venture We will erect a
factory; but for the present we will con-
tent ourselves with the two we are now
interested in, the one at Menomonee
Falls which has been in operation with
unqualified success for the last three
years, and the one at Chippewa Falls.
''We had intended to put up plant at
GAINESVILLE, and have not yet given up
the idea entirely, even though Capt.
Davidson has been induced to move his
Canadian factory to that place. We find
that at present not enough beets are
grown there to keep factory busy for
two months. We are also experiment.
ing with farmers in Dane county, and /
think we may eventually put up fac
tory in that district, as the farmers
whereabouts have shown special apti-
tude for beet growing