The southern sentinel. (Winnfield, La.) 1883-1910, 1905-02-09
The Sugar Outlook for 1905.

The Picayune, in discussing the
prospects for the sugar crop for the
present wear. said last week:
With the sugar crop of 1904 barely
out of the way, sugar producers are
taking a brief respite from trouble.
but at the same time they are taking
advantage of every day of good
weather to overhaul their equipment
and perpare their lands for the spring
planting. which is expected to be un-
commonly heavy.
The success of the season just
closed has greatly encouraged the
Louisiana sugar industry. and 1t Is un-
doubtedly the intention of every
planter to increase his acreage as
much as his supply of seed will per-
nit Lands. which last year were di-
yerted to cotton and rice will be re-
turned to sugar wherever a supply oil
seed cane can be secured, and in the
more northerly parishes, where cotton
Is the main crop, but where the sugar
industry has never been entirely
abandoned. the tendency is to increase
sugar acreage at the expense of cot
ton.
the past season is. of course, the main
stimulating influence in the proposed
increase in cane acreage Tor lSoo.
sugar planters have realized that the
sugar crop is infinitely more reliable
than either cotton or rice. While
like all other agricultural products 1t
| Ia liable to price fluctuations and is
dependent on the weather conditions,
at the same time il suffers fewer dis
asters from meteorological conditions,
and prices fluctuate less than is the
case in other industries.
While the cultivation OF sugar cane
| Is affected largely by weather condl-
tions, the manufacturing branch OF the
industry is more stable The factory
| having the most perfect machinery,
the largest capacity and the ablest
| MANAGEMENT invariably gives the best
results and the great benefit of an
uncommonly good year, such as tna'
closed, is the means it puts in the
| producers hands to improve the rae
tories by the addition of the latest
| machinery as well as by enlarging the
| capacity.
| The tendency in the sugar industry
il toward gradually diyorcing the
manufacturing from the purely agfi'
| cultural branch of the business. The
individual sugar factory. that is. the
possession of factory by every plan
/ tatiop. is an expensive arrangement
which does not give the best results.
| Being manufacturer as well as planter
| the sugar producers energies are oi-
yided, and he neither secures the Oes'
results from his fields nor the best
results from his factory. In every
other part of the world where sugar
production is successful the centrai
| factory system is in vogue TO mucn
/ greater extent than in Louisiana II
is true that We have some central fac
tories here. but as rule they do mol
compare in capacity with the big cen
trails" of Cuba. In an industry where
the margin of profit is figured down SC
fine. as is the case in sugar. the cos'
of manufacturing is of the utmost con
sequence. As an ordinary thing. tht
larger the mill the cheaper the cos
OF manufacturing.
i The several successive poor season:
Immediately preceding the season o.
1904 checked the extension OF the cen
tral factory system in this State. but
the success of last year should stlmu
late a fresh departure along that line
There are. of course. limits to the siz'
Of factories. due to the ability to sc
cure supplies of cane. The factorl
cannot be located too far from tn'
fields from which. II draws its suppl!
of cane. Constantly improving trans
portation facilities will steadily wider
the sphere of influence OF the centra
factory and correspondinsly dlminisl
1.-The number Of individual plantatio'
factories.