The Athena press. [volume] (Athena, Umatilla County, Or.) 18??-1942, 1906-09-21
If you it in the E. o. it's 70.
NEW USE FOR POTATOES.
Chicago Record Herald.

American farmers, If they will
profit by the experience of farmers of
Germany and France, will find in the
new denatured alcohol act, which
takes effect January /, 1907, means
of materially increasing their incomes.
At the state department reports have
just been received from Consul Gen
eral Thackera at Berlin and Consul
General Mason at Paris, which show
the great market made in those two
countries for farm products by free
denatured alcohol laws. In Germany
over three-fourths of the alcohol dis
titled is made from potatoes, last year
81, ,148, 182 bushels being consumed in
the production of 76,010,927 gallons,
or about 1.26 bushels of potatoes to
the gallon OF alcohol. During the last
season there were 72, ,172 alcohol dis
tilleries in operation, of which 604S
were farm distilleries, which illus
trates how closely the new industry
can be brought home to the farmer.
In Germany the distillation of al
cohol from potatoes is one of the most
important branches of agriculture. 1t
alone in some cases renders farming
pursuits possible in regions situated at
distance from business centers and
possessing light soil, and many farms
owe their existance to the distilleries.
About one-third of the alcohol pro-
duced in Germany is denatured.
"The use of spirits for driving
motors, lighting rooms and public
places, cooking food and producing
heat has great future, says Consul
General Thackera.
In the United States," he con-
tinues, "where alcohol for use in the
industries can be produced more
cheaply, perhaps, than in any other
country in the world, the increased
consumption Of the spirit which will
take place under the provisions of
the new law will be of great advant-
age to our agriculturalists. +"
1t costs in Germany about 2 cents
gallon completely to denature alco-
hol, and this is the greatest drawback
in that country to growth in its use.
The price of denatured alcohol varies
from about 80 cents gallon to 81
cents, according to strength and pur
ity, and it has to meet in competition
petroleum, which retails in Germany
at from IS cents to % cents gallon.
In France the alcohol used for vari
Gus industrial purposes is manufac-
tuIed mainly from beet roots, the
material being either the refuse mo-
lasses from sugar factories or beets
which by reason of unfavorable con-
ditions contain only a small percent
age of sugar. Potatoes and grain are
also used to some extent, but realtive-
ly much less than in Germany.
In France it costs about 10 cents a
gallon to denatuTize alcohol, because
the government has set Que process,
while i'll Germany several different
methods are permitted. This makes
the cost of denatured alcohol iu
France in ordinary times 80 cents
gallon. In France about 5000, 900
gallons of denatured alcohol are con
sumed annually. From the cost of
manufacturing the raw alcohol should
be deducted subsidy paid by the
government equal to about cents a
gallon. Alcohol denaturized by the
formula in use in France is not only
unnecessarily expensive, but may also
be purified and be used for human
consumption. As the United States
will adopt formula which renders
the product unfit for human consump
tion, the French denaturizing process
will not be followed, and a much
cheaper one may be adopted.