The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1917-11-16
SHELLEY SUGAR CELEBRATION

The people of the Shelley country
assembled at the new sugar factory
on Wednesday afternoon to COM
mem crate the coming of the new in
dustry by which granulated white
sugar Is produced in their commun-
ity and by their own people.
One year ago they had signed con-
tracts agreeing to raise sugar beets
to supply two factoris, but by COM
prom ise an arrangement was made
by which they concentrated their
energies on the construction of one
factory, and with the new labor con-
ditons it required monumental ef-
forts to complete it in time for the
opening of the campaign, and to
raise enough beets to SUPPLY 1t.
The factory is situated a mile
south Of town, and everything en-
tering into it's construction and
equipage is new and modern. Rail-
roads are built to it for transporting
beets, and the self-dump and the
automatic devices the best known to
the industry are in operation. OF
all the improved processes of recent
years, the Shelley factory has the
benefit, SO when her population and
some visitors from neighboring
towns assembled to view it in sue
cessful operation, they saw the best
there is in the sugar world. The
plant Is in the heart of the best
belt in the world for growing sugar
beets, for the reason that beets re-
quire hot days, cool nights and
bright sunshine. and the Snake river
valley in it's upper reaches combines
these conditions to an, extent not
equaled by any other great belt.
Railroads converging at the factory
bring in the beets from all ,direc-
tions, and the cars are showed up
on the trestles so they dump into
the beet bins. The wagons are
driven on another trestle where they
dump into chutes where steel
belt takes each wagon load and
pours 1t gradually into revolving
cylinder of giant proportions and
open sides. The revolving jolts the
dirt and dust loose from the beets
and it falls on belt that carries it
along and dumps it into a great
steel bucket that weighs it. The
wagon drives off the trestle and
comes around under the bucket and
it again receives the self same dirt
to haul gack to the farm from which
it came. The weight of the dirt is
ducted from the gross weight of the
load as 1t arrived, and thus is elm
mated the question of tare, for every
man can see his own dirt drawn back
into his own wagon.
The beets pass from the revolving
cylind er to belt about three feet
wide and reaching the full length of
the yards or bins. By a mechanical
device the beets are diverted from
the belt to the yards at any desired
place, and by another belt device
working at right angles to the first
one, the beets can be carried out to
any part of the yards and dumped
This part of the belt system is sup
ported by a bridge that travels up
and down the yards on a set of
tracks. The advantage of the belt
conveyors is that less trestle is need
ed for a given amount of yardage,
in fact only fractional part as
much, and the wagons, by unloading
at one point (three chutes close to-
gether), can be served by the sys-
tenn that takes out, the dirt and re-
turns it to the wagon instead of hav-
ing it deposited under the trestles
till it buries them.
The beets are carried from the
yards to the slicer by water, and
the ashes from the furnaces is car
ried away by water. The institution
is operated so far as possible by
local people, and during the past
year it has greatly stimulated the
development of the community.
A musical program with speeches
by local men and from Salt Lake and
Blackfoot Occupied about two hours,
and the rest of the afternoon was
given over to inspecting the plant
and partaking of refreshments sup
piled free to all. The roads all about