El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1918-01-05

! than half the size Of either Ohio 70
Kentucky
il IS now 10 years since Msrgraf DIS
covered sugar in beets, and beet sugar IS
an industry is only about 100 years old
Cane sugar is said TO have been known
10 the Chinese mething like 5000 years
ago The plant was taken from China TO
India and from there Jumps Of sugar
were carried TO Greece, where Il bore the
name Of Indian salt II was also called
honey from the reeds" and said TO be
white and brittle like gum
Some claim that sugar originated IN
india and the Hindoos have legend
that one OF their saints created sugar
cane and made sugar in order that he
might use 10 as heavenly food for
prince who wanted TO have the delights
Of paradise while still upon earth
Later sugar was COMPOUNDED with man
ma. some supposiug 81 TO have been tho
miraculous food OF the children Of Israel
upon their march across Sinai. and in
the middle ages the crusaders brought
back some from Palestine which probably
had come there from Africa. where u
was known for a long time before It ar
rived in Europe. In 1850 A D. sugar was
sold in London for q cents pound. and
IN 1888 German traFeler, In speaking
Of Queen Elizabeth OF England then %
years OF age said. ''Her nose is a little
hooked, her lips narrow and her teeth
black. a defect the English seem sub
iect 10 from their great use Of sugar
Columbus Brought sugar
Sugar came TO this continent with Co
Iumbus. he is said TO have planted IL IN
Slnt0 Domingo in 1898 A little later u
was introduced into Cuba. and after ne
gro slavery was inaugursted there the in
dustry rapidly grew In the nth century
when the island had only $4,000 people
IL had 100 sugar plantations Today Cuo7
produces more sugar than any other part
Of the world Its crop last year was
about 5000, 000. 900 pounds. in comparison
with India little more than 5000. Ooo-o11
and Java about 2-500. 600 000- During that
000 000 600 mounds
Of beet sugar. the product coming mainly
from Germany, Austria and Russia. WIN
smaller amounts from Belgium and
France. All Of these countries formerly
exported sugar TO England. and this sup
ply has. OF course, been cut off
As TO cane sugar it IS raised In scat
terinE patches throughout the tropical
world 7 have seen the cane growing N
Porto Rico. Cuba and others OF the Vest
India islands. Some Of the finest SUGAR
lands Of the world are the volcanic soil
Of Hawaii ana java. ana We nave n!liloAs
of acres in the PHILIPPINES that might he
used for the crop British India has at
times led the world in cane-suEar pro
duction. and the crop OF Java IS so great
that 81 has now surplus Of 100000 o0
pounds for export II IS tied up there be-
cause the merchant vessels belonging 10
the Dutch which usually bring the sugar
60 the United States and Europe have
been kept in New york owing 10 our re-
fusal 70 give them carEoes Of grain 20
carry across the ocean 10 Europe
Among the other cane sugar countries
are Australia Fiji and some scattering
islands Of the Pacific and Indian oceans
belonging 20 England The cane grows
well in Brazil and Argentina. and I have
seen IL twice as high as my head in the
irrigated valleys OF Peru There are also
irrigated sugar plantations on the banks
Of the Nile near Cairo In fact. the cane
Eravrs here and there IN the tropics. an
ever the world. and IL it were not Tor the
submarines and other dangers 20 shipping
Trnrrfd HnEn her normal EuuEIT
and to spare
A short time ago 7 published a letter
from Louisiana showing how our cane
sugar area is confined TO Louisiana and
Texas. The sugar lands there are COM
paratively limited. and we shall not be
able TO grow enough cane sugar fo- our
needs. outside our colonial poSsessiolS- ts
is different with the Philippines. Hawai-
and Porto Rico and the new islands We
have recently bought from Denmark They
an have good sugar soil. and the Philip
pines could feed a large part Of our peo-
Beet sugar Area large
As to our beet sugar area. It IS So great
that We could grow enough heets 20 sup
still have a surplus 90 sell 70 other parts
Of the world The sugar beet can DE
grown anywhere from Maine TO Califor-
mia and from the great lakes TO the
Chic river tt needs cool nights and mod
eratelv warm days. and il thrives best
along the isothermal line Of 40 degrees
I have seen Ir I'm Utah and California
where are some OF the largest beet sugar
fields Of the world
The sugar beets look much like those
iE your garden. and they are cultivated
in about the same way The seed is
scwu in rows about eight inches apart
and when the plants come up they are
thlnned. SO that they stand six OF eight
inches apart in the row In Utah the
seed is drilled in. and there are drills
that plant several rows at a time The
bets are hoed and kept free from weeds
Il axes about five months for them 20
mature. after which they are dug M much
Ike potatoes and taken 10 The sugar fac
tory.
The beets are not large They weigh
from a pound 20 a pound and a half each
and the smallest beet has the sweetest
juice and makes the best sugar The
heats produce more or less sugar accord
ing 70 the percentage OF sugar contents
in them This varies in different localt-
ties. In the region visited it took six
or eight beets TO make one pound Of
sugar
Making Beet Sugar
7 was interested in the beet sugar fac
tories They have modern machinery
based upon cost efficiency methods, So
that a minimum Of human labor IS used
The heets are taken in upon belts and