Year: 1862

Inc KEOWIS6 OI tut NOftnNeSBA


A man who has never travelled in
the west knows so little about it that
it is scarcely worth while to talk to
them about it. He would scarcely
believe a sucker if he were to tell him
that Illinois has furnished larger
proportion of fighting men than any
other State and besides that he would
be astonished to learn that she is pre-
pairing, with her sister States of the
Northwest, to supply our country, and
the rest of mankind, with sugars, syr-
ups and cotton. Our past history has
been marked by no fixed policy for
making US self-sustaining in time of
war. And now as war is upon us, and
we are put to the necessity Of deyising
ways and means-fortunately neither
the will nor ability are wanting for this
the sudden destruction Of our inter-
national commerce would have fallen
much heavier upon US in one of its
branches than it has or will, but for
the timely introduction into the North
west of the Sorghum, Imphee, &c.
Sweets are more than luxuries. They
have become part of our food. Su-
gars and syrus are regarded nearly as
necessary to family subsistence as
-four and beef. Even in the cabins of
the extreme poor you hear the want
of these articles spoken of as grievan-
noes not to be endured.


The success which has attended the
cultivation of Sorghum in the west is
truly wonderful. The plant was in
troduced into France, and cultivated
very extensively, twelve years ago
But either the soil and climate were
ungenial, or the proper means we're
not employed in preparing the syrup,
for it has now gone into disuse for that
purpose, and is grown mostly for the
manufacture of alcohol and vinegar.
The first attempts at introducing it
among our farmers met with distrust.
They remembered the Morus n1ultica-
ulus and other impositions of the east,
and but few would give the seeds a
place among their garden plants. AT
a fair of one of the interior counties of
Iowa, four years ago, the writer saw
the first sample of Sorghum syrup
manufactured in that part of the State.
Although spoken of with distrust until
examined, very few, if any, who tasted,
expressed any doubts of its success
The gray haired old man who brought
it to the fair had watched its boiling
with the greatest care all the night
previous. He had not been incited
by any award, for none was offered ;
but he saw it large and profitable
branch Of industry which should ulti-
mately make the people of Iowa indie
pendent of the South in that particu>
lar. Now the country produces all
the syrup used in it, and has a surplus
for export.


By information from Mr.. Wallace,
Corresponding Secretary of the Iowa
State Agricultural Society, it appears
that Iowa has produced the past year,
seventy. six and half per cent. of all
the syrup her inhabitants will require
for the year to come. The Southern
part Of the State has the soil, climate,
and every requisite for the successful
culture of Sorghum. In the north the
seasons are too short, and fuel too ex-
pensive; still much is grown, and will
probably continue to be for home con-
sumption. Minnesota and Wisconsin
are rather too far north; yet these
States have their warm, sunny places
in which sugar cane will mature. We
have no exact data for the product Of
Illinois the past year. Many counties
have grown all the syrup that will be
used in them, and not few have q
portion to export. 1t may not be safe
to set the figures so high as Mr.. Wal.
lace has for Iowa, but we may safely
say our State has the past year grown
one>half the syrup required for the
people of the State. The neighborine
States of Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio
have not been unmindful of the impor.
tance of this new branch of husbandry


Four years ago, all the sugar cane
planted in the Northwest was put out
as an experiment. Thejuice was ex-
tracted, and boiled down as an expert
ment. No experiments were ever
crowned with better success in such
untutored hands. Nine-tenths of the
Sorghum grown the following year
was commenced and carried through
as experiments to satisfy the curiosity
or convince the cautiousness of the
experimentors. More have been as
tonished at their success; andthe ease
with which all the processes are per
4 formed, than have failedOf very salts
factory results.


The fact is, there is no limit to The
amount of sugar cane the Northwest
can produce. We have about corr
enough to last the country about two
years, if not an ear is grown in 1862
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