Vol. VII. Xo. 165. 



THE AGKICULTURAL NEWS. 



25!> 



SUGAR INDUSTRY, 



Trinidad's Sugar Crop. 



A tabul.-M- sUitement s^iviiiL,' partiruhirs of the 

 total sugar crop return of Trinidad for the season 

 1907-8, the tonnage of canes reaped from lands culti- 

 vated bv estates' proprietors, the amount of sugar 

 manufactured fron; these canes, the (jiiantity grown by 

 cane farmers and disposed of to various factories, the 

 money value of the peasant-grown canes, and the 

 number of East Indian and West Indian cane farmers 

 respectively, was lately published as Society Paper 

 A^o. -iii' of the Agricultural Society of Trinidad and 

 Tobago. 



According to this statement, the total output of sui;ar 

 in Trinidad for the 1908 crop was 48,933 tons of various 

 grades. This yield is nearly 2,000 tons short of the crop of 

 1907, but in the course of a lengthy review lately appearing 

 in the Port. of-Spain Gazette, and dealing with tliis subject, 

 it is mentioned that this shortage is more than accoimted for 

 by the fact that the estates and Usine of Mr. Norman 

 Lamont, M.P., in South Naparima, from which ■2,24-') tons of 

 sugar were exported in 1907, were not worked in 1908. 

 The southern part of the island, i.e., Naparima and Savanna 

 Grande, continues to be foremost in sugar production, having 

 turned out 27,325 tons, or 5G'2 per cent, of the total crop, 

 as against 21,299 tons in the northern districts. The total 

 amount of sugar produced from e.'^tate-grown canes was 

 36,340 tons, which was yielded by 380,334 tons of canes. 



In the 1907-8 season, the farmers' canes grown and sold, 

 amounted to 139,422 tons, and yielded 12,593 tons of sugar, 

 whileinl90G-7thequantityofcanesreached 169,709 tons. Last 

 year, however, 18,343 tons were purchased for Mr. Lamont's 

 factory ; but allowing for this, it will be seen that the returns 

 still show a falliiig-off of nearly 12,000 tons of farmer-grown 

 cane in Trinidad during the past season. The shorter crop 

 is attributed by the Port-of-Spain <Taietti tn the unfavour- 

 able growing .season of 1907, rather ' than tn a decrease 

 in the area under cultivation. Indeed the opinion is expressed 

 that there has been an increase in the acreage rented liy the 

 peasantry for sugar-cane cultivation. This area is estimated 

 to be from 12,000 to 14,000 acres, and the total ainnial rental 

 paid by the farmers to be about $8,750 sterling. 



The cane farmers were paid f 303,631 for their 130,422 

 tons of cane, a price which works out at f2'15 [ler ton. It 

 is mentioned, however, that the canes cost the estates' 

 proiirietors an additional 32c. per ton for weighing and 

 loaduig, and for hauling to the factory, etc. The cost 

 of hauling the canes sometimes amounts to 24c. per ton. 

 It is stated that, in those districts where it has been 

 adopted, the sliding scale of payment for farmers' canes, 

 with a minimum price of $2 '04 per ton, has been found very 

 satisfactory. The highest price paid was !$2'40 per ton. 



Cane farming was started in the southern provinces 

 of Trinidad much earlier than in the northern, but advances 

 have been made in the northern districts, and now 23'3 per 

 cent. of the canes grown in the north are produced by farmer.s, 

 while in the south the proportion of farmer-grown cane is 

 28'6 per cent. 



In the returns, the number of cane farmers engaged in 

 the industry during I907-r< is given as 11,541, of wliicli 

 5,922 are East Indians and 5,619 West Indians. In 1906-7 

 there were 12,334 cane farmers, 6,577 of these being East 

 Indians, and 5,777 West Indians. 



Sugar Industry in Vera Cruz. 



Tlie State of Vera Cruz is probably the richest 

 in natural resources of any in the republic of Mexico. 

 The soil in many districts is extremely fertile, and 

 excellent crops of tobacco, sugar-cane, vanilla, maize, 

 fibre plants, and fruits arc grown. 



Ill a report on the industries of the State, the Britfsh 

 Consul states that the number of sugar plantations in 

 e.xi.stcnce is 1 64. Only about fifteen of these, however, are 

 equipped with modern niachiiiery for grinding, refining, etc. 

 Six plantations have a light railway laid down for the more 

 ex]ieditious handling of the cro[). In several cases the larger 

 plantations belong to foreigners, and a considerable arnount 

 of foreign capital, chiefly from the United States, is invested 

 in the industry. 



The fertility of the soil is such that the average yiehl of 

 cane [ler acre is said to be from 40 to 60 tons, and replanting 

 takes place ordy about once in seven years. The cane grows 

 luxuriantly, and on crushing, yields a juice of density from 

 9 to 11-5" Beaurae. 



For the year 1907, the cane crop of Vera Cruz yielded 

 17.500 tons of sugar and 60,000 gallons of rum. The 

 sugar exports showed a decline in 1905, and still more in 

 1907. This was partly caused by low prices obtained abroad, 

 and partly V)y increasing home consumption. 



The British Consul comments on the great progress that 

 has taken place in connexion with the sugar industry of Vera 

 Cruz of late years. Advanced methods of planting and 

 harvesting are being introduced, and modern mills and 

 refineries erected, while the old plantations are also being 

 improved, and new machinery substituted for the old. 



Most of the sugar machinery imported is of American, 

 manufacture, although British-made machinery has a good 

 reputation. 



' Diamond ' Cane Crusher Roller. 



The International Sv.gar Journal for July 

 contains an account, with illustration, of a patent sugar 

 mill roller of new type, known as the ' Diamond ' patent 

 roller, and invented by a Glasgovv engineer. 



The ' Diamond " roller replaces the usual top roller in 

 a first crushing mill, and its functions are similar to those of 

 a Krajewski crusher. The surface of the roller is very much 

 corrugated, and owing to this form, it takes a very strong 

 grip of the canes as they enter the mill, and thus a uniform 

 feed is ensured. The inventor claims that the roller so 

 thoroughly splits and breaks up the canes as they pass 

 through the mill that an increased percentage ofjince is 

 extracted, while the crushed canes are in the best condition 

 for the absorption of maceration water, and for the ea.sy 

 extraction of juice by the second mill. Further, it is said that 

 the ' Diamond ' rijller not only increases the extracting ]jower 

 of the mill, but that it does .so with about two-thirds of the- 

 power required with ordinary rollers. 



This roller has Ihvm in use for two sea.sons on .sugar 

 estates in several parts of the world, and more especially in 

 Java, where it is stated that it has given .satisfactory results. 

 On estates with milling, plants which include Knijewski 

 crushers, it has in many cise.s, when the plant is working at 

 its full c.ipacity, been found advantageous to fit a 'Diamond' 

 roller into the first crushing mill. A special design of roller 

 is also made for fitting in the second mills of triple crushing 

 plants. 



