.;<; 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS 



Fkium u:y 27, 1915. 



of much energy and money, as well as the introduction 

 of legislation to attempt with dubious su keep 



the disease under reason ible control. 



\_nother case is afforded by Phylloxera, the well- 

 known pesl of the grape vine. This was introduced 

 into Europe from America on hardy vines, and made 

 it necessary to replace the European stocks with 

 resistanl American ones, Still another instance is 

 afforded bj the Chestnut hark disease in North 

 America. This came to the States from China on an 

 exotic species of this tree. At the present time the 

 disease is spreading through the northern forests of 

 native tr< es like ■■< pi si ilence 



Tin' danger of introducing diseases in the way 

 described in tin- article should now be evident. It is 

 largelj a question of relative susceptibility. In 

 .1 general way, modern systems of cultivation place 



plants under extre I\ artificial conditions, ami in 



the long run cultivated species tend to bei 

 more ami more susceptible to introduced paras 

 'I'h.' three examples given earlier in this at 



show how real the, danger is. Our acq tance with 



these cases has not been the result of the activity of 

 a scientific crank anxious to find something 

 microscopic examination; we know of these painful 

 because they have hit the practical man hard in his 

 tenderest spot. 



Parallel to these cases are certain infi ct ious 

 diseases of man, which when introduced nongsl 

 a population not previously exposed to them, have 

 broken out with appalling rapidity and effect. One 

 has only to mention in tins connexion, smallpox among 

 fche North American Indians, and syphilis amongst the 

 South Sea Islanders. Jews, as a class are, from their 

 squalid conditions of life tin- many generations •mark- 

 ably resistant to tuberculosis and other diseases. They 

 are nonetheless verj dangerous immigrants from the 

 point of view ot introducing disease. 



Turning to another aspect of introduced diseases 

 brought out by the case of Citrus canker, namelv, the 

 present system of plant inspection, we see clearly how 

 futile this work is likely to prove in many instances. 



In the case under consideration, the resemblanc t 



canker to scab deceived lor some months the plant, 

 pathologists of Florida. Unknown diseases , 



past. For i reason, the inspector maj have onlj 



a few minutes to decide. Then again, « hen a disi ase is 

 known and looked tor. it may !»■ present in the form of 

 spores, dormant mycelium, or in the 'incubation' stage. It 

 is thus impossible to detect with certainty even known 

 diseases. Certainly the only sure wa\ is absolute 

 exclusion of plants allied t,,> those it is wished to 

 protect, i.e.. the important commercial plant-. Where 

 it is desirable to introduce mw varieties or 

 that work should he done either officially, or under 

 a license involving quarantine and periodic inspection. 

 This should form a function of every Experiment 

 Station, which should contain an area (.('land re-, rved 

 foi gro ing introduced plants under technical observa- 

 tion. I'"ii all such work, however careful must 

 contain an element ofrisk Finallj u must he home 

 in mind that it is important to watch seed 

 ductions as well as anj others. 



SUGAR INDUSTRY. 



MANUFACTURE OF CONCRETE SUGAR. 



At the West Indian Agricultural Conference in 

 1902, a paper was read by Dr Francis Watts on raw 

 sugars For brewing purposes (published in the Went 

 Indian Bulletin, Vol. III). In this, reference was 

 made to t he export of undrained massecuite in the form 

 of concrete. The following iioie-. taken from the 

 Louisiana Planter (January 2, l915),show that, the 

 question is receiving some attention at the present time 

 in ( !uba: — 



A few days ago Doctor I'uadrado ot the local Sugar 

 School also Director of the Fabrication at [ngenio 

 El Pilar read a very interesting paper before the Academy 

 of Scicmv of Havana. His subject was 'Can Cuban Sugar 

 Capture the English Market?', and he dealt with the question 



in a way that is new oral least in a way tint lias no 



considered seriously since the advent of centrifugals for 

 separating the crystals from the molasses as 1 i come from 



pan or crystallize!' 



He briefly describes a modification of a vacuum pan >r 

 'concretor' that is manufactured on the island, and explains 

 that its arrangement is such that a verj effective circulation 

 of concentrated massecuites may be obtained, thus permitting 

 the turning out of a product that will contain less than 5 

 percent, of water. Analyses "t this massecuite or concrete 

 are given, together with data regarding it-- keeping qualities, 

 which were found to lie excellent. 



The Doctor believes that it would be entirely feasible I i 

 ship this concrete in sacks, and that it would be easily sold ;,> 

 tic English refiners, who would be able to obtain therefrom 

 either standard granulated sugars (by purging and remel 

 oi crystals very similar to those now brought from Demerara 

 (i ins grade of product to be obtained by washing in the 

 centrifugals), besides a superior quality of liquid pr< 



similar to the treacle and golden >yrups. and thai 



molasses not turned into a directlj edible product could be 

 Fermented and distill d 



The proposal certainly sounds interesting; probably more 



than usuallj interesting, because Doctor Cuadrado is 



those who -have in the past put forth their efforts b 

 raising the quality of the product oi the local factories. But 



