Vol. X. No. 23i 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



83 



to do the work that is required of them, is probably due 

 to the greater provision of food, whereby there is an 

 augmentation of the number of bacteria present above 

 that whi-jh is normal, with a conseijuent enlargement 

 of the amount of nitrogen fixed. Information concern- 

 ing the (juestion has been given already; * it is receiv- 

 ing some attention, in a practical way, more particularly 

 in Antigua and Mauritius, where experiments on 

 a field scale are being undertaken. Little considera- 

 tion will show that work of this and a similar nature 

 should throw much further light on the matter of the 

 value and importance of humus to the agriculturist. 



SUGAR INDUSTRY. 



and at a rate for freight of 2.5s., to the equivalent of Ss. 9|c?. 

 in England, or l|c. in America. 



We therefore fully agree with .Messrs. Willet <t Gray 

 when they state that the cost price of Java sugar is higher than 

 6s. per cwt. Some factories, situated in very favourable 

 spots, may make the sugar at that price, but this is an excep- 

 tion, and not the rule, and the average cost price is much 

 higher, so that it may be taken at Is.Gid. per cwt., delivered 

 at the buyer's warehouse on the coast. 



In the February number of the International 

 Sugar Journal, this figure {Id. 6-hd. per cwt.) is sub- 

 jected to a correction, as it does not refer to f.o.b. Java, 

 as was understood at first, but to the cost at the buyer's 

 doors at the coast. The expenses for warehousing, 

 lighterage and loading, and for insurance, which are not 

 included in the charge for freight, have therefore to be 

 added, bringing the figure up to about 7s. 10(/. per cwt. 



THE COST OP SUGAK PRODUCTION 



IN JAVA. 



The following interesting figures, relating to the 

 cost of making sugar in Java fac Dories, are contained 

 in an article, by H. C. Prinsen Geerligs, in the Inter- 

 national Sugar Journal for January 1911, p. 7: — 



As a complement to Mr. George Martineau's interesting 

 paper on the cost of production of sugar, published in the 

 December issue of this journal, I give here some figures on 

 the cost of production of Java .sugar during the last years. 



In the issue of July 1904, of this jouinal (p. 341), I act 

 down the cost of production in the year 1 902, of an average 

 of forty-two well equipped factories, at £7 .5s. lli»7. per 

 metric ton, subdivided as follows: — 



£ s. d. £ s. d. 



Salaries 13 4 Commission 7 2i 



Cultivation 2 13 4 Sundry expenses 4 6l- 



Transport of cane 16 Wear and tear 8 6;V 



Fuel 1 1^ New machinery 15 O" 



Wages 3 9 Interest mi floating 



Sundries 1 10-i capital 8 



Packing 4 3^ 



Transport of sugar 8 3 7 5 11.', 



After calculating the cost of production of a great 

 number of Java factories during the years 1908 and 1909, 

 I found this figure to still hold good. The production of 

 sugar to the acre has increased, but the price of many articles 

 and the rate of wages have followed the same upward move- 

 ment, so that, on the whole, the cost price of raw Java refined 

 crystals, basis 96", packed in bags or baskets, delivered at the 

 buyers' doors at the ports, and including all charges of 

 management, agriculture, transport of cane, machinery, 

 manufacture, carriage to the coast, upkee[) and depreciation 

 of plant and buildings, but not including interest on the 

 capital invested in the sugar house and machinery, may be 

 put down at 550 guilders per picul of 61 "6 kilos., or 7s. 6.W?. 

 per cwt. 



At a rate for freight from Java to the United Kingdom 

 or to the United States of 20s. per ton, this figure comes to 

 8s. (Jhd. in Great Britain, or lx|c. per lb. in New York: 



*Afjrkultural Neu-s, "Vols. VII, p. 227; IX, pp. 159, 339. 



SUGAR FROM SHREDDED CANE. 



There was given, in the last issue of the Agricultural 

 Nfw.i, a description of the McMullen process by which sugar 

 is manufactured from shredded and dried cane; this was in 

 the form of an abstract of an article that appeared recently 

 in the Louisiana Planter. In continuation of the subject, 

 the latter journal includes, in itfe issue for February 4, 1911, 

 an account of the events which led up to the devising of the 

 system. The information on which this is based has been 

 supplied by the Simmons Sugar Company, of Kenosha, Wis- 

 consin, the firm which holds the patent for the process. 



The actual work of investigation has been carried out by 

 Mr G. W. McMullen, of the Armour Institute of Chicago, 

 during the past six years, who evolved the process after 

 observations had been made by him in connexion with 

 devising methods for drying sugar beets and storing them, 

 in order that the factories may benefit by the economy of 

 being able V< work all the year round, as well as by the addi- 

 tional chance that was gained of securing the by-products 

 of the beet. This led to the invention of the shredding 

 apparatus; its application to the sugar-cane; the discovery of 

 the added usefulne.ss of the sugar-cane megass obtained in 

 this way; the use of the improved watery solution from 

 which the sugar has to be obtained, in the place of 

 the ordinary juice; and the knowledge of the greater 

 recovery of sugar from cane so treated, as compared 

 with that from cane crushed in the usual manner. The 

 inventor considers that the greater recovery of sugar increa.ses 

 the return on each ton of cane by $2, and there is an addi- 

 tional .$3 or $4 on every ton, as the value of the cellulose. 

 This is not taking into account the wax, which can be 

 obtained more easily from tlie cane under this treatment 

 than after it has been crushed for the juice in the ordinary way; 

 the amount of this by-product should be 10 lb. or 11 a. 

 per ton of cane, and if it is properly extracted, it should 

 further increase the return for each ton of cane by .52 or .$3, 

 not allowing for the cost of extraction, which should not be 

 great in proportion to the obtainible profit. 



A more recent issue of the Louisiana Planter (February 

 11, 1911) states, with regard to the article mentioned 

 first, above, that later experience has shown that if the juices 

 could have been dealt with more quickly than was the case 

 in the original trials, a white sugar could have been easUy 

 obtained in the first process, and tluis a large economy should 

 be effected in the manufacture. 



