36 



THE CUBA REVIEW 



el consumo general por persona durante julio, agosto y septiembre probablemente mostrard 

 una disminuci6n considerable. 



^ El 16 de julio recibimos un cablegrama de las Islas Filipinas dando las exportaciones de 

 azucar durante junio & los Estados Unidos en solamente 700 toneladas, con 11,500 toneladas 

 d otros paises. 



La cosecha de cana de la Luisiana continua mostrando una apariencia halaguena, aunque 

 hay rumores de queja con motivo del tiempo seco tan pertinaz. Se calcula la nueva cosecha 

 en 246,000 toneladas, contra 217,499 toneladas durante la estaci6n de 1917-18. 



Nueva York, agosto 6 de 1918. WILLET & GRAY. 



U. S. BUREAU OF STANDARDS 



Provisions for investigations and experi- 

 mental work of great interest and importance 

 to the sugar industry of the United States 

 are contained in two of the appropriation 

 bills for the coming fiscal year 1918-19 which 

 are now in conference for the adjustment 

 of difTerences between the Senate and the 

 House. One of these measures is that making 

 appropriations for the Department of Agri- 

 culture; the other is the legislative, executive 

 and judicial appropriation bill. 



The item in the latter bill which interests 

 the sugar industry is that which proposes to 

 appropriate $20,000 for the Bureau of Stan- 

 dards of the Department of Commerce to 

 be used for the standardization of sugar 

 testing apparatus and the development of 

 technical specifications for the various grades 

 of sugars with particular reference to urgent 

 problems made pressing by war conditions, 

 especially involving the standardization and 

 manufacture of sugar. 



This subject is one which especially affects 

 the Louisiana cane sugar industry, and the 

 appropriation for this work by the Bureau of 

 Standards has been the cause of some appre- 

 hension on the part of Louisiana sugar men, 

 lest the undertaking by the bureau to set up 

 technical specifications should interfere with 

 plans for the determining of standards for 

 the various Louisiana grades alreading worked 

 out in co-operation with the Food Admin- 

 istration by a committee representing the 

 industry in that state. Louisiana repre- 

 sentatives in Congress who have inquired 

 into the matter have been informed, however, 

 that the purpose of the bureau is simply to 

 make a strictly scientific classification of the 

 difTerent grades of sugar and that the arrange- 

 ments between the Food Administration and 

 the Louisiana producers will not be affected 

 thereby. It is urged by officials of the De- 

 partment of Commerce that this work is 

 necessary to place the technical standardiza- 



tion of the sugar industry in general on a 

 proper scientific basis and to solve problems 

 incidental to Uie collection of the revenue 

 on sugar. The original estimate called 

 for an appropriation of $30,000, but this was 

 reduced to $20,000 by Congress. 



Of the agricultural appropriation bill items, 

 that most directly interesting the sugar in- 

 dustry is one providing $64,115 for sugar 

 plant investigation, including studies of the 

 diseases and the improvement of the beet and 

 beet seed, and methods of culture. Under 

 this head, special provision is made that not 

 less than $10,000 of this sum shall be used 

 for the development and improvement of 

 American strains of sugar beet seed and for 

 the establishment of a permanent beet seed 

 industry in the United States. It is also 

 specified that $12,500 may be used for in- 

 vestigations in connection with the production 

 of cane and sorghum syrup, including the 

 breeding, culture and diseases of cane and 

 sorghum and the utilization of by-products. 



Another section of the bill provides $60,000 

 for experiments and demonstrations in live 

 stock production in the cane sugar and cotton 

 districts of the United States, and $40,000 

 for similar experiments in live stock pro- 

 duction in semi-arid and irrigated districts 

 of the West. 



For investigations of insects affecting the 

 sugar beet and truck crops, $67,760 is pro- 

 vided by another item. 



In the insular portions of the United States 

 $125,000 is made available for the estabUsh- 

 ment and maintenance of agricultural ex- 

 periment stations, including $45,000 each 

 for Hawaii and Porto Rico, $20,000 for Guam 

 and $15,000 for the Virgin Islands. Much 

 of the work done by these stations, especially 

 in Hawaii and Porto Rico, has proved of 

 value to the sugar industry . The item for the 

 Virgin Islands is a new one and is intended 

 to provide for the extension of experiment 

 station work to this most recently acquired 

 possession.— Fac^s Ahoui Sugar. 



