236 



the amount of merchantable sugar made; the amount of sugar recov- 

 ered in the different products and in the molasses, and the percentage 

 of this sugar in terms of the cane and of the sucrose in the original 

 juice; the losses which occurred in the manufacturing operations of 

 the house; the loss by inversion, calculated for each operation, and 

 the results of inversion. It appears from these tables that the total 

 loss in the house \vas 8.03 per cent of the amount of sugar present in 

 the juice, which was taken as a starting point. 



Experiments in acid and neutral clarification of the juices resulted 

 in showing that neutral clarification, while involving some damage to 

 the quality of the final product, avoids most of the loss by inversion, 

 which occurs when the juices are kept acid. The loss by inversion 

 due to boiling and skimming the sirup in open evaporators, as is the 

 custom in many sugar-houses, was plainly demonstrated by a series 

 of comparative tests. 



Experiments in the use of maceration between mills gave important 

 results. With a dilution of about 10 per cent the extraction was im- 

 proved fully 5 per cent over that ordinarily obtained by the mill; or, 

 in other words, the yield of sugar per ton of cane was increased at 

 least 10 pounds. 



To find whether cane improves by standing in the field, analyses of 

 cane taken from different fields at the beginning of the season were 

 comjDared with those of cane taken from the same fields at the end of 

 the season. It was found that an improvement equivalent to from 13 

 to 23 pounds of available sugar per ton had taken place in the cane 

 allowed to stand the longest. 



The proprietors of the jDlantation intend to adopt diffusion for the 

 coming campaign. Arrangements have been made by which the De- 

 jDartment of Agriculture will have control of the chemical work and 

 will is^ue a report of the season's operations. 



BULLETIN No. 23. 



Expp:rimexts at the suoar experiment station on Caeumet 

 Plantation, Pattersonville, La., in 1S8S-80, H. Edson (pp. 42). — 

 " The factory is located on the bank of tlie Bayou Teche. -±1 miles 

 above Patterson, parish St. ]Mary, La., and has, therefore, an unlim- 

 ited supply of Avater. well adapted to every sugar-factory purpose."' 

 The jilant of the factory, its organization and administration, and 

 the processes of manufacture are descrii>ed. An account is also given 

 of the operations of the season, with details, in tabular form. By 

 the addition of 11.1>4 per cent of watt-r when the cane was macerated, 

 17 pounds of sugar jier ton were gained. '* The only extra expense 

 entailed was that involved in the evaporation of the Avater added, 

 and as at Calumet all the exhaust steam could not be used before 

 maceration was begun, the extra yield was secured with almost no 

 expense.'' 



