278 



JOUENAL OF HOETICULTURE AND COTTAGE GABDENER. 



[ September 24, 1874. 



Bugar IB purified by the process called sugar-refining. This 

 process consists in dissolving the sugar, neutralising the acid 

 with lime, boiling it with bullock's blood or a substance called 

 finings, consisting of hydrate of alumina and sulphate of lime ; 



passing the syrup through a stratum of animal charcoal to 

 remove the colouring matter, concentrating the decolourised 

 syrup in a vacuum pan, putting it to crystallise in conical 

 moulds, and removing the last portions of colouring matter by 



Fig. 81.— The suoin cane. 



allowing a solution of pure sugar to percolate through the 

 conical masses or loaves. 



Gerarde tried to grow the Sugar Cane in his Holborn garden, 

 but he stated in l.'j'j?, " Myaelfe did plant some shootes thereof 

 in my garden, and some in Flanders did the same, but the cold- , 

 nesse of our clymate made an ende of mine, and I thinke the I 

 Plemmings will have the like profile of thoii- labour." 1 



The first sugar refinery of which wo have any notice was at 

 Dresden, where it was in 1597, and the refined sugar was 

 called " blanche powdre." Yet loaf sugar was known much 

 earlier, for in the town records of Lyme, in Dorsetshii-e, one 

 of the events of 15.53 was presenting to Mr. Waldron of Bovey 

 House a sugarloaf weighing 7 lbs., costing IZd. per pound, 

 equal to more than 3s. of our present ourroney. Sugar was 



