16 



hoe the rows to keep the weeds clown, and then thm ont the plants so as to leave th» 

 plants eight inches apart. Tliey will then stand in the rows eight inches hy fifteen. 



Though most conntries and climates permit the culture of the sugar-beet, there is of 

 course a choice of soil, if the highest development of saccharine qualities is desired. 

 The root of the sugar-beet jieuetrates deeply into the ground, and always flourishes 

 best in a deep, rich, loose, mellow, warm, and fertile soil, free from saline and alkaline 

 constituents, not sour, and of a nature little liable to sutler from drought. 



The yield per acre, on the average, has been about fifteen tons, although in some 

 cases it has run as high as twenty tons ; last year w^e raised thirty-one hundred tons 

 of beets, and manufactured about five hundred thousand pounds of sugar, and this 

 year we shall make over one million pounds of sugar from the crop of beets that wa 

 have raised. 



The beet-sugar business in the United States is still in its infancy, and with proper 

 encouragement there is no doubt it can be made one of the best industrial interests we 

 have, as a factoiy of the capacity of ours gives employment to a large number of hands 

 in the culture and manufacturing the beet into sugar. We are at the present time 

 feeding three hundred and fifty head of cattle from the pulp for the San Francisco 

 market. 



If the manufacture of beet-root sugar can be successfully prosecuted in any part of 

 the United States, we claim that it can be done in California. We have the soil and 

 climate, to which we need only add economic labor and experienced men in the busi- 

 ness, and the thing is done. 



Mr. S. Ehrensteiii, superintendent of the Sacramento Valley Beet- 

 Sugar Conii)auy, communicates tlie following facts : 



The crop of beets has been very light on our grounds, owing to wrong cultivation. 

 My arrival here in Aj)ril was too late to enable me to remedy things. We have har- 

 Tested about 2,000 tons of beets, part of which are, however, not of proper quality for 

 the manufacture of sugar. The extraordinary drought prevented growth : some were 

 quite dried out. The good beets showed, in July, 12 per cent, of sugar, and average 

 now from 13 to 14 per cent. Exceptions show 16 to 18 i^er cent., which is a great deal 

 more than is ever fonnd in the beets of Europe. By cultivating early, and in the 

 proper manner, I hope to get a good and sure crop for next year, and altogether my 

 short experience here encourages me to entertain the most favorable expectations for 

 the beet-sugar industry in California, provided that the Government continues to pro- 

 tect the industry. The great drawbacks are the extraordinary wages paid here for 

 work and the liigh prices of fuel and freight. 



The factory is fui'nished with Roberts's diifusion apparatns, well known in Europe to 

 be the best method of extracting sugar. The machinery has been partly imported, 

 because the manufacturers here have no knowledge of sugar machinery. The factory 

 had already been in operation, but in consequence of the peculiar relations with the 

 workiugmen, and their want of experience in this industry, great difficulties had to be 

 overcome. After several trials, sixty tons of beets were worked up in twenty-four 

 hours, and the result was satisfiictory. The sugar is quite white, without any taste of 

 beets, and can be sold as readily as the best cane-sugar. We sell only two kinds for 

 consumption, A and B ; the colored second produce is worked over again. 



The beets have been raised from German and French seed. The former is preferable 

 for this country, because the beets grow downward into the ground, and do not show 

 any green tops. It is the White Silesian beet. Double the quantity of seed is needed 

 here per acre that is required in Europe, because a great deal of it does not come up, in 

 consequence of the bad cultivation of the ground. The outlay is consequently A^ery 

 heavy, and cheap importation an important item. A sandy loam, with moist sub-soil, 

 is the best here for beets; better than a heavy soil, which is often saltish, or has 

 water-tight layers of clay under it, shutting off the water, and causing the beets to dry. 



THE POTOMAC LAXDS. 



The central location of the lands of Northeastern Virginia, the won- 

 derful facilities afforded for water communication with the principal 

 cities, their climatic advantages in fruit-growing through the modifying 

 influences of large bodies of deep water, and the variety found in the 

 soil itself, contribute materially to a true estimate of their intrinsic value, 

 which will only become fully apparent when improvement shall have 

 unfolded something of their real capabilities. The abundance of sea- 



