CHAPTER XX. 
CHEMICAL ACTION OF SUBSTANCES USED IN DEFECATION. 
Chemical Influence of Lime upon Sorghum Juice—Defecation by 
Tannic Acid and Albumen—Upon what the Peculiar Action of 
these Substances, so combined, depends—Conditions favorable 
to the Use of this Method—Another Method of Defecation—The 
Action of the Chemical Compound used—The Composition de- 
scribed and the Advantages to be derived from its Use. 
PuRE quick-lime may be used preferably to soda, potash, 
or other bases, not only to saturate the free acid in sorghum 
juice, but, in this process, its employment in the mode al- 
ready prescribed is indispensable for other purposes, no 
less important. Its action may be briefly stated as follows: 
Ist. It destroys acidity. Fresh sorghum juice always 
contains a variable proportion of free acid or acidulous 
salts, which should always first be saturated or neutralized : 
the deleterious effects of this acid are: 1. It communicates 
its peculiar harsh taste, resembling that of unripe fruit, to 
the syrup. 2. It prevents the separation by heat of the 
albumen, another substance dissolved in the juice most 
inimical to the constitution of the sugar, and a most effi- 
cient promoter of subsequent fermentation in the syrup. 
The albumen is held in solution in hot syrup by the acid, 
but lime, by neutralizing the acid, causes it to coagulate, 
and it rises and is removed with the scum. 3. This acid 
has a peculiarly unfavorable influence upon the crys- 
tallization of the sugar (independent of its effect in pre- 
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