CULTURE OF THE SUGAR BEET. 17 



cost 30 cents per pound. The refined sugar produced from this lower 

 grade cost 40 cents per pound. It appears, however, that the beets 

 treated, which were grown upon the highly manured lands of the plain 

 of Yertus where their works were located, were very unfavorable to the 

 results of the experiments. It also appears that these figures represent 

 the actual cost to the experimenters in the extraction of the sugar, tak- 

 ing no account of the by products and assigning the maximum price 

 for the beets worked ; but the further estimates of cost made up by 

 Messrs. Barruel and Isnard, based upon their own experiments and work- 

 ing by their own processes, supposing the value of the beets to be the 

 actual cost of producing them and the amount of roots handled to be 

 the yield of about 400 acres of land, about 6,000 tons, show that the cost 

 of production should not exceed 8 cents per pound for good muscavado, 

 or 12.9 cents per pound of refined sugar. 



The actual condition of the sugar enterprise in France at the close 

 of 1810 may be gleaned from the following report to the Emperor by 

 Montalivet, under date of January 10, 1811. 



The production of sirup and sugar from grapes ordered by tout Majesty is pursued 

 with activity ; and even though the season has not been very favorable to the vine, I 

 am in daily receipt of proofs of the zeal with which a large number of proprietors are 

 animated in the different departments, but those of the south and the center are the only 

 ones who may engage in this manufacture, and on this account I would respectfully 

 submit to your Majesty the results which lead us to hope that even the departments 

 of the north may find upon their territory a sugar of very good quality. We know 

 that for some years back beet-root sugar has been manufactured at Berlin and Bre«- 

 lau. Messrs. Achard and Koppy addressed to my predecessor very beautiful speci- 

 mens of this sugar, but up to the present but slight results have been obtained. M. 

 Deyeux, first pharmacist to your Majesty and member of the Institute has just re- 

 undertaken this work and has obtained very remarkable success in the results which 

 he has addressed to me, and which I submit to your Majesty. He has also addressed 

 to me an interesting memoir in which he has reported to the Institute the processes he 

 employed to arrive at his results. He believes these processes to be more simple and 

 better than those adopted by Messrs. Achard & Koppy. But M. Deyeux, obliged to 

 devote himself to trials and experiments to find a good method, is unable as yet to 

 establish the price at which this sugar can be produced. Everything shows, however, 

 that this price will be sufficiently low to prove a large source of profit to extended 

 manufacture. Already, in the department of the Doubs, a rich proprietor, Mons. 

 Secci, has established a manufacture of this kind and has sown 80 acres in beets, which 

 have yielded him 500,000 kilograms (500 tons) of roots, from which 25 to 30 milliers 

 (27,500 to 33,000 pounds) of refined sugar may be expected. The prefect of Mont Ton- 

 nere has also informed me that Mons. Molar, a proprietor in his department has sown 80 

 hectares (197.6 acres) of ground in beets which he proposed to convert into sugar, and 

 for which operation he asks to be admitted to the prizes which your Majesty has 

 deigned to promise to manufacturers of sirup and sugar from grapes. In the De- 

 partment of Eoer, the manufacture of sugar from beet-roots is carried on by the broth- 

 ers Herbem at Urduiger. The prefect of the Rhine and Moselle has transmitted to 

 me samples of a very fine cassonade from beet roots, manufactured by Mons. Antho- 

 nin, who asks for encouragement to enable him to enter upon this manufacture on a 

 large scale. Finally, for Holland, the prince governor-general has sent me a sample 

 of beet-root sugar made by M. Linden at Hemmer, in whose labors he appears to have 

 confidence ; and the prefect of the Bouches-du-Rhone has shown me samples of beet- 

 root, sugar made by M. Vanrroggen, one of his officers. 

 2 SB 



