154 THE CHINESE SUGAR CANE. 
very strong, well-flavored spirit, infinitely superior to 
whiskey, and giving evidence that, had the syrup been 
fresh, a sorgho brandy would have been made, which 
would have compared favorably with any of the French 
brandies in quality. Jam not aware that sorgho spirit 
has been previously made in America; it may, there- 
fore, prove interesting to give the details of my experi- 
ment. 
On Tuesday, the 17th of August, I secured from 
Mr. H. 8. Olcott a little over a quart of sorgho syrup, 
part of a small quantity sent to him by Mr. Peters, 
of Georgia, the product of last year’s experiment; it was 
extremely acid, having been imperfectly defecated and 
clarified, burned in the boiling, and contained much 
extraneous matter; its color was a dirty yellowish-brown, 
and its density, by Beaumé’s saccharometer, was 39°. 
I commenced operations upon it at 2 P. M.,on the 
18th, by mixing in a pail five quarts of water, heated to 
100° Fahrenheit, with one quart of the syrup; when the 
mixture was effected, the temperature of the whole stood 
90°. Iset the temperature thus high, owing to the small- 
ness of the quantity, being doubtful as to the fermenta- 
tion proceeding fast enough. I also made the density, 
which was 9°, one or two degrees higher than would be 
necessary in larger quantities. Having stirred the whole 
thoroughly, I took out a small portion in a tumbler, into 
which I put one quarter of a pint of fresh brewer’s yeast; 
this I beat up with a spoon, and when well mixed I 
poured it into the pail with the rest, and stirred the whole 
together. The temperature of the room being 75°, I left 
it undisturbed fora time. On examining it two hours 
