CAUSES OF FAILURE ES* MAXUFACTUPJE OF SUGAR. 539 



degree of development, except that of complete ripeness; and the 

 analyses of the juices and syrups showed a result which was antici- 

 pated. It is of importance, fnr the purpose of sugar production, that 

 the crop of cane be not only ripe, but that it should be carefully suck- 

 ered ; or, if allowed to grow, these suckers should be carefully kept 

 apart, in cutting the canes for the mUl, and worked for syrup, for which 

 alone they are suitable. It is possible that some varieties of sorghum 

 may bs found in which this tendency to throw up suckers from the 

 roots is not so strong, and, other things being equal, such varieties are 

 much to be preferred for sugar production. 



It should be the aim, then, to secure a good stand of sorghum at the 

 first planting, since the replanting of portion? of the field would 

 destroy the equality of the crop. Unless time should allow this second 

 planting to mature, it would be far better to leave such portions of the 

 field bare, unless this cane be reserved solely for syrup. 



2. Another frequent cause of failure, is allowing the sorghum to 

 remain some time after being cut before it is worked at the mill. 

 That such a course may loe pursued in certain seasons and localities 

 ■without producing an unfavorable result, has been established beyond 

 much doubt; but the climatic conditions which render such a pro- 

 cedure possible are imperfectly understood at present. Eepeated ex- 

 periments have demonstrated that, after the cane is cut, the juice is 

 subject to chemical changes which speedily result in destruction of the 

 crystallizable sugar. For the present, then, the only safe course to 

 pursue is to work up the cane within, at most, 24 hours after it is cut up. 



3. A third cause of failure exists in an imperfect meth<xl of defeca- 

 tion of the juice The object of deft-cation, and the method by which 

 it is accomplished, should be carefully studied and as thoroughly 

 understood by the sugar-boiler as is jx)s.sible. Although somewhat 

 complex in its details, the general principles which underlie this im- 

 portant step are few and easily comprehended. 



The juices of sorghum or of maize, like the juice of sugar-cane or of 

 beets, contain, besides sugar, several other substances, the removal of 

 which it is the object of defecation to accomplish. The more com- 

 pletely removal of these other substances is efiected, the greater the 

 percentage of the sugar present in the juice which may be obtained. 



Among these impurities of the juice are certain organic acids and 

 organic salts, nitrogenous matters, and salts of mineral acids, together 

 with glucose and the mechanical impurities, as fragments of cane. 



The universal practice among sugar-makers from sugar-cane is to 

 add to the juice an amount of lime, generally as milk of lime, sufficient 



