Experiments on the Preparation of Sugar. 113 



the Beta cicla not only good fyrup, but fugar, fit fordomeftic 

 purpofes. Two pounds of frefli roots gave on drying half a 

 pound ; and from this quantity he produced, after extratling 

 the juice by means of redified fpirit of wine, half an ounce of 

 good fuoar. 



In confequence of thefe experiments I took 130 roots, 

 which weighed fixty-eight pounds, and having bruifed them 

 and exprefled the juice, I poured tepid water over the refidu- 

 um, exprefled the juice again, and obtained altogether twenty 

 quarts of juice. This juice I evaporated to one-third, then 

 added to it twenty quarts of frefh lime-water, and boiled the 

 whole for half an hour. The clear liquor, which was of a 

 yellow wine colour, being filtered when cool, and then in- 

 fpiflated, gave fix pounds of a pleafant brownifli-yellow tranf- 

 parent fyrup. A part of this fyrup T poured into a fomewhat 

 deep glafs evaporating vefl"el, in the infide of which I placed 

 fomc glafs rods, and fuffered the liquor to evaporate in a 

 moderately warm place for fixteen weeks, at the end of which 

 I found the glafs rods covered with cr)^fl;als of fugar, fome of 

 which were as large as lentils, and others as peas, and which, 

 had a perfeft refemblance to yellow fugar-candy. As the 

 quantity of thefe beets which I employed coft half-a-crown, 

 and as the reft of the expenfe amounted only to about eight- 

 pence, a pound of fuch fyrup would coft no more than fix- 

 pence or feven-pence, which fuflSciently proves that it might 

 be ufed as a fubftitute for common fugar fyrup. Sugar alfo 

 fit for domefttc purpofes might be made from it; and though 

 it would be inferior to maple fugar, and though the procefs 

 for obtaining it would be fomewhat tedious, it might be 

 ufed with advantage when we confider the high price of 

 common fugar. 



[To be concluded in the next Number.] 



Vol. Vlt. Q HI. Olferva* 



