THE NYKJOBING SUGAR FACTORY 127 



or trust that exists among the rest. This combine 

 or trust, however, as I was informed, buys the sugar 

 from the Nykjobing factory. 



The original capital of the Nykjobing factory, 

 founded, I was told, in 1884 by Mr. Tesdorpfs father, 

 consisted of 3500 shares of 300 kroner (16, 12s. 6d.) 

 each, which shares are now worth 900 kroner (49, 

 17s. 6d.) on the market. The present capital is 

 3,000,000 kroner (or say .166,250). Exactly what 

 interest it pays I do not know, as I did not like to 

 inquire ; but when I asked Mr. Tesdorpf, who, I 

 believe, is the chairman of the company and a very 

 large holder of its shares, if it amounted to 20 per 

 cent., he replied cheerfully, " Oh ! more than that." 



At any rate, so prosperous is the undertaking 

 that in 191 1 it is to be enlarged at a cost of 700,000 

 kroner (about ,38,800). At present it can deal 

 with 25,000 cwt. of beet in twenty-four hours. When 

 enlarged it will treat 36,000 cwt. in the same time, or 

 according to a rough and possibly inaccurate calcula- 

 tion which I have made, on the supposition that the 

 factory runs for three months in each year, as it does 

 now, the produce of about 13,500 acres, allowing 12 

 tons per acre as an average crop. 



The visitor to this mill enters a huge hall full of 

 machinery, and instantly becomes aware of a heat 

 so oppressive that he removes as many garments as 

 decency will allow. Also, as in the milk factories, he 

 is deafened by the din. First he is shown sugar- 

 beet, of which heaps and truck-loads stand outside, 

 being fed by a giant wheel into a huge trough where 

 they are washed by machinery. It is a wondrous 

 sight to see them writhing about in the muddy water 

 as though they were alive and then lifted by a colossal 



