A VISIT TO A BEET-SUGAR FACTORY 81 



which is carried on within the cylindrical vessels of 

 this huge turn-table. 



After the beetroot- juice has been extracted, the 

 various processes of sugar-making in this factory are 

 carried out by up-to-date machinery in practically 

 the same way as at Factory Diamond, and at Gun- 

 thorpes, or any other modern sugar-making centre- 

 The juice is clarified by an admixture of lime and car- 

 bonic acid, passed through filter presses, and con- 

 centrated in vacuum pans ; and the crystals are 

 separated from the molasses by centrifugals. 



The output of this factory consists mainly of white 

 crystals. Decolorization is primarily effected by 

 means of sulphur, when the sugar is in the juice stage, 

 but the crystals are also " blued " in the centrifugals. 



Factory-made beet-sugar is whitish in appearance, but 

 it is not, as a rule, on a par with refined sugar ; generally 

 speaking, it ranks with raw, brown cane-sugar, and 

 when sold directly for use, mostly goes to manufac- 

 turers of jam, marmalade, chocolate, and other com- 

 modities that require sweetening. Some of these 

 manufacturers only use refined sugar. But when the 

 factory-made product is not subjected to the refining 

 process, it is necessary in the case of beet-sugar entirely 

 to free it from molasses, because any trace thereof 

 would be made manifest in a disagreeable flavour, 

 whereas it is not so absolutely essential to bleach raw 

 cane-sugar, or, in other words, to remove all suspicion 

 of its even having been in contact with molasses, for 

 sugar-cane molasses has a pleasant taste. 



Beet-sugar factories, like modern cane-sugar mills, 

 have facilities for making molasses yield a second 

 supply of sugar. 



11 



