1S39] 



FARMERS' REGISTER, 



7i 



does not any longer propose to discover a new 

 method, but only to perfect the processes which 

 are already verified by an application on a large 

 scale. Among the advantages which are derived 

 from the renovation of the manufacture of the 

 beet-sugar, is the extension of the culture of the 

 beet-root ; because it will be easy for every farmer 

 to send his dry product to any market, far or near, 

 as the weight of the raw beet is reduced, by the 

 process of desiccation, to less than one-sixth part. 

 The beet can now be raised any where, however 

 distant from the manufactory ; and, reciprocally, 

 it is possible to establish manufactories in all parts 

 of France, to concentrate them in such places 

 where fuel is plenty and at a low price ; whereas, 

 at present, the manufacture is only possible close 

 to a field, fertile enough to produce beets. Ano- 

 ther important fact : 1,000 pounds of beets contain 

 100 pounds of sugar. The price of beets is about 

 12 francs ; the expense of drying and extracting 

 the sugar would not exceed 10 fi-ancs, (this is suffi- 

 ciently proved by experiments ;) making the total 

 amount 22 francs. Suppose that one-tenth of the 

 sugar is lost, the manufacturer would have 90 

 pounds of sugar lor 22 li-ancs, or 100 pounds for 

 less than 25 francs. Allowing for small expen- 

 ses, &c., 50 per cent., the sugar (the refined su- 

 gar of this country) could be delivered to the con- 

 sumer for 38 centimes, (or 7^ cts.) per pound. 



"This will create a revolution in the consump- 

 tion of sugar, as well as in the division of the 

 brances of industry, over the whole globe ; then 

 instead of importing sugar from the southern re- 

 gions it will be lell for us to furnish them. 



"Michel Chevalier." 



Another proof of the practicability and great 

 advantage of this improvement, is the enthu- 

 siasm with which it was adopted and put into ope- 

 ration by the Germans themselves, who are gene- 

 rally very careful and prudent in all their specula- 

 tions. They have already established extensive 

 manufactories on the Rhine. 



The importance of Mr, Schuetzenbach's discov- 

 ery is best proved by chemical analysis and exam- 

 ination of the physiology of plants. This analy 



formed, contain the sugar in its pure stale, sepa- 

 rated from the mucilage "? 



These are questions as to the physiology of the 

 beet, which Avere first suggested by Raspail, a 

 French chemist, (in his work on the physiology 

 of plants, Paris, 1837,) and he solved these im- 

 portant problems by the following microscopic ex- 

 periments. 



"When a thin slice of the red beet-root is 

 brought under the locus of a microscope, it will 

 be observed that the texture of the beet is formed 

 of hexagonal cells, transparent, and of a purple 

 color; these cells are crossed by white ones, four 

 or five times longer than the purple cells; this 

 tissue of white cells is crossed again by bundles 

 of opaque cylinders, of a gray color, through 

 which the spirals (elements generateurs) are ob- 

 served. 



"When a drop of acid (^acide sulphurique al- 

 bumineux, which has the property of coloring sac- 

 charine substances purple) is put on this thin 

 slice, the colors change; the part which was pur- 

 ple turns yellowish, the long cells remain white, 

 but the obaque cylinders become purple." 



From this it follows that the cells, naturally 

 purple, enclose the coloring matter and the muci- 

 lage, and the opaque cylinders the sugar in its 

 pure state. Thus the mucilage in the beet-root is 

 separated by nature from the sugar, and mixed 

 during the manipulation, which caused all the dif- 

 ficulties of the extraction in the old process, when 

 the mucilage was combined with the sugar in gra- 

 ting, pressing, and even in defecation. 



To separate this five-tenths parts of mucilage 

 which the beet contains, occasioned not only the 

 loss or considerable sugar, but also labor, fuel, and 

 costly material, as, for instance, animal charcoal, 

 blood, &c. 



The new process acts entirely in conformity 

 with the results of scientific investigation, and the 

 whole process is reduced to a simple operation, 

 which gives a sure gain of eight per cent, of 

 white refined sugar from one hundred pounds of 

 the raw beet-root. 



The beets are now cut in thin slices, dried be- 

 fore any fermentation can take place, ground to 



sis of the beet-root shows that 100 parts of the fi,,e jg g^ that all cells are bi^oken'a1)art, and 



root contain — 



86.3 parts of wafer, 

 3.2 parts fibrous matter, 

 10.0 parts of crystalizable sugar, 

 0.5 parts of mucilage. 

 By the new process, the water in the beet is 

 evaporated, and there remain only 13.7 parts ol 

 dry substance, which consists of the sugar, mucil- 

 age, and fibrous matter. 



The sugar dissolves in cold or warm water al- 

 most instantaneously. 



The mucilage is insoluble in water; when in 

 a dry state, and mixed with water, it only swells to 

 a slimy matter. 



The fibrous matter is insoluble, and has nei- 

 ther in the old nor new process any injurious influ- 

 ence. 



From this analysis, we learn that the mucilage 

 is the only substance which causes all the difficul- 

 ties of the extraction of sugar. The principal pro- 

 cess consists, then, in the separation of the mu- 

 cilage from the sugar. But is this mixture a work 

 of nature, or the result of the manipulations? Or, 

 does the cellular tissue, of which the beet-root is 



mixed with water, which dissolves the sugar be- 

 fore the mucilage begins to swell. The pure un- 

 colored liquor obtained is evaporated, and the si- 

 rup brought into moulds to crystallize. 



These statements should be considered as a suf- 

 ficient proof of the infallibility and practicability 

 of the new improvement ; and the introduction 

 and general adoption of it in this country would 

 be of" the highest importance to the welfare of its 

 population. 



Some enterprising citizens of the United States 

 sent agents to France to investigate (he manipu- 

 lations of this branch of industry; but the results 

 have yet effected very little, and the sugar pro- 

 duced from the beet in this country is of no great 

 account, which, arises probably from the want of 

 skilful and intelligent operators in the former com- 

 plicated manipulations. But, at present, in Eu- 

 rope, the manipulations are reduced to a process 

 much simpler than brewing common table beer, 

 which can be comprehended and performed by 

 every person. The period is not distant, when 

 farmers will produce their own sugar, or at least 

 raise and dry the beet ready for the manufacturer. 



