HISTORY AND CULTIVATION. 79 



known in civilized society ; and, from the great variety of its uses in 

 life, ranks inferior only to the cereal grains we have just described. 

 It now forms one of the first articles of commerce throughout the 

 world, and is one in which our own country is greatly interested by its 

 production. It is considered by political economists as a test of the 

 relative degrees of comfort and civilization enjoyed by a people, though 

 it has done more, perhaps, towards establishing slavery by the British 

 than any thing el-e. 



Sugar is described by Pliny and Galen as a "sweet salt," and was 

 apparently known to them only in medicine. Strabo says, reeds in 

 India yield honey without bees," and others of that time thought it 

 was found adhering to the reed, or exuded from it; but sugar, as they 

 knew it, was probably sugar candy from China. It was first substi- 

 tuted for honey in medicinal compositions by Acturias in the 10th 

 century, and was then called < Indian salt," it was kept and used in 

 the mouth during fevers, etc. Much has been written against this as 

 well as most important vegetable substances, fortunately with no bet- 

 ter success ; many have also advocated the great advantages of its use. 

 But modern chemistry has established its just relative merits. 



For the two last centuries it has been an important ingredient in 

 the popular diet of the people of Europe and America; and its con- 

 sumption has constantly and rapidly increased in all civilized parts of 

 the world. If the ancients knew how to express the juice from the 

 cane they certainly had no knowledge of the art of condensing and 

 clarifying it, if we except the Chinese. 



Sugar as a constituent of vegetables has a wide range and is con- 

 tained by them either ready formed or so combined as to be developed 

 in all that yield alcohol. From many of these it has been obtained in 

 various ways. The chief of these are the sugar cane, the beet, the 

 maple tree, Indian corn and parsnip. The manufacture of sugar in 

 this country from the second and third sources will be described sepa- 

 rately, and that from maize is noticed under the head of that grain. 

 All liquors in order to undergo the vinous fermentation must contain 

 sugar. The farina or starch of the seeds of all plants is converted 

 into sugar by germination ; but the seeds, as with the cerealia, have 

 no saccharine taste in a dormant state. 



The cultivation of the sugar cane is always by cuttings, as the seeds 

 are not known to vegetate here. There are three varieties cultivated, 

 the white, red and clphantine. The top joints are taken for planting, 

 having less saccharine matter than lower parts, yet as much vegetative 

 power. The sround is generally moist, and the cane is planted in 

 rows three or four feet apart and in holes 8 or 10 inches deep, with in- 

 tervals of two feet between them, and often with still wider spaces for 

 carting. It comes to perfection in from ten to fourteen months. It 

 was formerly hoed by hand labor, but lately by the plough, when the 



