MANUAL FOR SUGAR GROWERS. 125 



some colonies impose difficulties which render the 

 use of small stills on small estates unremunerative. 

 One or more large distilleries in each colony would 

 probably be able to overcome these difficulties. 



Many processes have been suggested, from time 

 to time, for dealing with molasses. These, however, 

 apply almost exclusively to the molasses of beet 

 sugar, and it will be seen that it will not pay to ap- 

 ply any of these processes to the molasses obtained 

 from the sugar-cane. These processes have for 

 their object the recovery of sugar, or the recovery 

 of potash, or both. Several processes for the recov- 

 ery of cane sugar depend on the fact that this sub- 

 stance will combine with lime, strontia, etc., to form 

 a compound insoluble in water, while glucose will 

 not. The glucose is separated by washing the pre- 

 cipitate or sediment with water, and the cane sugar 

 recovered by treating the insoluble compound with 

 carbonic-acid gas, which converts it into carbonate 

 of lime or strontia, insoluble in water, and sugar 

 which dissolves. Now, beet molasses contains far 

 more cane sugar than molasses from the sugar-cane, 

 and but little glucose. An average sample of beet- 

 molasses will contain : 



Cane sugar 50 



Glucose 1.5 



Mineral matter * 12 



Organic matter other than sugar f 16.5 



Water 20 



Total 100 



* Contains potash = 5 per cent, 

 f Contains nitrogen = 1.5 per cent. 



