76 



The percentage of moisture in the cane during the month of October 

 decreased rapidly, and the same quantity by weight of cane yielded only 

 about one-half the weight of juice given earlier in the season. The dry- 

 ness of the cane was also noted by the farmers, as their loads lost several 

 hundred pounds as compared with the same sized load during the first 

 part of the work. It may also be noted that the cane was very pithy. 

 On an average, one out of every five stalks contained little or no juice 

 and a large amount of fiber. The cane cut during October, a great 

 quantity of which was left lying from two to three days at a time, on 

 account of delays in working, did not deteriorate to any great extent. 

 The dryness of the cane again probably explains this. 



After the factory stopped, a number of samples of cane was taken 

 for the purpose of determining the condition of the still outstanding 

 crop. 



Samples Nos. 382 and 388 gave the highest result of the season. An- 

 other sample, No. 383, from a field which the cane grower claimed was 

 the poorest out, showed a high percentage. No. 378 was from a field 

 of second growth, from stubble. On November 4 some 25 tons of cane 

 were left on the rack. One lot was selected and analyzed, some of it 

 put into a silo. A sample of the remainder, tested four days later, 

 showed that there had been no deterioration in the cane, as can be seen 

 from analyses Nos. 38G and 391. This cane had been exposed to heavy 

 frost, snow, and thaw. 



Cane taken from the field on November 7, and again from the same 

 field November 12, showed but little deterioration. 



The average percentage of sucrose in the mill juices from the fresh 

 chips is .3 per cent, higher than that recorded in the average of the 

 whole canes. This is explained by noting several very low percentages 

 of sucrose in some of the samples of whole cane, without a correspond- 

 ing low percentage in the chips. 



Here it may be noted that in taking samples of fresh and exhausted 

 chips, as also of diffusion and clarified juices, care was taken to secure 

 comparative samples. The battery consisted of sixteen cells, but only 

 twelve of these were in the circuit at one time. The fresh chips were 

 taken from these twelve cells and the exhausted chips from the same. 

 The juices were sampled as they ran into the defecators, care being 

 taken to secure those corresponding to the fresh chips. The samples of 

 semi sirup were taken as a rule once every twelve hours, and correspond 

 approximately to the juices analyzed. For the most part two sets of 

 samples were taken, one in the morning and the other in the afternoon. 



The lowest sucrose and highest glucose were recorded at the begin- 

 ning of the season. The highest sucrose of the season was noted on 

 October 15, and lowest glucose on October 20. 



The average percentage of sucrose for October was 13.22 and glucose 

 2.07. From Septeniber 26 to the end of the season the mill juices ap- 

 peared to be unusually rich. The average for October was .8 per cent. 



