302 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



[April. 15, 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



FRIDAY MORNING, APRIL 15, 1825. 



jF«trtnn-'s GTalcirtar. 



Sugar Beet. A veg^etalile which promises 

 lo prove useful both for tiehl ;ind garden callure 

 has lately been introduced into this country, 

 but its properties appear lo be but little known. 

 The plant to which we allude is commonly call- 

 ed the Sujar Beet, and sometimes the Buona- 

 parte-Beet. This last appellation was given to 

 the root in consequence of its having been ex- 

 tensively cultivated in France for the purpose 

 of making Sugar, by the direction of Buona- 

 parte. It is a species of the same genus with 

 the common garden beet, [beta vtil^uris] but 

 we cannot learn that it is distinguished by bota- 

 nists, by any specific name. Some writers on 

 agriculture have confounded the Sugar Beet 

 with the Mangel VVurtzel, but the plants differ 

 in many essential qualities. The Sugar Beet, 

 we are told, groivs to about the same" size as 

 the Mangel Wurlzel, is of greater specific grav- 

 ity, or heavier in proportion to its bull;, nnd is 

 a much sweeter root. If it contains nnurish- 

 ' ment in proportion to iis saccharine ni 'iter, it 

 will, perhaps, be lound a more profitable root 

 for field culliration than the Mangel Wurlzel. 

 Further experiments, however, are wanting, 

 before the relative value of these roois can be 

 stated with certainty. 



Mr. Bartlev, Secretary of the BatJi Agricul- 

 tural Society, England, informed Dr. Mease 

 that the White Beet or Mangel Wurlzel, [prob- 

 ably meaning the Sugar Beet,] is very easily 

 cultivated in a deep mpllow soil. Ho made 

 some trials of this root, from whi«h it resulted 

 thi;t 16 lbs of the root ivill produce about 1 lb 

 cf concrete sugar, and that the maximum crop 

 of an acre of ground might produce, at least, 

 two tons weight of sugar, or forty tons of the 

 root, in drills three I'eet as»mder, with plani' 

 eio'hteen inches distance in the rows. He ob 

 taiued roots weighing upwards of sixteen pound- 

 each. 



Mr. Marcsaaf, a famous chemi'^t, made some 

 experiments, puldi«bed in 1747, lor determining 

 the quantity of sugar contained in various Eu- 

 ropean plants, nnd found the White or Sugar 

 Beet proiluced a much greater quantity than 

 any of the oilier plants. Dr. ,\chard of Berlin, 

 first introduced this subject into notice, and re- 

 commended that the sugar should lie procured 

 by boiling the roots, slicing them when cobl, 

 pressing out, filtering or straining and eva|io- 

 lating the juice. He observed that crude sugar 

 nii^'ht thus be proiluced for about three pence 

 a pound. Dr. Achard reckons three varielie< 

 of the beet, but preferred that which has the skit; 

 ofareddi'b colour and the flesh while. He 

 forbids all lran«planlitig ; and one of the reasons 

 for the i)rohibilion is, that the lower part* or 

 points of the roots are lia\)lc to be thus broken 

 off, wbiib part, he says, gives more >n^ar than 

 the upper part. The process pursued by Dr. 

 AcHARD in making sugar from these roots is 

 given in Dr. Rf.ks" Cyclopedia, Ait. Beta, and 

 is too long to copy here. 



The refuse of the roofs, after the sugar is 

 eltt^ac^ell, may, it is said, be u^ed as a substi- 

 tute (or coffee, after a due preparation. And 

 the Domestic F.nryclopcdia slates that this ref. 



use is more profitable for feeding cattle than 

 the roots themselves. Wo apprehend that the 

 Sugar Beet may contain too much saccharine 

 matter to be used for the purpose of feeding 

 cattle without being mixed with other substan- 

 ces, such as hav, cut straw, &.c. in a greater 

 proportion than what is necessary in feeding 

 with roots which have less sweetness. But with 

 a proper mixture of sucii substances, we have 

 no doubt but sugar beets woubl furnish much 

 more nourishment for cattle, in pro(iorlion to 

 their weight than any other vegelalile, which 

 our soil and climate will afford. On this sub- 

 ject, however, we have notliing liul conjecture 

 and analogy on which to found our observations. 

 We wish merely to furnish hints, and state pro. 

 babililies. Experiments, accurately made, and 

 faithfully recorded, can alone enable agricul- 

 turists to delermine decisively the precise 

 value of this root, as an article of field culture. 



According to a " Table of the quantities of 

 nutritive matters afforded by 1000 parts of 

 different vegetable substances," published by 

 Sir HuMrnny Davy, (see Agricuitural Chemis- 

 try, page 133) the whole quantity of nutritive 

 matter contained in 1000 parts of the re<l beet 

 amounts to I jl such parts— in the white beet to 

 13jj — in the par-nip to 99 — llie carrot to 98 — 

 the common tHrni[) lo 42, &ic. The white beet 

 is one of the varieties of the sugar beet, and ac- 

 cordino; lo the table alluded to contains more 

 than ihree times the quantity of nutritive mai- 

 ler which is conlained in the common or Eng- 

 lish turnip. The stomachs of cillle, however, 

 may not, perlsap", produce results exactly like 

 what might have been expected from chemical 

 analysis. Bulk as well as nutritive matter is 

 requisite in food for catlle, in order to give the 

 stomach its due degree of distention. It is ('ei'';~- 

 sarv that their bellies should be filled, and nniri- 

 tious matter, in a very concentrated form, might 

 not, perhaps, so well answer the purposes of na- 

 ture in ihe i^rowtb and fattenins of the animals, 

 as would the same mailer if diffused through a 

 larger bulk of food. For these reasons we 

 shoubl helo;v<", a» before observed, that other 

 sulistanccs should be mixed with the beets in 

 feeding cattle. 



JoH\' PRl^CE Esq. of Roxbury Mass. imported 

 some lime «iuce, some of the «eed of the sugar 

 bett from Paris, and has left -oaie oi' it for sale at 

 the office of the Mew England Farmer. He has 

 been very careful to prevent its being adulter- 

 ated by mixture with other sorts of beet, hav- 

 ing sei his seed planis at such a distance from 

 Ihe seed planis of other beets that the farina of 

 each could ha\e no effect in changing or dete- 

 riorating the kind. We believe that the kind 

 introduced and cultivated by Mr Prince is the 

 best variety of the genuine sugar beet, having 

 seen some of Ibe roots, which are not only very 

 sweet to the taste, hut coriespond precisely with 

 those to wbicb Dr A( harp gave the preference 

 viz. " the skin of a reddish colour, and the flesh 

 Hhite." 



Economical Estabi.isii.ment, — An esteemed 

 friend his forwarded us a pamphlet, eiilillcil — 

 Stafcment of the Expcnilituro for the Support if 

 the Poor hi the Tcm-n of Sali:in,frninMiir<-h 1824 

 In March 182.5 By Ibis it ajipears that Ihe net 

 ox[iense to Salom, (containing about I:i,OUU in- 

 habitants) for (he period above mentioned was 

 only C4 dolls. Bo cents ! Among the expenditures 



are items of supplies to, and other expenses in- 

 curred for, poor persons not inhabitants of the 

 Alms House, ^1950.71. The whole number of 

 paupers in ihe House JIarch 2, 1824, was 268. 

 There have entered the House since that time 

 30.", died and discharged 321 ; leaving in the 

 House March 1, 1825, 250. The Statement 

 concludes as follows: — " The Overseers of the 

 Poor take leave to obseryelbat Ihe F.irm under 

 the superintendence of Mr Upton, has been im- 

 proved during the past year much more than in 

 any (irecedingyear since the commencement of 

 Ihe e-ilabli-bnipnf, and that generally Ibe con- 

 cerns of ihe Alms House are in a more flourish- 

 ing condition than they h.ive been at any former 

 lime since the Board have been entrusted with 

 this department of the economy of the town." 

 We believe that there is no similar insijtntion, 

 either in this or any other country, which is bet- 

 ter managed than the Alms House in S.ilem, and 

 the mode of cultivating the Farm attached to 

 tins establishment, has been recommended iu 

 Ihe Massachiisetls Agricultural Journal, and oth- 

 er agricultural publications. 



Save MAMmE. — If a little care is taken, much 

 valuable miimire may be obtained from Ihe ruins 

 of ibe late lire in Boston, and oilier dilapidations 

 of old buildings which are daily taking place in 

 this city, for the purpose of obtaining room for 

 new strucliires. The rubbish of old houses, the 

 scrapiutrs of back yards, earth which has been 

 long under cover, scrapings of streets, soot, 

 a-bes, brick dust, old plastering of buildings, any 

 Hi ''erials of which lime forms a constituent part, 

 and dust of lie-yn stones are all valuable for ma- 

 1 ore. TJiese materials should be deposited in 

 heap*, ;n propti situations to be taken away by 

 our fnends from the country, ami ajqilied lo the 

 soil. In many instances, manures of this descrip- 

 tion afTor.-l a gre.iier and more permanent ben- 

 eiil to the culti\alor than the best stable or barn 

 yard manure. Tfiey are useful in giving a 

 proper lexlure lo soils as well as luruishing 

 food for plaiiln, and are particulaily recommen- 

 dpd as top dressings for wheat. This manure 

 should not be ploughed m, but sjiread, in a fuie- 

 ly puherized state, on llie surface of the soil. 



Fire in Boston. — On the evening of the 7th inst. a 

 fire broke out in this city, which tor Ihe extent of its 

 ravages and the loss of property, it occasioned has 

 scarcely a parallel in the annals of the place. It ivas 

 (irst discovert d iu a wooJt n building used for an in- 

 spection office of lish. in Doane-street, and soon envel- 

 oped in flames several suiall buildings contiguous, and 

 Ihe heat penetrating the partition walls of the neigh- 

 lionrin" ware-houses, bade defiance to all obstacles, 

 and f«r!i considerable time threatened llie whole city 

 with a conflagration c-i-is'ensix e i-ith its limits. — 

 l;road-street, Kilbv-street, and a pait of State-street 

 were rendered almost inipaffahle by articles snatched 

 from buildings, which w>re liihir on fire or menaced 

 witli immediate destruction. The fire commenced be- 

 tween 10 and 11 in the evening, and its progress was 

 not arrested till past 4 in ihe momirg. 1 he numb<r of 

 buildings consumed was ;">;!, and the damage is eslimat- 

 td at $60C.O(10, In-sides the inconvenirnci s andexjun- 

 ?es atUudiig Ihe loss of business removals &.C. Ihe 

 claims on the Insurance Cflicea will amount to $3o0,- 

 000. 



U is understood, savs the Washington Gazette, that 

 it is the ihtf rlion of Gen. I afavette to reach I onisville, 

 Ken. early in May. Mr Rlay. it is faid. n ill re)iair 

 Ihith-rto receive 'the Genera' and for llmt purpose, 

 will leave U ashiiigton about the close ol the pnseut 

 month. 



