PORTO RICO EXPERIMENT STATION. 405 



the ground facilitates the use of machinery in cultivation, although 

 but little is used, even on the south side of the island. 



It is recommended that for all lands needing drainage it be supplied 

 in the form of underground drains; that the land be plowed deeply 

 with good plows and at such time that it is not too wet; that the cane 

 be planted as a continuous row in furrows, and that a large part of 

 the cultivation be done by using horse machinery and giving much 

 the same cultivation that is used in the case of corn in the Mississippi 

 Valley. By replacing much of the hand labor with improved machin- 

 ery the cost of growing cane should be much reduced. In this con- 

 nection careful attention should be given to the selection of healthy 

 seed and of canes having a high sugar content. 



In order to maintain good physicial and fertile conditions in the 

 cane-growing soils they should receive judicious management. At 

 present the lands are often plowed and hoed when too wet, and much 

 injury done to its physicial properties. Few crops take more from the 

 soil in the way of fertility, especially of nitrogen, than a good 3 ield 

 of su^ar cane, and much care should be exercised to restore this loss. 

 If necessary the lands should be given periods of rest and be planted 

 to cowpeas or some good, suitable leguminous crop that can be plowed 

 under, thus restoring the loss of nitrogen. The application of barn- 

 yard manure and of commercial fertilizers may be profitable if they 

 can be secured at a cost not too great. 



MANUFACTURE OF SUGAR. 



For the most part the methods of manufacturing sugar in Porto 

 Rico have been crude and wasteful. The mills are usually small and 

 lacking in machinery of recent design and sufficient strength to 

 extract all of the juice from the cane. The juice is usually evapo- 

 rated by the open -pan system, and besides requiring more time and 

 fuel than the vacuum system it produces only a low grade of mus- 

 cbvada sugar. The imperfect removal of the juice leaves the bagasse 

 too wet to be at once burned, therefore it must be hauled away from 

 the mill and spread out to dry, after which it is placed in sheds in 

 order to keep it dry for fuel. Where efficient machinery is employed 

 the juice is so completely removed that the bagasse can be at once 

 burned. In the latter case the bagasse leaves the second press and 

 goes directly to the furnace on a carrier, so that there is no handling 

 of this material required. The bagasse furnishes sufficient fuel to run 

 the entire plant. 



The need of large " centrals" with improved machinery has been 

 realized, and a general movement is on foot to organize the districts, 

 do away with the old mills and secure new ones, by which more and 

 better sugar can be obtained from the cane at a less cost. 



