BEE 



BEN 



holes at the point of the moulds may 

 be removed and the molasses al- 

 lowed to run out. In a week this is 

 mostly run olF. White sirup is now 

 pouted on the top of the moulds, 

 which lilters through the mass and 

 carries part of the colouring matter 

 with it. The process that follows is 

 exactly that in common use in refi- 

 ning West India sugars. 



Although most of the operations 

 are nearly the same as those by which 

 the juice of the sugar cane is pre- 

 pared for use, much greater skill and 

 nicety are required in rendering the 

 juice of the beet root crystallizable, 

 on account of the smaller quantity 

 of sugar that it contains. But when 

 this sugar is refined, it is impossible 

 for the most experienced judge to 

 distinguish it from the other either 

 by the taste or appearance. Five 

 tons of clean roots produce about 4.^ 

 cwt. of coarse sugar, which give 

 about 160 lbs. of double-refined su- 

 gar, and 60 lbs. of inferior lump sugar : 

 the rest is molasses. The dry resi- 

 due of the roots, after expressing the 

 juice, consists chiefly of fibre and mu- 

 cilage, and amounts to about one 

 fourth of the weight of the clean roots 

 used. It contains nearly all the nu- 

 tritive part of the root, with the ex- 

 ception of 4|- per cent, of sugar, which 

 has been extracted from the juice. 

 Two pounds of this dry residue and 

 half a pound of good hay are consid- 

 ered as sufficient food for a moderate- 

 sized sheep for a day, and will keep 

 it in good condition, and cattle in 

 proportion. 



By allowing the juice of the beet 

 root to undergo the vinous fermenta- 

 tion, and by distilling it. a more prof- 

 itable result will be obtained in a very 

 good spirit. A kmd of beer may also 

 be made of it, which is said to be 

 pleasant in warm weather and whole- 

 some. 



Another mode of making sugar 

 from beet root, practised in some 

 parts of Germany, is as follows, and 

 is said to make better sugar than the 

 other process. The roots, having 

 Deen washed, are sliced lengthways, 

 strung on packthread, and hung up 



to dry. The object of this is to Jet 

 the watery juice evaporate, and the 

 sweet juice, being concentrated, is 

 taken up by macerating the dry sli- 

 ces in water. It is managed so that 

 all the juice shall be extracted by a 

 very small quantity of water, which 

 saves much of the trouble of evapo- 

 ration. Professor Lampadius oblain- 



I ed from 1 10 pounds of roots 4 pounds 

 of well-grained white powder sugar, 



I and the residuum afforded 7 pints of 

 spirit. Achard says that about a ton 

 of roots produced 100 pounds of raw 



. sugar, which gave 55 pounds of re- 

 fined sugar and 25 pounds of treacle. 

 This result is not very different from 

 that of Chaptal. 



I The manufacture of beet sugar in 

 the United States cannot be made 

 profitable, but may be useful in fami- 

 lies, as the remaining mush is so val- 

 uable for cattle and pigs. They may 

 be cultivated between 39 and 44 de- 

 grees north advantageously. 



BEETLE. A common term used 



, to designate the larger Coleoplera, 

 with hard wing cases. See Insects. 



BEETLE. A large mallet used to 

 drive stakes, <kc. ; it is furnished 

 with two or more handles, so as to 

 be driven by several persons. 



i BELLADONNA. The deadly night 

 shade, Atropa belladonna. 



J BELT. Trees arranged for shel- 

 ter. Belting in the West is the prac- 

 tice of chopping away the bark of a 

 tree around the stem to the extent of 

 some inches. The wound should 

 pass freely into the sap wood, other- 

 wise the tree will not be killed. 



BELVIDERE. A small place at 

 the top of a house for a lookout. 



BEX NUTS. The seeds of an 

 Arabian plant called Moringa aptera ; 

 they yield an oil called oil of ben, 

 and have been employed in syphilitic 

 diseases. 



BEN, OIL OF. The expressed 

 oil of the nut of the Muringa aptera. 

 This oil is remarkable for not becom- 

 ing rancid by age ; and as it is per- 

 fectly insipid and inodorous, it is u.sed 

 for extracting the fragrance of cer- 

 tain flowers, such as jessamin, or- 

 ange, &c. The same tree furnishes 



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