360 DATE SUGAR INDUSTRY IN BENGAL. 



mata. These two kinds are mixed in equal proportions and boiled 

 down to get second gur by the refiner himself. Each refiner has his 

 own boiling pans in his factory yard. A photo of these boiling pans 

 is shewn in Plate IX. They are also seen in the background in 

 Plate VIII. They consist of generally 4 iron pans each of capacity 

 If bazar maunds of juice. They are arranged regularly around a 

 central chimney stack and each has a furnace under it. Coal is 

 usually burnt. The whole is covered by a roof. When boiling is 

 complete the thick liquid is transferred to a large earthenware 

 pot. 



A handful of raw sugar crystals is now stirred in to encourage 

 crystallisation, the stirring being continued for some time. The 

 liquid is now transferred to big earthenware pots of the shape 

 shewn almost completely buried in the soil as illustrated in Plate 

 VIII. An earthen pan is placed over the mouth and the pots 

 left for about 3 weeks to crystallise. In Plate VIII these partly 

 buried pots are seen in the foreground with their mouths covered 

 over. The open mouth of one is seen to the right of the picture. 

 Each pot holds about 3 4 maunds. Burying the pots in earth 

 prevents the liquid being disturbed, any disturbance being 

 detrimental to the formation of good crystals. Also cooling takes 

 place more slowly and slow cooling encourages large crystal 

 formation. 



This second gur finally goes through the same processes of drain- 

 ing off molasses in the open and then by the use of water weed, as 

 the gur does. The sugar however is not supposed to be of such good 

 quality. It is called Gnour at Kotechandpur. 



The final molasses is called Chitu. The following table shews 

 one experiment on the determination of the loss of sugar taking place 

 during the boiling of the first molasses. With the huge fire kept up 

 much of the sugar is burnt and it is surprising the loss is not greater 

 than is shewn in the table. 



