36 THE USES OF PLANTS. 



country of production, is occasionally imported. It is 

 prepared from the spring sap of Acer saccharinum, L., 

 and the allied species A.pensylvanicum, L., A. Negundo 

 L., and A. dasycarpmn,VJ\\\&., one tree yielding about 

 four pounds annually for many years. From 30 to 50 

 million pounds are made annually in the United 

 States, especially in Vermont, New York, Ohio and 

 Pennsylvania ; and Canada made more than 20 

 millions in 1885.* 



The cultivation of the WHITE SUGAR-BEETS 

 (Beta alba, D.C.) was first encouraged by Napoleon L, 

 during the war with England, and has since been 

 supported by bounties. In 1 880-8 1, 1,774,545 tons 

 were made on the Continent of Europe, as against 

 1,979,900 tons of cane-sugar from the rest of the 

 world. In 1884-85 the figures were 2,546,000 tons of 

 Beet-sugar to 2,260,100 tons of Cane-sugar. In 1837 

 a Beet-sugar refinery was established at Chelsea, and 

 the roots were much planted at Wandsworth in 1839. 

 The Silesian variety, the best for the purpose, was 

 successfully introduced into Berks, Bucks, Norfolk 

 and Suffolk, about i868-7o.-f > The average yield is 

 7 Ib. of sugar from 100 Ib. of beetroots. 



SORGHUM-SUGAR, obtained from the stems of the 



* Reports of the U.S. Government Board of Agriculture. 



f 'Beet-root Sugar,' Arnold Baruchson. London, 1870, ed. 2 ; 

 Its Manufacture, W. Crookes, London, 1870, 8vo. ; Lewis S. 

 Ware, Philadelphia, 1880, 8vo. ; see also A. Voelcker in 'Pharm. 

 Journ.,' ser. iii, vol. i (1871), p. 854; and 'Journ. Soc. Arts/ 

 vol. xix, No. 953, 1871 ; P. L. Simmonds, ' Commercial Pro- 

 ducts of the Vegetable Kingdom, 5 1854; 'Encyclopaedia 

 Britannica,' vol. xxii, sub voce ' Sugar,' by James Paton ; C. G. 

 Warn ford Lock, G. W. Wagner, and R. H. Harland on Sugar 

 Growing and Refining, 1882. 



