62 THE SUGAR INDUSTRY. 



the yield will average 12 to 14 tons per acre; many raised 15 to 18 tons per acre, and 

 one crop made 23 tons of good beets per acre. The factory, illustrated on Page 61, 

 has a capacity of 275 tons of beets per day of 24 hours. 



This factory is the outcome of elaborate inquiries conducted by the Wisconsin ex- 

 periment station that show almost the entire state to be wonderfully adapted to the 

 sugar beet. The beet ripens ordinarily by Sept 15 or 20, and until Nov 10 there is 

 little danger from cold, but after that silos will t be necessary if a factory is to run 

 much over 60 days. Hundreds of pounds of beets have been grown all over the state 

 and analyzed at the station, showing total averages of from 12| to 14| per cent of 

 sugar, while many samples ran up to 18 per cent and the co-efficient of purity aver- 

 aged over 80. The Vilmorin gave the richest sugar and the Despez Kichest the next. 

 As a result of all this work, there is a deep interest in the sugar question. 



OTHER STATES. 



So much fo** results in states in which beet sugar factories are already in opera- 

 tion. In many other states much work has been done in growing beets to test the 

 adaptability of the soil to this crop. Thousands of analyses have been made by the 

 United States department of agriculture and by several of the state experiment sta 

 tions. It is evident from all this work during the past ten years that beets can be 

 commercially grown at a profit over most of the vast area indicated in Map No 3, [fron- 

 tispiece from the Hudson to the Pacific, from the Carolinas to the Lakes. We do 

 not advocate the industry for New England, because the limited areas suitable for 

 beet culture can hardly compete with the wider areas and more fertile soils of the 

 middle and western states. 



NEW YORK We did nothing in the way of testing sugar beets in 1895. In the 

 spring of 1894, we sent out 45 packages of seeds to the various counties of the state. 

 The following table sets forth in brief the average weight of beets, the average yield 

 per acre, the per cent of sugar and the average yield per acre of sugar of three varie- 

 ties in 1894: 



Average Average Average Average 



Weight in ounces yield in tons % sugar yield of sugar 



Variety per beet per acre per acre 



Mette, 32.76 26.5 10.05 5326.5 Ibs 2.66 tons 



Vilmorin's Imperial, 34.16 34 6.92 4705 " 2.35 " 



D K'wanz, 30.59 24.77 9.38 4246.5 " 2.12 " 



Average of all, 32.50 28.42 8.78 4759.4 Ibs 2.37 tons 



These plots were small, and it is to be supposed that the yield was much larger 

 than could have been secured on large areas and that the beets selected were larger 

 than the average. During the season the beets stopped growing in midsummer, and 

 became nearly ripe. Fall rains started them "to growing most vigorously and they 

 put out new leaves, which without doubt greatly diminished the sugar content. The 

 largest yield (D. K'wanz) was 56 tons per acre with 8.5 per cent of sugar. The next 

 largest (Vilmorin's Imp) was 54 tons with 5.05 per cent sugar. Westchester county 

 reported a yield of 12 tons and 12. 7 per cent sugar of the variety Vilmorin's Im- 

 proved, and Seneca county 6 tons with 5.7 per cent sugar. The yields and per cent 

 of sugar were extremely variable. In 1893, eight plots of Dippe's Kleinwanzlebener, 

 in various counties, gave an average of 21 tons with 12.86 per cent sugar. Twelve 



