THE SUGAR MAKING PLANT 



Sap as it comes from the maple tree is a very dilute solution con- 

 taining from 95 to 98 per cent of water about 3 per cent of sugar and 

 small quantities of mineral constituents. The making of maple syrup 

 or sugar consists primarily in getting rid of the surplus water which, 

 as all sugar makers know, is by evaporation. Early sugar makers 

 used very crude utensils and methods and made as a rule correspond- 



Fig. 11. A SUGAR HOUSE IN OPERATION IN MISSISQUOI COUNTY, QUEBEC 



ingly inferior products as compared with the high-class goods made 

 on the well equipped and well managed sugar places of the present 

 day. The modern sugar maker recognizes that sap, like milk, is 

 a very perishable product being an excellent medium for the develop- 

 ment of fermentive organisms. To make a good sugar or syrup it 

 is necessary, therefore, to have an equipment which will allow for 

 the least possible contamination of the product in all stages of man- 

 ufacture. Not only must thorough cleanliness be observed but trans- 

 formation of the new sap to the finished product must be direct and 

 speedy. 



