37 



fully kept above that at which icrnuMitation takes place most readily, 

 and the danger of inversion is thereby reduced. But with all the pre- 

 cautions known to science up to this point the utmost celerity is neces- 

 sary to secure the best results. There is here, however, a natural divis- 

 ion in the process of sugar-making, which will be further considered 

 under the heading of "auxiliary factories." Any part of the process 

 heretofore described may be learned in a few days by workmen of intel- 

 ligence and observation who will give careful attention to their respect- 

 ive duties. 



BOILING TUB SIRUP TO GHAIX THE SUGAR. 



This operation is the next in course, and is performed in what is 

 known at the sugar factory as the strike-pan, a large air-tight vessel 

 from which the air and vapor are almost exhausted by means of a suit- 

 able pump and condensing apparatus. As is the case with the saccha- 

 rine juices of other plants, the sugar from sorghum crystallizes most 

 readily at medium temperature. There are two ways of proceeding. 

 The simplest is to boil the sirup in the vacuum pan until it has reached 

 about the density at which crystallization begins, then draw it off into 

 suitable vessels and set it away in a hot room (about 110 to 120 F.) to 

 crystallize slowly. The proper density is usually judged by the boiler, 

 by observing the length to which a sample of the hot liquid from the 

 pan can be drawn. This is called the u string proof" test. A far bet- 

 ter method is to li boil to grain " in the pan. This is better because it 

 gives the operator control of the size of the grain within certain limits, 

 because it gives a better appearing sugar, and more important still, be- 

 cause with proper skill it gives a better yield. Several descriptions of 

 this delicate operation have been published. After reading some of the 

 best of these, the writer found, on attempting to boil to grain, that more 

 definite instruction was necessary; and after obtaining the instruction 

 it became apparent that while almost any one can learn to " boil to 

 grain," yet to obtain the best yield requires personal skill and powers 

 of observation and comparison which will be obtained in widely differ- 

 ent degrees by different persons. To become a good sugar-boiler, one 

 must be an enthusiastic specialist. The Parkinson Sugar Company 

 were fortunate in securing for this important work the services of Mr. 

 Frederick Hinze, a native of Hanover, Germany, and a graduate of the 

 "Sugar Industry School" at Braunschweig. Though a young man, 

 Mr. Hinze has had a large experience, having assisted his brother in 

 the erection and operation of sugar factories in German}-, and since com- 

 ing to America having worked in the beet sugar factory at Alvarado, 

 Cal., and in cane-sugar factories in Louisiana and in Cuba. Since the 

 close of the working season at Fort Scott, Mr. Hinze has again gone to 

 Louisiana and taken charge of a strike-pan at the sugar house of Kx- 

 Governor Warmoth, where he worked last season. 



The process of boiling to grain may be described as foHows : A por- 

 tion of the sirup is taken into the pan, and boiled rapidly in vacua to 



