12 



CHANGES IN THE REVENUE LAWS NECESSARY TO THE PRACTICAL 

 WORKING OF THE PROCESS. 



The practical working of the alcohol process in the manufacture of 

 sugar from sorghum, or from sugar cane or beets, if it should be ap- 

 plied to these bodies, depends largely upon the legal aspects of the 

 case. Under our present system of internal revenue it would be very 

 difficult to devise a system of regulations which would at the same time 

 secure the revenue against fraud and allow the manufacturer a suffi- 

 cient freedom of action to the success of his work. Any system of rev- 

 enue control which would require the manufacturer to pay loss on 

 evaporation or accidental loss of alcohol, or which would require him 

 at the end of every twenty-four or forty-eight hours or some similar 

 period to re-store and re-gauge the alcohol in use, would entirely defeat 

 any attempt at successful manufacture. In order that the manufac- 

 ture be successful the operator must have full power to use the alcohol 

 in any way he sees fit and at such times as may be necessary, account- 

 ing only for the residue at the end of the manufacturing season or at 

 the time of going out of the business. 



In my opinion there would be no difficulty whatever in securing com- 

 plete immunity from fraud in allowing the use of alcohol in this way. 

 The revenue laws should also be so amended as to permit the manufac- 

 turer of sugar to use the waste products of the factory for the manufac- 

 ture of his own alcohol. He is required by the process itself to have 

 all the stills and other apparatus necessary to the manufacture of al- 

 cohol on hand, and the alcohol necessary to the process could be man- 

 ufactured during the interval between two successive sugar seasons, so 

 that the apparatus could be kept in more constant use and the manu- 

 facturer be relieved from the necessity of purchasing his alcohol from 

 outside sources, where the cost would not only be higher but the item 

 of transportation be of no little importance. 



It is believed that the sugar manufacturer himself can produce his 

 own alcohol at a cost, probably, of not more than 7 or 8 cents per proof 

 gallon. 



The regulations at present in force on this subject are published as 

 " Series 7, No. 7, Revised, Supplement No. 1," of the United States in- 

 ternal revenue, and can be secured by addressing a request therefor 

 to the Commissioner of Internal Revenue, Washington, D. C. 



MACHINERY AND METHODS. 



The entire outfit of machinery, with the exception of the filter presses 

 and the distilling apparatus, was manufactured by the Walbum-S wen- 

 son Manufacturing Company, of Fort Scott, Kans. 



The machinery, though constructed on a small scale, is of large 

 enough capacity to be thoroughly practical in all its operations. 



The cane was prepared for the battery by the Hugh.es process. 



