SILOS FOR REDUCING COSSETTES. 157 



The factories working under the best arrangement generally 

 have a number of oxen to feed, and it is well to have a deter- 

 mined amount of diffusion cossettes placed in silos at the fac- 

 tory. Such silos are usually of the very best types. 



In general, our changeable American winters are disadvan- 

 tageous to beet-residuum conservation, and attention to its 

 proper preservation is of greater importance than in Europe. 

 When building a silo, the very best material should be used; 

 and as there is considerable lateral and vertical pressure, the 

 side-walls should be sufficiently thick to offer the desired re- 

 sistance; corners should be filled in with triangular or rounded 

 bricks. 



For many years it was argued that diffusion pulps could not 

 be kept in silos lined with bricks; experiments have shown 

 such theories to be erroneous. Cossettes remaining for five 

 months in silos thus constricted lost only 8.9 per cent, of their 

 dry substances. 



It is customary to pile the residuum cossettes in carefully- 

 constructed ditches lined or not with masonry and cement. 

 There are advantages especially to be derived by the use of 

 elongated silos, so that the portion exposed to the air during 

 their opening shall be as small as possible in order to reduce to 

 a minimum the amount that will subsequently rot through oxi- 

 dation. The dimensions, such as length, depth, etc., as recom- 

 mended by various recognized experts, are extremely variable. 



As the most desirable types of silos for residuum beet pulps 

 are expensive, they are not within the reach of the average 

 farmer. When beyond a certain size they must be cement-lined. 



Pellet and Lelavandier recommend that the length be 75 feet, 

 width 12 feet, and depth about 4 feet. These dimensions vary 

 with the conditions one may have to contend with. As to the 

 depth, there are no difficulties in the way, provided the soil is 

 not damp. It is not desirable to reach a depth where sub-strata 

 water currents may be met. The other arguments that may be 

 brought forward are based mainly upon the various conditions 

 that different environments create. It is very exceptional, 

 however, that the depth of silos exceeds six feet. Sometimes 

 very deep silos, say 9 feet, give good results; the pulp then 

 eliminates considerable water by its own weight. 



