154 TRANSACTIONS OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 



Mr. Wm. S. Carpenter said that he knew several persons who had gone 

 from this part of the country to Maryland, and had become very much dis- 

 satisfied. 



Dr. Ward thought the only way to get at the truth Avas to have the sub- 

 ject thorouglily discussed. We know that some parts of the State of Mary- 

 land is very productive, and now that slavery is ab(jli8hed it will be a very 

 desirable State for emigrants; and moved that the Secretary notify Mr. 

 Baer that we will give public notice that he will be at a meeting of the 

 Club ready to answer any qnestions in relation to Maryland. 



Sugar and Syrup from Indian Corn. 



The Chairman stated that he had ju^t seen and carefully tested the qual- 

 ity of s^'rup made from Indian corn al'tcj' the process discovered by a Ger.. 

 man cliemist of Buffalo, who is certain that he can obtain as much molasses 

 from a bushel of corn as a distiller can whisky; that is, three to four gal- 

 lons, and the quality of that which he saw is equal to the best sugar 

 refiner's s^'rup, which now sells for $1,50 a galhni, and the cost of making 

 is declared |;o be quite small. Two sugar refiners who have examined the 

 process are so taken with it that they have each agreed to put in §50,000 

 to establish a raanufactf)ry of syrup, and probably sugar, from corn. At 

 present sugar has not been made, but some of tlie syrup left standing in a 

 bottle solidified, so that the bottle had to be broken to get it out, and it 

 proved to be a fine grained, plastjc sugar. Upon some surprise being ex- 

 pressed that sugar or syrup could be obtained from Indian corn, Mr. Ely 

 observed that the whole success of the distiller of grain depended upon the 

 amount of saccharine that the grain contains, and therefore it does not sur- 

 prise him to hear that this saccharine can be extracted before as well as 

 after it has undergone fermentation. The only thing is to hold the fer- 

 mentation ^t the right point, and make sweet syrup instead of alcohol. 

 Some of those who have examined this new process, and they are men of 

 sound judgment in such matters, are satisfied that the whole country can 

 be supplied with sugar and molasses from Indian corn. At any rate the 

 problem will soon be solved, for some of the wealtiiiest men in New York 

 are engaged to fully test the process. 



Mr. Solon Robinson said that the question that corn contains saccharine 

 is not disputed. The only thing to be settled is the cost of extracting it. 



Prof. Tillman thought that there was a still more important question, and 

 that is, whether it will prove to be true cane sugar, or more like grape 

 sugar, which is less in value, because less sweet. Now is it settled that 

 this new produv^t is sweet, not only in taste but in fact? that is, does it 

 contain C' H" 0^'? 



Mr. Geo. Barllett. — T understand that this syrup is made of starch, which 

 is .nothing new among chemists. In France it is an established industry. 



Osage Orange — Is it Hardy ? 



Mr. E. H. Rood, Bloomington, 111., says : " I notice in the last report of 

 the Club that the Osage orange would be killed with twenty to thirty de- 

 grees below zero of cold- I have lived in Illinois nineteen years; last 

 winter, with one exception, was the coldest during that period — thermome- 



