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THE ILLINOIS FARMER. 



349 



with us, we will treat briefly upon these dif- 

 ferent points. 



First, after the crop is growing, have a 

 good store of fine-split, seasoned wood. Have 

 suitable buildings to keep your machinery 

 and cane out of storms, while you are manu- 

 facturing. Secure a good mill, boiling ap- 

 paratus, and all the necessary fixtures. — 

 Some may say, it will not pay for all this 

 paraphernalia for one crop, and may be that 

 a small one. Such objections are in one 

 sense true ; but does the farmer expect to 

 be paid, the first year, when he buys a thresh- 

 ing machine, mowing machine, wheat drill, 

 &c. ? We will say, the first year many will 

 not ; bat, in the end, with proper care of 

 such implements, he will be amply remu- 

 nerated. As it is to those we think will 

 want to make the proper preparations we are 

 giving some instructions, we would say, as- 

 certain about the amount of molasses you 

 wish to make each day, before you purchase 

 your machinery ; for it should be distinctly 

 understood, that, in order to make a good 

 article, the grinding or crushing, and the 

 evaporating or boiling, should all go on at 

 the same time. Consequently, you want a 

 mill and boiler, that will work one as fast as 

 the other ; for, if the juice stands without 

 being boiled and skimmed, in warm weather, 

 it will sour in less than ten hours. For in- 

 stance, if you have machinery capable of 

 evaporating only one barrel of molasses per 

 day, it is not necessary to buy a mill to crush 

 two barrels per day, and vice versa. The 

 difierent manufactories of machinery have 

 each their manner of displaying their arti- 

 cles to the public. You can obtain a good 

 mill, with three iron rollers, of one horse 

 power, suitable for grinding juice, for from 

 30 to 40 gallons of molasses per day, of ten 

 or twelve hours, at from $50 to $60 ; and 

 one that will make 40 to 60 gallons per day, 

 from $60, $80 to $100. Much is said, now- 

 a-days, about the boiling apparatus. Some 

 say the old fashioned iron kettle will do ; 

 others, a sheet-iron pan, in a furnace ; oth- 

 ers, a cast-iron pan ; others, galvanized iron 

 or copper, &c. j some say stationary ; others, 

 on rockers, &c. We have ascertained that 

 those who have made the best article of mo- 

 lasses have used machinery that made it in 

 the shortest space of time ; or they have 

 generally used long, shallow pans, of copper 

 or galvanized iron, divided in sections, so 

 that when the juice is running in at one end, 

 the molasses is running out at the other. — 

 These kinds of evaporators are usually sold 

 from $35 to $75. Then,' in order to be suc- 

 cessful, you want cane knives, strainers, skim- 

 mers, dippers, syrup gauges, &c. 



All things being ready, the next question 

 is, the most suitable time of commencement, 

 the proper mode of management, &c. Many 

 have an idea that the cane must be worked 

 up at a certain time, which is altogether a 

 mistake. A man may have several acres, and 

 need not be in a sweat about it, if he will 

 commence in time, and take it coolly. The 

 beet article can be made about the time the 

 seed matures. But, should you have a large 

 amount to work up, commence as soon as the 

 cane has about got its growth, not waiting 

 for the seed to be ripe, as a good article of 

 molasses can be made from the green cane. 

 But there is a culminating point in the de- 



velopment of the sugar in the cane. The 

 season for sugar making is when most of the 

 seeds are ripe, and some experimenters even 

 say that it is the best for the cane, providing 

 it is ripe, to be bitten by several frosts. One 

 thing we are certain of, that frost does not 

 prevent the ripe cane from making molasses, 

 or from gi;anulating. It is also ascertained 

 that hard freezing does not injure ripe cane; 

 but that it canses the saccharine mattor to 

 separate more freely from the impurities of 

 the juice, providing it is worked up imme- 

 diately after the thaw. Yet we would rec- 

 ommend, after the cane or seed is ripe, for it 

 to be worked up as soon as convenient, as 

 frequent freezing and thawing sours the juice 

 in the cane. If you commence when the 

 cane is green, have it cut and stripped from 

 otie to two days before working it up ; then, 

 and even in all cases, the juice should be 

 taken immediately from the mill to the boiler. 

 Should heavy frosts come before the seed 

 ripens, cut off the cane close to the ground 

 as soon as possible, and let it lay on the 

 ground from twenty-four to thirty-six hours; 

 then haul it in, and put it under shelter. 

 If you have not shelter sufficient, put it in 

 good sized shocks, well secured, and continue 

 working at the green cane until all is worked 

 up, leaving that which may be ripe to the 

 last ; that is, as said before, in case the frost 

 bites the cane before it is ripe, you need not 

 let the frost scare you, relative to your ripe 

 cane. Some prefer topping and blading in 

 the field, then cutting it up ; others prefer 

 cutting it off at the ground, and after it has 

 cured a day or two, then strip, &c. For our 

 part, we prefer the latter, particularly if we 

 have boys to do the work, and the cane is 

 tall. But in either case, after it is stripped, 

 if you have not suitable buildings to put it in, 

 put it in good sized piles, say a cord or more 

 in a place, and cover it up well with straw, 

 &c., to keep the Cane from freezing and 

 thawing. In grinding, have your cane handy 

 to the mill, and we prefer placing the top in 

 first. Have a coarse sack or strainer of some 

 kind, between the mill and the vessel that re- 

 ceives the juice. Then have a sectifying tub 

 or barrel, for the juice to run from into the 

 boiler or evaporator, about one-third full or 

 more of gravel, straw and charcoal ; in that 

 barrel put your clarifiers, (if you use any.") 

 We have seen a good article of molasses and 

 sugar made without any clarifier, and we have 

 used lime, eggs, saleratus, milk, ley and cold 

 syrup, but prefer the eggs and saleratus to 

 any of the rest ; unless the juice should be 

 sour, we then prefer a little lime ; but we 

 find milk to be the poorest clarifier of any. 

 Now, to sum the whole matter up, have 

 your wood; machinery, barrrls, &c., ready, 

 and in good order. Commence as soon as 

 the cane will do. Drive the whole work 

 steadily along. Toke the juice right from 

 the mill to the boiler. Keep a steady, brisk 

 fire. Let none of the syrup scorch. Occa- 

 sionally wash off all your machinery,, and if 

 properly attended to you can make it pay. 



An excellent urticle of vinegar can be 

 made, by boiling about two gallons of juice 

 into one. In a former article, we stated that 

 the seeds blades, and the bagasse, or cane, 

 from the mill, and the scum mixed, with 

 other swill, was profitoble to feed to stock. 

 We|still say so, other opinion g to the con- 



trary notwithstanding ; and we also say that 

 we believe that an acre of the Sorghum cane 

 will make as much, if not more pork, than 

 an acre of corn, from the same kind of ground. 

 Let the doubting Thonas measure off a piece 

 of com, and a piece of Sorghum, of the same 

 size, with the same kind of hogs for each lot, 

 and we feel free to prophecy in favor of the 

 Sorghum. — A. H. Wrenn, Mt. Grilead, 0. 

 — Ohio Farmer. . 



Carltle, m., Sept. 22, 1859. 



S. Francis, Esq. — By and in con- 

 formity of one of the articles of our ag- 

 ricultural and mechanical association, I 

 (as Corresponding Secretary,) am re- 

 quired to report to you, yearly, of our 

 acts and doings and other matters of in- 

 terest to the producing classes. The 

 ofiScers for 1859, are: 



President — G. W. Richardson. 



Vice-Presidents — Posey Maddux, 

 William Colier, G. W.. Entrakin. 



Corresponding Secretary — 0. B. 

 Nichols. 



Recording Secretary — Z. Casl. 



Treasurer — E. C. Dew. 



We had the best exhibition last fall 

 we have ever had at any fair. Every- 

 thing directly or indirectly connected 

 with agricultural or the mechanical arts 

 are in a prosperous condition. Last fall 

 was favorable for getting in wheat in 

 time, although there was a great deal put 

 in after the first of October, which I 

 am satisfied is too late for this section of 

 the country. All the red May wheat 

 that was put in with the drill and 

 got in in September, yielded a good crop 

 and a number one article of grain. I 

 think the crop more than an average 

 one for this county, price at Carlyle 85 

 cents. Our spring was wet and cold, 

 and the consequence was there was a 

 large breadth of the corn crop put in 

 after the middle of May — all put in pre- 

 vious to that is now out of the way of 

 frost — and the present indications are 

 that we shall have more corn this year 

 than we have ever had since I have fived 

 in the county, twenty-two years. 



We had a very long drouth, commenc- 

 ing on the 3d of July and ending on the 

 21st. After the showers commenced 

 they appeared to be rather partial, which 

 had the effect to check the growth of 

 our late corn and also to make our oat 

 crop a little too light by the measure. 

 I do not consider oats certain, unless got 

 in very early, (hence the necessity of fall 

 plowing.) Our oats were a fair average 

 crop, price at Carlyle 28 cents. Corn 

 50 cents, but I am of the opinion (of the 

 old lady by her butter,) that it will have 

 to come down to the old price, say about 

 12 or 16 cents. Potatoes as a general 

 thing are fine, both Irish and sweet, they 

 command about the same price. I am 

 satisfied that to insure a certain crop of 

 Irish potatoes in this section of the 

 country, it is necessary to plow in the 



