Pond. — On the Sugar Values of Beet-roots. 371 



the last two years, however, sugar has been produced of such purity and 

 whiteness, that it has been sold directly for consumption without refining ; 

 and there is no question that the peculiar odour of the beet may be entirely 

 got rid of in the manufactory." I will quote one more authority on this sub- 

 ject, and that one of the highest we could have. I allude to Crookes, who 

 says in his work " Manufacture of Beetroot Sugar " : — " Crystalized beet- 

 root sugar is perfectly identical in composition with cane-sugar, and is 

 indistinguishable from it by the sight, the taste, or by chemical tests." 



Proceeding from the foregoing facts to summarize my results, I find that 

 the value of sugar obtained from the whole of the roots examined by me last 

 season under S^ lbs. in weight is a percentage of 11'66, but this average 

 includes the immature ones from Tamahere, made when they were but half- 

 grown, and also these roots now before us, which, having remained in the 

 earth so many months after coming to maturity, have deteriorated consider- 

 ably. If then we exclude these, the average result of the rest shows a per- 

 centage of 12*45 ; but as some of the roots examined were practically too 

 small for manufacturing purposes, I propose to exclude all under 1 lb. 

 weight, and thus reduce the average to roots between one and three pounds 

 weight, this being a useful size for manufacturing purposes, large enough 

 to pass safely through the washing machine without being lost or clogging 

 the bars, and yet not too large to materially reduce the percentage of sugar. 

 By this exclusion the average is 12-29, my highest being 15 and lowest 9-82. 



In arriving at these results, I do so after a series of experiments extending 

 over the past seven months, in which time I have made upwards of eighty 

 analyses and examined more than sixty beetroots grown in different parts 

 of the Waikato, many of them raised under very unfavourable conditions : 

 some I found over-run with weeds, of others cattle had destroyed the leaves, 

 while the majority were planted too far apart, and in almost all cases not 

 sufiicientiy earthed-up, in consequence of which a portion of the sugar con- 

 tained in the root, exposed to sun and air, becomes converted into other 

 substances. Yet, notwithstanding all these disadvantages, the average of 

 all the analyses made by me, with the exception of one root weighing over 

 6 lbs., was 11-66, while the exclusion of those which would under no circum- 

 stances be permitted to enter a sugar factory brought up the total to 12-45, 

 an average return so favourable that it would result in a very large profit 

 were it achieved in the countries where beet-sugar factories are established. 



That these results are not exceptional is, I think, shown by the wide area 

 over which I have obtained my supplies for examination ; and that it will 

 be fully equalled on the large scale is shown by the unskilled manner in 

 which some of these roots were planted and tended, and also by the request, 

 which in many instances was adhered to, that no manure should be used. 



