CONSERVATION OF THE SUGAR BEET. 261 



the beet in the morning should be left until the after- 

 noon, the idea being to get rid of a certain quantity 

 of water, for, if left for several days, they change 

 color and give a bad odor. When the silo is opened 

 vertical slices are extracted ; in this manner equal por- 

 tions of the three above elements are obtained. This 

 is eaten with much relish. Mr. Mehay has directed 

 much time to this subject, and he contends that the 

 results obtained by him far surpass anything up to the 

 present time attempted in this direction. His idea is 

 to make use of a certain quantity of hydrochloric acid, 

 marking 3° to 4° B. The leaves are placed in baskets, 

 through which the liquid in excess can filter; this is 

 collected in a reservoir. After a certain number of 

 hours they are taken out and piled on the ground, 

 where they remain for three days, after which time 

 they are ready to be placed in silos similar to the 

 one just described. Mr. Mehay considers that a hole 

 dug in very dry soil will answer the purpose ; but when 

 it is considered that a small quantity of air between 

 the layers will cause a general change in the entire 

 mass, too much precaution cannot be taken to prevent 

 the entrance of it. It is estimated that two men and 

 two boys are sufficient to prepare 26,000 lbs. of leaves 

 per day. These leaves greatly diminish in weight in 

 consequence of the vegetable water being extracted. 

 20,000 lbs. of green represent 10,000 lbs. of dried 

 leaves. 



The hydrochloric acid combines with the potassium 



