SUGAR CANE 63 



along with bagasse in boiler furnaces, and as a fertilizer. As 

 a stock feed, waste molasses must be used with certain restric- 

 tions for the reason that the high content of sulphate of potash 

 causes digestive troubles and even more serious physiological 

 disturbances. When molasses is used as a fertilizer the ash is, 

 of course, directly beneficial since it contains a high per- 

 centage of sulphate of potash and the sugars in molasses per- 

 haps serve as food for nitrogen-gathering bacteria. 



Bagasse as it comes from the last battery of rollers contains 

 sometimes as low as 40 per cent, water but usually 45 to 50 

 per cent. Bagasse makes a satisfactory fuel for boilers with 

 or without further drying. In fact, on most plantations 

 bagasse constitutes the chief fuel used in sugar mills. 



Java has made a greater scientific contribution than any 

 other country to the whole subject of sugar cane, including 

 field culture, chemistry, manufacture, diseases and insect pests, 

 and selection of cane. The scientific investigation of sugar 

 cane in Java is under government supervision. In Hawaii, on 

 the other hand, the Sugar Planters' Experiment Station is a 

 private institution supported entirely by assessments on the 

 sugar plantations of Hawaii and controlling absolutely the re- 

 sults of its investigations. Most of the publications of the 

 experiment station of the Hawaii Sugar Planters' Association 

 are not available except to members of the Association and 

 certain libraries and other institutions. 



The production of beet sugar passed that of cane sugar in 

 1883 and maintained its lead until recently. Sugar and mo- 

 lasses are also obtained from various other sources, espe- 

 cially sorghum, a considerable variety of palms, maple, etc., 

 but all sources of sugar except sugar beet and sugar cane are 

 of very minor importance. 



The most recent available statistics on cane sugar showed 

 the following annual production : Cuba, 3,000,000 tons ; Brit- 

 ish India, 2,534,000 tons; Java, 1,591,000 tons; Hawaii, 612,- 

 000 tons ; Porto Rico, 364,000 tons ; Argentina, 304,000 tons ; 



