SUGAR. 



167 



This amount may be compared with the quantity produced in 

 the island twenty years ago, which was under 60,000 tons. 



The following shows the sugar estates and their acreage in 1876 : 



J-)is trict. 



Sugar 

 Estates. 



Acres Cultivated. 





Pamplemousses . ■ 



9Q 



11 ATA 

 11 ,^14 





Kiviere du Eempart 



22 



12,250 





Flacq 



38 



26,851 







34 



22,548 







11 



4,940 





Plaines Wilhems . . . . 



19 



12,750 





Mokha 



17 



11,133 







29 



20,290 





Iteunion. — The extent of land under cultivation with sugar in this 

 island in 1874 was 43,672 hectares, and there were 85 sugar estates, 

 of which 79 had mills worked by steam. The produce of sugar 

 ranges from 35,000,000 to 41,000,000 kilos, of molasses, 3,500,000 to 

 4,000,000 litres, and of rum 1,300,000 litres. 



The sugar exported from Keunion to France in 1874 was : 



Kilos. 



1st quality 4,443,534 



2nd „ ^ 3,191,130 



3rd „ .. .. • .. .. .. .. 1,241,634 



Total 8,876,298 



Straits Settlements. — In Province Wellesley considerable improve- 

 ments have been made in agricultural operations of late years on 

 the estates of European planters ; while the Chinese are entering 

 largely into the cultivation of sugar, and are obtaining steam 

 machinery to replace the old cattle mills, which they have hitherto 

 employed in grinding the canes. In 1871 there was an increase of 

 50,000 piculs over the exports of 1870. 



Philippines. — The sugar-cane is cultivated in Negros, Panay, Cebu, 

 Luzon, and in nearly every part of the Archipelago; the yellow 

 variety being generally raised in the province of Pampanga (Luzon), 

 and the purple in Negros and Panay. The shoots are planted in the 

 month of February, and the crops are cut in January following. 

 The yield of raw sugar from cane planted in an indifferent soil is 

 about 12 piculs (15 cwts.) per acre, in the best soils about 40 piculs, the 

 average therefore being about 20 piculs. The best quality is from Pam- 

 panga, and the worst from Taal or Batangas. The native apparatus for 

 crushing the cane, which consists of two stone cylinders with wooden 

 teeth, is now being superseded in many places by iron rollers from 

 England. Steam sugar mills have also been erected on several 

 estates. It is impossible to compute the total production, as there 

 are no statistics on the subject, and we can only get at a few 

 particulars of the shipments from different ports. 



In 1863 there were 20 iron cattle mills in Panay, and 43 in the 

 neighbouring province of Negros, but the demand for them was 

 steadily increasing, the native planters finding their superiority to 



