191 2.] The Production of Beet Sugar. 



ioii 



because of the digestible nature of the carbohydrates present 

 in the ordinary slices, which only contain about 5 per cent, 

 to 6 per cent, of sugar. 



Heat in Factories. — The old buildings are often "cramped " 

 for room and are badly ventilated. In such cases the 

 atmosphere is hot and oppressive. A modern factory, how- 

 ever, is like one big hall, excellently ventilated and by no 

 means objectionable, and the so-called "obnoxious odour" is 

 a fallacy. The writer stayed at different factories and did not 

 experience any such unpleasantness. 



The following data relate to a German factory dealing with 

 1,200 tons of beet in the 24 hours (unless otherwise stated), and 

 were given to the writer by the manager. 



Water. — The purer the supply the better it is. Soft water 

 is preferable to hard, but it is not a sine qua non. The 

 quantity required for floating the beets in and washing is 

 about 1,100 gallons per minute. For the diffusion battery, 

 250 per cent, of the weight of roots is wanted if entirely fresh 

 water is used. If part of the water is purified and used over 

 again, it is possible to do with 120 per cent. 



In another factory in Bohemia of 1,000 tons capacity, 1,500 

 gallons of water per minute (about 7 cubic metres) were 

 required, which is equivalent to 9,640 tons of water every 24 

 hours. 



Coal. — Brown coal is generally used on the Continent. 

 About 6 per cent, of beet weight would be required when 

 using English coal of fairly good quality. Thus for a 1,000 

 ton factory, about 60 tons of coal would be required every 24 

 hours. 



Limestone. — About 4 per cent, of the beet weight is required. 

 Therefore 40 tons would be used every 24 hours in a 1,000 ton 

 factory. 



Number of "Hands" — In this 1,200 ton factory, 270 men 

 are at work during the factory season, but only about 80 in the 

 summer. The remainder work on the land or at other indus- 

 tries, such as brickmaking, when not required in the factory. 



Wages.— Staff in the factory; Manager, ^500 to ^750 per 

 annum; 2 Chemists, ^100 to ^150 per annum; 1 Engineer, 

 ^125 to ^150 per annum; 1 Assistant, ^125 to ^150 per 



