Manufacture of Sugar from Beet- Roof, 



161 



will be very much in favour of the leaves for the purposes just 

 mentioned. The substances were dried necessarily, previous to 

 analysis. Their proportions of water were about the same, and 

 their elementary composition was as follows : — 







Root. 



Root. 



Leaves. 







Hydrogen .... 

 Oxygen 



42- 75 

 5«77 



43- 58 

 1-66 

 6-24 



42- 93 



5- 94 



43- 23 

 1-66 



6- 24 



38-1 

 5-1 



30-8 

 4*5 



21-5 





thus showing that, in a chemical point of view, the leaves loere 

 three times as valuable as the same iceight of roots would be. 



Thus much for the agricultural part of the question ; the manu- 

 facturing we will leave for the reasons already given. We may^ 

 however, assume that, under fair management, the root will yield 

 6 per cent, of sugar ;* the crop of 20 tons would then be disposed 

 of as follows : — 1 \ tons of sugar at, say from 26/. to 32/. per ton; 

 3 tons of cake (the pressed pulp) at 2/. per ton; 8 to 15 cwt. of 

 residue, containing alkaline salts, organic matter, and sugar, 

 which latter is convertible into alcohol to the extent of l-3rd of 

 its own weight. t 



In taking a resume of the foregoing, it would appear that — 

 Istly. The cultivation of beet for sugar making leaves the whole 

 of the mineral matter free to be returned to the soil, either 

 in the shape of a direct manure, or in the shape of a nutri- 

 tious feeding substance for cattle. 

 2ndly. The plant obtaining its food from the atmosphere, and 

 by means of its long tap-root from the soil at a depth below 

 ordinary cultivation, would not injure the succeeding crop, 

 but would have a tendency to enrich the surface-soil by 

 elaborating mineral matter from^ below and bringing it up to 

 be applied on the surface. 

 3rdly. It offers opportunities to the grower to make other use of 

 his land for, saj^, 6 months out of the 12, which in many 

 cases would be productive of great pecuniary benefit to him ; 

 it also enables him to select his own time for harvest, with- 

 out any sacrifice of the valuable principle of his crop. 

 In conclusion, we must acknowledge that the departments of 

 production and consumption appear to us to require distinct con- 

 sideration, and could not be carried on beneficially by the same 

 individual, unless under peculiar circumstances. 



* Messrs. Serret, Hamoir, & Co. consider that 6 per cent, of fine sugar is a 

 satisfactory result : the last year being a favourable one, they obtained 7 per cent, 

 t Sullivan gives sugar at 28/., cake at 2/., molasses at 2l. per ton. 

 VOL. XIII. M 



