Beet Sugar in United States. 215 



the farmers did not in every case realise the necessity of 

 following carefully the instructions laid down, or of devoting 

 as much labour and attention as this crop requires. Nor 

 were the plots selected always typical of the district, the 

 farmer often allotting to the experiment any odd corner of 

 land remaining over after he had sown his usual crops. 



Among the advantages claimed for America in the cultiva- 

 tion of this crop are the fertility of the soil, which, owing to 

 its comparatively unexhausted condition, requires no manure 

 — at least, in the more recently settled districts. Apart, also, 

 from the market for the inland sugar producer being close 

 at hand, as compared with his European competitor 

 (especially as much of the country near the great lakes 

 appears suitable for beets), he is also favoured by the 

 Customs tariff, which has been designed to counteract the 

 bounties given in Europe. The duty at present in force is 

 95 cents per 100 lbs. (4s. 5d. per cwt.) on raw sugar not 

 above 16 Dutch standard in colour and not above 75 degrees 

 polarisation. Above this degree an additional 3*5 cents per 

 100 lbs. is charged for each additional degree of polarisation, 

 until the duty reaches 182.5 cents per 100 lbs. (8s. 6d. per 

 cwt.) on refined sugar of 100 degrees polarisation. When 

 the sugar is higher in colour than 16 Dutch standard, a 

 further 12.5 cents per 100 lbs. is added to the duty. 



The value of a crop of beets varies in different districts, 

 and much depends upon the sugar contents. Some of the 

 factories require that the beets shall contain 1 2 per cent, of 

 sugar, and show a purity coefficient of 80 per cent. Beets 

 lower than this standard are rejected or docked. Some other 

 factories pay according to the sugar contents, the price 

 increasing materially for high percentages of sugar. As the 

 percentage of sugar is usually higher in beets of small size, 

 it follows that it does not pay the farmer to grow too heavy a 

 crop, as in the large roots the sugar percentage and purity is 

 usually low, so that the factories would either reject the roots 

 altogether or pay only a very small price for them. Some 

 States grant a bounty of about 4s. 2d. per ton, paid either 

 direct to the farmer, or else to the factory conditionally upon 

 the latter paying the farmer a certain price for his beets. An 



