238 
MOORE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER, 
Jndu»ti[ial Stogies. 
SUGAR BEETS AND BEET SUGAR. 
Sugar is extensively made from beets in 
France, and frequent attempts have been 
made, to introduce the culture of beets for 
sugar in this country. It is found, however, 
that labor is so much dearer here ns to take 
away the profits. Even in France beet sugar 
culture was originated by the first Napoleon 
at a time when France was shut out from 
the world’s markets and compelled to pro¬ 
duce everything within itself. Under these 
circumstances beet sugar making was a suc¬ 
cess. After peace was declared heavy duties 
—almost prohibitory m their nature—were 
levied ou sugars imported into France, and 
by these means rather than natural profit¬ 
ableness of the operation beet sugar manu¬ 
facture has been muiutained. In t his country 
we have the sugar-cane and the sugar maple ; 
but our tariff, though high enough to warrunt 
making of sugar from these, will not allow 
the expenditure of large sums for the more 
expensive manufacture of beet sugar. As 
no one wishes to have all sugar consumers 
taxed more heavily by higher duties on that 
necessity it is probable that sugar making 
from beets will never become an important 
American iuctustry. At the natural prices 
of sugar—that is, without a tariff, beets are 
worth more as food for stock than to make 
into sugar. Still the subject is an interesting 
one, and we copy from the Massachusetts 
Ploughman the following interesting report 
of a conversation its Editor had a few years 
ago with a Frenchman between Cologne and 
Paris. 
In the vicinity of Cologne there were 
immense fields of the sugar beet, and it was 
about the time of the harvest, when the 
roots were being pulled and taken in great 
cart loads to Uio sugar factories. We re¬ 
marked that “all the beets on those loacs 
appear to be about the same size, and rather 
small. Do they try to get them of that size ? 
Wliy don’t they grow them larger?” 
“ A large-sized root contai us less sugar 
than a smaller sized one. That is wellsettled 
b&th by our scientific men and by experience 
in the sugar manufactories. You wili find 
the sugar varies in beets from 5 to 12 per 
cent., and the larger varieties not only have 
less sugar but usually contain more water. 
It is well ascertained'that the usual average 
of sugar in the Silesian beet ami U»e varieties 
cultivated for the sugar is about teu per 
cent., but in the other varieties, like the 
mangold, the proportion is much less." 
“is the sugar us good as that from the 
sugar cane, do you think Y” 
“ it is precisely the same in quality if it is 
well made, and you will find it everywhere 
on the table, lor your coffee, as rich and 
white as the best lump sugar from the cane.” 
u H<jw is it about toe waste ? Is the whole 
of the sugar of the beet capable of being 
crystallized ?’ 
*• Every particle. The process of manu¬ 
facture is now so perfect that there need be 
no loss ; but practically in making sugar in 
France, a part of it becomes molasses or 
sirup, which does not crystallize, so that the 
actual amount of sugar is, perhaps, not more 
than 5 or G per cent., or about uue-haJf of 
the amount present in the root, but the 
other half becomes molasses in the process of 
sugar making, and is used as such.” 
“You say the smaller roots contain more 
sugar. Don’t the weather and soil have 
some influence on that ?” 
“ Oh, VCS, The sugar Is affected by a great 
many circumstances. The season, whether 
dry or wet, the loud of manure used, the 
soil, the time of harvesting, and other things 
have us much influence, perhaps, us the size 
of the roots and the variety. Very strong 
and forcing maimres maice a ranker growth 
but the percentage of sugar will bo less. 
Saline manures generally have to bo used 
with caution. Common .-alt will promote a 
great growth, but though Useful -in small 
quantities it would lessen the proportion of 
sugar very much, if applied too largely. 
And so forcing, or ammonmcid manures uad 
to the proportion of water in the root." 
‘‘Do they always take the roots directly 
from the held to the sugar-hou.-e ?” 
“ They generally do. there is mere sugar 
in the fresh root. You lake a root fresh in 
October*, and you may find, say 8 to 10 per 
cent, of sugar, but let it lie till January, and 
you will have but G or 5 per cent.; and if it 
lies till February it will contain, probably, 
not more than 4 or i> per cent at tho most. I 
suppose the sugar changes into woody liber 
in the process or drying too much." 
“ How do they moke the sugar f” 
“ me roots arc perfectly cleaned or washed 
in a machine, water being used without 
stint. Then they go into a airnpJo cylindr ical 
machine worked by steam or water where 
they are rasped or grated into a perfect 
pulp ; to prevent clogging a little stream of 
water is made to trickle down over the 
rasper when in operation. Then they put 
the pulp into bugs and pile the bags up under 
the press, each bag separated by a perforated 
plate from the otners, and put on the pres¬ 
sure, at first fight, lettmg the juice ruu off 
and gradually increasing till the whole is 
extracted. The bags are taken out once or 
twice in the process mid put in differently so 
as to expose all surfaces and corners to the 
pressure. The details differ somewhat in 
different manufactories, but they are in the 
main the same." 
“ What proportion of the juice can they 
get out I” 
“ They usually get not far from 80 per cent, 
of juice, and perhaps from 4 to 8 per cent, 
mav be left in the pulp,wbi<'h now takes the 
form of a cake. Then the juice is clarified, 
which is usually effected by the addition of 
hydrate of lime during the process of evapo¬ 
ration. To evaporate the juice to the point 
of crystallization it is put into large pans 
heated by steam.” 
“ How muc2i Ume is used to clarify the 
juice ?” 
“It depends a little upon the degree of 
impurity in it, but ordinarily about five or 
six parts of lime will clarify it perfectly. 
The impurities, consisting of various sub¬ 
stances, rise to the surface in the form of 
scum and arc removed. The hot'juice is run 
through animal charcoal and rendered quite 
colorless. When concentrated sufficiently, 
which is known by its specific gravity', it is 
run into molds to crystallize,” 
*‘ What becomes of the refuse or cake, 
after the juice is pressed out 
“ That is broken up and given to cattle. It 
is worth something for feeding, and in 
mixture, or in connection with other sub¬ 
stances possesses considerable nutritive prop¬ 
erties.” 
“What is the ordinary yield of sugar 
beets per acre ?” 
“ Not far from 12 tons, but it varies con¬ 
siderably according to soil and mode of cul¬ 
tivation.” 
---— 
GOOD TIMES FOR FARMERS. 
The Buffalo Live Stock Journal believes 
that times of business depression are general¬ 
ly more favorable to farmers than to men of 
any other business. This theory needssome 
modification, as it is a fact that when farm¬ 
ers are prosperous the business interests of 
all classes are speedily placed on a sound foot¬ 
ing. It is more probably true that panics 
are the final result of a series of bad years 
with farmers, and that after panics business 
first revivei with their prosperity. Here is 
what the Journal says on the subject, and we 
believe its cheerful view of the situation is 
fully warranted by the facts : 
The last two years have been quite equal 
in thrift to the farmer with an average of 
the last ten years. The ten years succeeding 
a financial crisis usually show a more pros¬ 
perous decade for agriculture tliun the pre¬ 
ceding. it is more iu financial depressions 
that people examine the basis of things, and 
when they do, agriculture feels an impulse. 
We predicted a prosperous period*?6r agri¬ 
culture, dating from the great panic of 1ST3. 
The first two yeais have been quite satisfac¬ 
tory* and the balance of tho decade is likely 
to be still more prosperous. Our means of 
transportation are constantly* increasing and 
cheapening. We are to have a large trade 
in live stock with Great Britain and probably 
with Germany and France. It seems highly 
probable that the facilities for transporting 
live stock will be so much improved that 
this trade, iu the near future, will be much 
greater than our tiade in meats has hereto¬ 
fore been, and this latter trade is not likely 
to fall off but to increase. We are the great¬ 
est meat-eating nation upon the globe, but 
our capacity for meut production is even 
greater than our market. We can supply a 
million head of prime steers to Europe, be¬ 
sides our home demand. Europe is hungry 
for the beeves and the transportation prob¬ 
lem will be solved, We have even a greater 
capacity to supply meat than wheat. Nutri¬ 
tious grasses grow all across the continent 
and only require cattle, to devour them. 
These arc easily supplied. Cotton was once 
called king, but yrusy is crowned now. It is 
not improbable that within a half century 
our exports of live stock and meat will exceed 
that ol' the cotton crop. The South may lake 
a large hand in the profits of this future ex¬ 
portation. This cattle trade has everything 
to recommend it over that of the exportation 
of our grain crops. The grain largely eats 
itself up in the carriage. Ten dollars’ worth 
of meat may be sent at the price of $1 in 
corn ; we shall then send concentrated grass 
i or concentrated corn — the manufactured 
goods iustead of the raw material. The agri¬ 
culture of the United States is establishing 
itself on a basis above and beyond panic. 
--M-*- 
WixDHfiLLS are yearly* getting more and 
more into use. They are not only employed 
for raising wuter, to which they are so well 
adapted, but for grinding grain. Mr, W, H. 
Eaton, residing in Iowa, in the Prairie 
Farmer, says of them:—“I purchased a 
geared mill last Winter (a sixteen-foot) for 
the purpose of grinding and pumping. I 
have ground since Jan. 5, 1875, 2,000 bushels 
of corn and cots for the farmers. I have 
ground sixteen bushels of clean corn in fifty- 
eight minutes by the watch, and have ground 
from CO to ISO bushels of coni and oats in teu 
hours. I had all the mill could do until 
Spring work commenced.” 
gfe harden. 
THE farmers; bivouac in the city. 
BUCOLIC AND PEREGRINATING GREEN GROCERS, WHO 
ENCAMP IN TfiE CITY STREETS AT NIGHT AND DE¬ 
CAMP iN THE MORNING. 
Four truck farmers sitting at a table near 
Washington Market talking—only this and 
nothing more. But what a curious phase of 
life their talk reveals ! 
No. 1 says,—“All the grocer-’ boys say 
that there were more truckers in town to¬ 
day than at any time before in this year. 
They stretched for miles — especially up 
Greenwich street and Eighth Avenue. I 
knew it would be so. That’s the reason I 
would not let our folks pick many tomatoes 
yesterday.” 
No. 2.— 11 Just my style. I told the boys 
that everybody* who had anything ripe would 
bring it into town to-day, after the long rain.” 
No. 3.—“I overslept. I meant to be in 
early, but I only caught the 3 o’clock Hamil¬ 
ton ferry boat. But I got just as good a 
stand as if I had come in at 7 o’clock last 
night.” 
No. 2.—“Where is your stand V ’ 
No. 3.—“ Greenwich and Chambers. Done 
first-rate. Left the old man there slinging 
outcabbages lively. What have you got on ?” 
No. 3.—“Corn and cabbages. 1 have been 
cutting corn all the morning. Sold at a dol¬ 
lar so far, but must lot the rest go cheap.” 
No. 1.—“ Is tomat .es going dow n to 25 
next week ? I hope not.” 
No. 3.—“No; because they won’t keep 
this weather. There is a big lot on the vim 
ripe, but they w*ill rot before they can get 
them to market. By the way, is it true that 
Jones has gone up ?” 
No. 1.—“Yes; he must be now 810,000 
behind.” 
No. 3.—“ What’s the matter ?” 
No. 1.—“Well, he lost $4,000 last year farm¬ 
ing. He put in too much stuff. He had 
about 120 acres planted. Then he paid his 
farmer 81,000 a year and his marketman 
$1,000. Besides, he lost a pair of horses every* 
year.” 
No. 4 —“ That comes hard ; losing horses 
is a dead loss. Y'ou must pay cash for them 
and you must have them.” 
The matter of stands in the street, where 
they may retail their produce, is always a 
prominent subject of conversation with these 
men. Their bivouac of a summer’s evening 
along the streets is an interesting sight. All 
through the night they *uorue rumbling 
through the thoroughfares of all the subur¬ 
ban towns that are connected by ferry with 
tills city, waking the echoes and the watch 
dogs. Down from Westchester County where, 
however, they do not abound, they can come 
without paying ferriage. Their favorite 
homes are on the level lands of Long Island 
and New* Jersey. Your genuine trucker un¬ 
derstands -as Bays the author of “ Ten Acres 
Enough”— that truck land is only to be used 
as a receptacle for manure. He seeks espec¬ 
ially three tilings—a level spot, nearness to 
city customers and nearness to city manure 
heaps. 
Observing how much of interest there was 
in the nocturnal trips of these rustic mer¬ 
chants to the city, the writer spent an even¬ 
ing wandering among their haunts near 
Washington Market. As dusk crept over the 
town and the permanent trader's of that re¬ 
gion shut up diop and hied homeward, the 
great market wagons began to creep in from 
the Brooklyn ferries and station themselves 
in t ho now deserted streets, ready for the 
rush of shrewd and eager- buyers, who would 
come as surely as the first streaks of dawn. 
A few of these wagons may enjoy a sort of 
continuous squatter s’ right in some favorite 
localities ; but the most of them when thus 
they come gypsying into town, take up hap¬ 
hazard with the first good station they find. 
Greenwich street sterns to be tho favorite 
haunt of the Long Island truckers, and by 
7 o’clock of tho night alluded to that vener 
able thoroughfare was dotted hero and there 
with wains high piled with com, cabbages, 
potatoes, tomatoes, lima beans, and all the 
other v egecable luxuries cf the season. Some 
drivers were tightening the cords that fast¬ 
ened down the invariable canvus covers 
spread over the load ; some were tying their 
horses to awning posts ; some feeding their 
horses and some gathered in groups, discuss¬ 
ing the vegetable situation. 
Many of thewagdhs seemed quite deserted 
by their drivers ; but any interference with 
the load or vehicle or horses, would have 
speedily brought to view a sturdy protestant 
against such action. 
Conversations were held with several of 
the drivers, care being taken to select the 
more intelligent native Americans. Two 
young men who were feeding their horses 
were first interrogated. It is necessary if 
one would succeed in drawing out such char¬ 
acters, when approaching them thus in the 
darkened streets, to saunter up iu a noncha¬ 
lant, mattcr-of-fnct way, and state your busi¬ 
ness at once, eleariy, acd with un air that 
implies that such a thing as a refusal to an¬ 
swer or other discourtesy, is not for a mo¬ 
ment to be thought of. 
The first question asked after explanation 
of the object was :—“ How long do you farm¬ 
ers keep coming to town at night thus ? I 
suppose some of you run in cabbage and cel¬ 
ery and beets and potatoes all through the 
winter ?” 
“ Yes ; but most of us slack off about No¬ 
vember,” 
“ How is it that the merchants let you 
stand thus in front of their stores ?” 
“They hustle us quick enough when we 
get in their way. The worst are the fellows 
who keep vegetable stores in the ctdlars ; 
being in the same line with us they won’t 
letus near them. We have our rights though, 
and pay the city 25 cents a night.” 
“ 1 suppose some of the merchants like to 
have you iu front of their stores, because 
they think you draw customer? to them ; on 
the principle that the more buyers are at¬ 
tracted to the street the better their own 
chance for sales ?” 
“Yes ; but we generally get away before 
the trade gets fairly going in the stores.” 
“Does each driver stick by his wagon all 
night ?” 
“ No ; sometimes one man will watch sev¬ 
eral wagons ; then the rest can go to the 
| ui; "is if they wish.” 
•* D-/ many of them sleep on their wagons 
this weather ?” 
“Yes, a good many ; some wagons, you 
see, have hoods in front large enough for a 
man to stretch under.” 
“Do you ever bring in any meat on these 
wagons- any poultry for instance ?” 
“ Never anything in the meat lire except 
poultry ; and that only when we happen to 
be overrun with fowls at home.” 
“ How is the poultry business conducted ?” 
“ By men who make a business of going 
round the country gathering it up.” 
“Do the wagons up through here come 
about equally from Long Island and New 
Jersey ?” 
“ No ; the Jersey wagons stick down along 
West and Washington street*. They bring 
in mostly corn, apples and potatoes. We 
here all come from Long Island.” 
“ How far do any of you come ?” 
“ Well ; there’s some come from as far as 
Westbury ; that must be fifteen miles.” 
“You travel, I suppose, about three miles 
an hour ?” 
“ Not so much ; yes, perhaps we do aver¬ 
age that.” 
Then, it takes the Westbury people five 
hours to reach herp. What time do you 
begin gathering vegetables?’ 
“ Those that live far away have to begin 
in the morning. They pick right into the 
wagon?, whenever possible.” 
The next person talked with was a produce 
commission merchant, who was found busy 
at eight o’clock taking into his store barrels 
full of immense muakmelons and a variety 
of fruits and vegetables. His information 
was more varied than that of the drivers, 
though his remarks were evidently biased 
by his connection with the commission busi¬ 
ness. The conversation was as follows after 
the object of the question was explained : 
“ Do you obtain your goods equally from 
Long Island and New Jersey ?” 
“No ; almost wholly from Jersey. There 
are many Jerseymcn who don’t want to be . 
bothered selling their n stuff. So they 
drive in here and leave it with us on sale. 
The Long Islanders are behind the age.” 
“ Are the Jersey people as much inclined 
to send their truck in wagons as the Long 
Islanders?” 
“ Most of those living within fifteen miles 
use wagons.” 
“Do they keep arriving all through the 
night ?” 
“Yes ; we keep a night clerk to receive the 
goods—we get so much. Only a few of us 
do this. The few others in the same line 
trust to their watchmen to take whatever 
chances to come along. We get a great deal 
of what is called “ Hackensack stuff"—such 
as these melons. The huckleberries came 
from a greater distance. The corn in that 
bin came in Jersey wagons.” 
“ Explain if you please, why the merchants 
allow the farmers’ wagons to stand before 
their etores.” 
“ It is an old-established custom, and the 
