216 plant and organic chemistry 
of sugar per capita, doubtless rival England with her 67 lbs. 
per capita, and her marmalade and jelly consumption. 
Sorghum saccharatum belongs, botanically, to the Graminece, 
or grasses, a class of plants characterized chemically by their 
large percentage of sugars, wax, and silica. The quantity 
of silica in sorghum is small; according to Dr. Goessmann, 
is .0015 per cent. 
The principal end for the cultivation of sorghum is for 
sugar and molasses manufacture. Uses are still to be found 
for many of the by-products. The profitable utilization of 
these products would assist in lessening the cost of sugar 
manufacture. 
The disposition of the bagasse is a question of great econo¬ 
mic importance. “ Three uses appear to be possible, —No. 1 
for paper stock; No. 2 for manure; No. 3 for fuel.” 1 
“The great object sought in France in the cultivation of 
this plant is the juice contained in its stalks, which furnishes 
three important products — namely, sugar, which is identi¬ 
cal with that of cane; alcohol; and a fermented drink analo¬ 
gous to cider or champagne. The chaff or pellicles which cover 
the seeds is used for dyeing silk various permanent shades of 
red.” 2 
The bagasse is a valuable fodder, being sweeter than ordi¬ 
nary grasses and sufficiently nutritious. The leaves of the 
plant, removed in stripping the stalks, are much relished by 
stock. The leaves of the sorghum have a higher nutritive 
ratio than our grain or hay, on account of the large percent¬ 
ages of sugar and albumen they contain. 3 The seeds furnish 
good food for farm animals. Proximate analyses show that 
this seed differs but little in composition from the other cereals, 
and closely resembles corn. It has been reported that sorghum 
seeds contain considerable tannin, which makes them less 
valuable as food. It is probable that the tannin is not present 
in the seeds themselves, at least of many varieties, but in the 
hulls which inclose these seeds. 
1 Bui. No. 14, Div. oj Chem. Dept, of Agr., p. 56. 
2 Chinese Sugar Cane and Sugar Making, by Charles F. Stansbury. N. Y., 
i g 57- 
3 Investigation of Sorghum, by Collier. Dept, of Agr., 1883. 
