Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XV.djvu/461

 SUGAR 445 the manufacture of sirup. It is not definitely settled whether the sugar cane from China (8. Sinense) is really a distinct species, but all others formerly so regarded are now consid- ered as only forms of S. saccharatum, of which each sugar-growing country has several varie- ties. The country or Creole cane, the kind first introduced into the "West Indies and Lou- isiana, and regarded as the original form of the species, was at one time much esteemed, but has greatly deteriorated. The ribbon cane, so called from the yellow and purple stripes upon the stem, is inferior to the following varieties. The Otaheite or Bourbon cane was introduced into Georgia in 1805, and is also a favorite variety in some parts of the West Indies, its stem being thicker than that of the others. It has been supposed that this was a native of Otaheite or Tahiti. The violet or Batavian cane has a purple stem, varying in depth of color with the nature of the soil; its leaves are luxuriant and of a dark green color, and the flowers are purplish ; it has been described as a distinct species, 8. molaceum, but there is nothing to warrant its separation from the ordinary cane. Besides these leading varie- ties, there are the claret, imperial, Mont Blanc, and others, with numerous local subvarieties. The dark-colored canes are found to resist the attacks of disease much better than the light- colored ones, a peculiarity of which there are numerous other illustrations among plants and animals. In none of the sugar-producing coun- tries does the sugar cane ever perfect seeds, and it is quoted as an illustration of the fact that plants which have long been propagated by other methods lose the power of producing seeds. The cane is always propagated by cut- tings, and as the lower portion of the stem is the richest in sugar, the upper and compara- tively worthless portions are used for cuttings, a practice to which the deterioration of varie- ties is ascribed. The details of cultivation vary in different countries ; in the cooler cane regions there is a season when growth must cease, while in others it is continuous ; in some prolonged rains modify the culture, and in others irrigation must supply the needed mois- ture. But wherever it is grown, it must have a fertile soil ; it is a plant which quickly ex- hausts the soil, and unless manure is used, the land is fallowed, or the crop forms part of a rotation, the soil is soon run down. In some sugar-growing countries the ground is prepared by penning cattle upon the fields; in others some crop is grown which, with the weeds, is turned under ; and in the British West Indies fertilizers of various kinds are used. The dis- tance between the rows varies from 2 to 8 ft., the latter distance giving a better crop than closer rows. In the best culture the land is well ploughed, and then thrown up into ridges with the plough, at the desired distance apart; a trench, 3 in. or more deep, is opened upon the top of the ridge, in which the cuttings, about 2 ft. long, are laid in a single and some- times a double row ; the cane is then covered by hoes, or by a cane coverer drawn by horses, which will cover 10 acres in a day. After the shoots appear they are kept clear of weeds until they shade the ground, and prevent all other growth. In dry countries it is customary to " trash " the cane when it gains a sufficient size ; the lower leaves are broken off and laid upon the earth to prevent evaporation. The shoots produced the first year from the cut- tings are called "plant canes;" it is known to have attained its full growth by "arrowing;" the lower joints are usually about 3 in. long, but above they increase in length while they diminish in diameter and are much less rich in sugar, until finally a long joint (in tropical countries 6 or 8 ft. long) shoots up, which if permitted would bear the flower cluster ; this shoot is termed the " arrow," and its appear- ance indicates that the cane should be topped, or cut up at once, else the accumulated sugar in the juices of the plant would be expended in the production of flowers. In climates where the season is short the cane does not arrow, and the time for cutting is governed by the probable appearance of frost. In Louisiana it begins to ripen at the bottom in August; as each joint ripens the leaf belonging to it withers, and when it is time to harvest the upper part of the cane is cut back to a joint upon which the leaf is dry, and the crop is cut off close to the ground ; if frost is apprehended, the cane is " mattressed," the product of three rows being so laid together that the leaves of one armful will cover the buts of the prece- ding ; being thus thatched, the canes are pro- tected from frost and will keep in this state for several weeks without injury. The second year after planting numerous shoots start up from the old plants; these are called "rat- toons" (Fr. rejetons), and the crop is there- after a rattoon crop, the value of which, though less than that of the plant cane, depends upon the original fertility of the soil, or the manner in which this has been maintained. In Louisi- ana but one or two rattoon crops are taken, requiring a replanting every second or third year ; while in some of the West Indies the plantation lasts from six to ten years, and in the East even longer ; but when thus long continued, the yield is small and the impov- erishment of the soil correspondingly great. Manufacture of Cane Sugar. As soon as the canes are cut they are ground in a mill. There are many forms of mills, and those in use in the East Indies from the earliest times are exceedingly rude, slow, and inefficient, and very rude mills are still used by small planters in the West Indies ; but powerful mills driven by steam are employed upon the larger estates, the crushing apparatus usual- ly consisting of three heavy cast-iron rollers. The canes are usually passed twice through the mill. About two thirds of all the juice is ex- tracted, and the crude liquor contains, besides sugar, woody fibre, soluble salts, albumen,