Cornstalk Sugar. At a recent meeting of the American Agri. cultural Association in New York city, Dr. Peter Collier, chemist of the Department of Agriculture at Washington, stated that during the past year there have been examinations made of thirty eight varieties of sorghum grown in and received from fourteen different States, and from nine varieties of Indian corn. The re sults of analyses made, 1,318 in all of the sorghums, showed them to yield, on an average, 1,692 pounds of available sugar. From four of these varieties the sugar was extracted in quantity and at a rate of fully 2,000 pounds per acre. As to cornstalks the re sults were most satisfactory, but the experiments were not so numerous as with sorghum. An average of twenty-six analyses of the nine varieties examined showed them to contain in their juice an amount of sugar greater in quantity than the average of the best thirty specimens of the sixty specimens of sugar beets grown in different parts of the country. After a large crop of ripe corn had been gathered, the stalks yielded at the rate of over 900 pounds of sugar to the acre, and there appears no reason to doubt that this result could be obtained upon a large scale.
Tares on Packages. The close selling prices of sugar make the dealer doubly jealous with regard to the tares on the barrels, and justly so since its sale is a losing one throughout. The re finers use kiln dried barrels which they weigh with the greatest accuracy, but as every subseqent exposure to the air or to damp ness tends to swell the weight again the retailer is the loser in the end. The whole question of sugar needs the most thorough over hauling by the trade, and individual resistance to unjust tares and individual resolution to sell at a profit will go far toward rectify.
ing the present ridiculous position of this expensive and profitless article in a grocer's stock.
The question of profit. Every grocer knows that sugar is the main item of his stock and that nine out of ten have sold it at a loss for years. It is als) true that nine out of ten have failed or kept poor while they did it. We have carefully investigated the matter and can assure the trade that many grocers always sell sugar at a profit and that they are the most successful men in the trade. It makes no difference about what others do—other peo ple cheat and give false weight and sell poor goods and fail—shall the rest follow that example? If a grocer will deal honestly, give good measure and choice goods, and charge a profit on his sugars without saying a word about his neighbors, he will make quick strides toward success. A few years ago the agitation of the sugar question commenced. The New England Grocer took it up, the PHILADELPHIA GROCER followed with a series of articles some of which appear in the end of this volume—the effect was marked and to day in many cities and towns of tho II. S., sugar is sold at a profit and the price is fixed by mutual consent and firmly adhered to. If the whole trade will only believe that it can be done universally—will only wake up to the fact that it is being done successfully in many places the reform will quickly gain ground. For additional suggestions on this most important topic we refer to the series of articles in the end of this volume.