SUGAR, MANUFACTURE OF. Cane sugar is found in varying quantities in many plants. but sugar-cane (icceeliaruni offieinarnin). the sugar beet (Beta the sugar maple (Acci Naccharinum), and various species of palms are its only commercially important sources. (See table.) At one time the United States Department of Agriculture experimented with sorghum (Sorghum rutgarc), which seemed a promising source of cane sugar. but though several varieties containing from 10 to 20 per cent.. of cane sugar were produced by seed selection, sorghum has never been more than locally important as a source of syrup, because great difficulty has been experienced in puri fying the juice by any known process except that recommended by the department. a pro cess which failed to attract investors, because alcohol, its principal factor, was subject to unfavorable revenue regulations. Several
sorghum sugar factories were erected in Kansas and elsewhere about 1S90• but development failed to pass the experimental stage. In 18S9 the production of syrup was 24.235.219 gallons; in 1899, 16,972,783 gallons. (See Sonnum.) Ex pe•intentully, small quantities of cane sugar have been made from corn stalks and from melons. Owing to the presence of impurities, including saccharine substances other than cane sugar. raw sugars obtained from the various plants men tioned differ greatly in flavor, but, contrary to popular belief, the granulated or refined sugar derived from them differs not at all in sweeten ing power, since iteconsists of more than 99 per cent, of cane sugar and less than 1 per cent. of impurities including mineral matter, water, etc.