BEET. There are two distinct species of beet commonly cultivated, each containing several varieties, the one called Beta cicla, which produces succulent leaves only, the other Beta rulgaris, distinguished by its large fleshy root. The cicla is chiefly cultivated in gardens as a culinary vegetable, and forms one of the principal vegetables used by agri eultural labourers and small occupiers of land in many parts of Germany, France, and Swit zerland. The second species, the Beta Intl yaris, br Beet-Root, has been long cultivated, especially that variety called the red beet, which, when boiled and sliced, makes such an excellent addition to salads.
The common field-beet for cattle, or mangel ucrzel, which has been long known in Ger many, was introduced into England at the latter end of the last century. There are few crops-so valuable for winter food for cattle as the beet; SWediSh turnips exceed them in the quantity of nourishment, weight for weight, but on good light soils the produce of the beet per acre is much greater. The white beet has been chiefly cultivated for the extraction of sugar from its juice. It is smaller than the mangel-wurzel, and more compact, and ap pears in its texture to be more like the Swe dish turnip. The beet-root sugar manufacture sprang up in France in consequence of Bona parte's scheme for destroying the colonial pros perity of GreatBritain by excludingBritish colo nial produce: It having been found that from the juice of the beet-root a crystallizable sugar could be obtained, he encouraged the estab lishment of the manufacture by every advan tage which monopoly and premiums could give it. According to Chaptal, the process is thus conducted. The roots, after being
cleansed by washing and scraping, are rasped and reduced to a pulp in a rasping machine. When ground, the pulp is powerfully squeezed by a press, in canvass bags, to expel the juice, which is received in a copper. In this copper the beet-juice is heated to about 178° Fah. ; lime-water is then added, and stirred up with it. Having been mixed with animal charcoal it is made to boil, by which both a scum and a sediment are separated from it. The clear liquor is drawn off, and is evaporated in shal low vessels ; the process is continued till the juice becomes a thick syrup, which is then strained through a linen hag. The syrup is again boiled and skimmed and then trans ferred to a cooler, where it remains far a short time. It is next transferred to sugar moulds, and treated pretty much in the same way as the sugar-cane juice, described under SUGAR.
The beet-root sugar manufacture is said to be difficult to manage well ; but the sugar when produced is equal to cane-sugar. Five tons of clean roots produce about 4i cwt. of coarse sugar, which give about 160 lbs. of double-refined sugar, and 60 lbs. of inferior lump sugar. There is also a quantity of mo lasses, fitted to yield spirit, and the pressed refuse, which is good food for sheep and cattle. As a question of commercial enterprise, how ever, the manufacture of sugar frcm beet is not found profitable, wherever colonial cane sugar is admitted at a reasonable rate of duty. There are beet-root sugar manufactories in Russia, France, Prussia, and many of the other German States.