SUG′AR. C12H22O11. Syn. Cane sugar; Saccharum, L.; Sucre, Fr. This well-known and most useful substance is found in the juice of many of the canes or grasses, in the sap of several forest trees, and in the roots of various plants. In tropical climates it is extracted from the sugar-cane (Saccharum officinarum), in China from the sweet sorgho (Sorghum saccharatum), in North America from the sugar-maple (Acer saccharinum), and in France, Germany, Russia, and Belgium, from white beet-root (Beta vulgaris, var. alba).
Until of late years the ordinary sugar consumed in this country was that chiefly sent from the West Indian Islands, South America, the Mauritius, &c., and was the produce of the sugar cane; recently, however, large and increasing quantities of beet-root sugar have found their way into the English markets from the Continental factories.
The Saccharum officinarum, of which there are several varieties, the sugar-cane ranges in height from 6 to 15 feet, and in diameter from 1 to 2 inches. In order to obtain the saccharine juice contained in it, the cane, stripped of its leaves, is cut just before the commencement of inflorescence, the period in which it is richest in juice. As this sap or juice is found to abound most in sugar, when taken from the lower part of the stem, the cane is cut off nearly close to the ground.
The stump which remains develops into a fresh plant, and one plant thus treated will last several years, not, however, without a gradual diminution in the size of the successive crops.
In South America and the West Indies a variety known as the Otaheita cane is extensively cultivated, since it is very productive and yields a large amount of juice.
The annual average produce in raw sugar for a hectare (about 21⁄4 English statute acres) of land is in
| Martinique | 2000 | kilos.[201] |
| Guadaloupe | 3400 | ” |
| Mauritius | 4000 | ” |
| Brazil | 6000 | ” |
[201] A kilo = 2·2046 lbs.
Sugar-cane growing in the below-mentioned places has, according to the analysis of the three chemists whose names are appended, the following composition:—
| (a.) | (b.) | (c.) | |
| Péligot. | Dupuy. | Icery. | |
| Sugar | 18·0 | 17·8 | 20·0 |
| Water | 72·1 | 72·0 | 69·0 |
| Cellulose | 9·9 | 9·8 | 10·0 |
| Salts | — | 0·4 | 0·7-1·2 |