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Sugar from beets
18~
TtIl~ ~'I~ANKLIN JOUKNAL AI~D
Self acting Piano Po~te. The Dublin Journal ~ives a long notice of the mechanism of an ingenious instrument of this kind, stating that it wrforms, with extraordinary e ~ c t , so ne of toe most classical and difficult musie~ and that great difficulties have been surmounted by the inventors. It combines the utmost rapidit7 and brilliancy with distinctness and neatness, and they venture to afl]rm, that there are few players of the piano-fiwte that can equal it, in tilese qualilies. Its harmony is necessarily more full than can b~' p,'oduced by clght fingers, the elements of chords ha.~ing no other ll,rd~ lhan the cxteut of i~s scale. The instrument not only plays the usual piano-forte part of a piece, but takes in also, the subject of some parts of the score ; its crescendo and di~zlnuendo are graduated with more precision thall can be effected by means not mehanical, the time cannot be otherwise than perlhctly equable throughout, yet Where pathos is to be expressed, the time can be retarded or accelerated, in any degree. In short, this admirable instrument manifests all the capabilities of a living performer, and superadds qualities derivable only fl-om mechanical a g e n c y . ~ T h e mechanism is simple; it consists of a cylinder which turns on its axis, and is acted on by a coiled spring, and regulated by a t t y wheel. On the surface of the cvlimter, a proper art:-angement of brass pins is tbrmed, each of which~ in passin~ under a rank of levers, elevates one end of the required lever, and depresses the other. The pressed end, pulls down with it a slender rod, which is connected by a slide with the tail e t a bent lever. on the further eml of which is the hammer which strikes the string.-The slides ca~ be shifted further fl-om, or nearer to, the axis, on which the ham,her lever turns, and thus the stroke of the hammt~r is made fi'~eblc, or strong, to any required degree. When wound up, the instru,t~cnt will c onlinue to play tbr a considerable time; and it is provided with a set of" keys like the ordinary piano-fbrte, so that a person may ace*m~l~any the instrument, or pl'~y a duet with it, the elt~ct of which is said to be beautiful. Re,harks b~ the Editor.~That barrel piano ['ortes, may as well be made, as barrel organs, every mechanisian weli knows, and that they will hold the same comparative rank, no musician need be infi)rmed. The organist, however, will never wish for a barrel organ, nor the piano forte player, employ an automaton instrument, unless they can be made to express all the taste, feeling and variety of which keye~t instruments are capable, however mecbanically correct theymay be in their execution. In fact, such instruments, although they may serve to show the consummate skill of the workman, ought ne;er t d b e adnfitted as improvements, so far as the science of music is concerned, and will never be highly valued, excepting by those who cannot play. &~garf,'om Beets. The July number of the I.ondon Journal of Science and tile Arts, contains an interesting article, on the manufacture of Sugar, from Beet Root. W e extract, from that artiele~ the lbllowing information.
AMERICAN MECHANICS~ MAGAZINE.
|89'
" M r . Dubrunfaut, (a French writer) states, that there are actually i n I~rance " at present no less than 100 manufacturers of beet-root sugar, which may, he states, furnish altogether from four to five million pounds of raw sugar, (~000 to ~500 tons) which is not a twen' tieth part of the consumption of France. The largest manufacturers generally produce 40 to 50 tons per annum~ some ~ew more ; but the average, quantity,from his statement, appears to be only 9.0 to ~5 tons per annmn. He says the manu[~cturers are increasing in number; but if these data be correct, we are led to wonder why the manufacture has not been extended much more considerably in France, for in that country tile duty on imported raw sugar is about 15s. 5d. per cent., or rather more than 1~d.'per pound, fl'om which duty the mak-er~ ofbeet-rootsugar are exempted ; if they however, can produce their stl" gar at 5~d. or 3½d. per lb., the manut~tcture must be a very profitable on% as the sellin~ prices are actually 4,[d. to 5d. per lb. duty paid, and the article canno~ be produced in the West lndie's, and soltl ~luty paid in France, for less. Dubrunfaut acknowledges thi's, and states it as a fact, which ought to encourage the extension of the beet-root manufacture. As, however, it has now been carried on in France to a greater or less extent, fiw above ten years, it seems reasonable to conclude that it does not yiehl so great a profit as to encourage its great extension, in preference to othe," commodities, and, consequently, that it cannot be produced (according to the mode of producing ft now adopted) so cheap as is represented by Dubrunfaut. " I n England the beet-sugar 1 believe, could be produced nearly as cheap as in Fra,ce, weight for Weight, and as the cost of fltel for tile manufacture wouhl be much less, (in France it amounts to about {part of the whole cost of the manufacture, including the price of the roots,) it might be supposed that it would be a profitable manufacture; the more so, as the sugar imported from the British West India colo. nies, pays a duty of very near Sd. per lb. But it is probable the root would be much more ex~ensive in working, fromits greater bulk, and less, p roductive,...of su gar, from the j ' u i c e not bein.g so well matured, yb the sun, as ~t is m France. I beheve the experiment has not been tried. " I n Germany anti other countries of Europe. the duties on imported sugar, a,'e so small, that it is probable this-manufacture will not be attempted."
Vermont Gohl. A beautiful piece of native gold, weighing nearly ten ounces, was latel found in the town of Newfane, Vermont. It was picked up b y a bo y near a small brook, and was studded with crystals of quartZ. W'e have been favoured by Mr. French of this city, with the perusal of a letter from a fl'iend in that place, fl'om which we extract the following particulars. " A mass of native gold, weighing nearly ten ounces, has been found in this village, upon the |'arm of Samuel In.gram. In its general appearance, it strikingly resembles the INorth
TtIl~ ~'I~ANKLIN JOUKNAL AI~D
Self acting Piano Po~te. The Dublin Journal ~ives a long notice of the mechanism of an ingenious instrument of this kind, stating that it wrforms, with extraordinary e ~ c t , so ne of toe most classical and difficult musie~ and that great difficulties have been surmounted by the inventors. It combines the utmost rapidit7 and brilliancy with distinctness and neatness, and they venture to afl]rm, that there are few players of the piano-fiwte that can equal it, in tilese qualilies. Its harmony is necessarily more full than can b~' p,'oduced by clght fingers, the elements of chords ha.~ing no other ll,rd~ lhan the cxteut of i~s scale. The instrument not only plays the usual piano-forte part of a piece, but takes in also, the subject of some parts of the score ; its crescendo and di~zlnuendo are graduated with more precision thall can be effected by means not mehanical, the time cannot be otherwise than perlhctly equable throughout, yet Where pathos is to be expressed, the time can be retarded or accelerated, in any degree. In short, this admirable instrument manifests all the capabilities of a living performer, and superadds qualities derivable only fl-om mechanical a g e n c y . ~ T h e mechanism is simple; it consists of a cylinder which turns on its axis, and is acted on by a coiled spring, and regulated by a t t y wheel. On the surface of the cvlimter, a proper art:-angement of brass pins is tbrmed, each of which~ in passin~ under a rank of levers, elevates one end of the required lever, and depresses the other. The pressed end, pulls down with it a slender rod, which is connected by a slide with the tail e t a bent lever. on the further eml of which is the hammer which strikes the string.-The slides ca~ be shifted further fl-om, or nearer to, the axis, on which the ham,her lever turns, and thus the stroke of the hammt~r is made fi'~eblc, or strong, to any required degree. When wound up, the instru,t~cnt will c onlinue to play tbr a considerable time; and it is provided with a set of" keys like the ordinary piano-fbrte, so that a person may ace*m~l~any the instrument, or pl'~y a duet with it, the elt~ct of which is said to be beautiful. Re,harks b~ the Editor.~That barrel piano ['ortes, may as well be made, as barrel organs, every mechanisian weli knows, and that they will hold the same comparative rank, no musician need be infi)rmed. The organist, however, will never wish for a barrel organ, nor the piano forte player, employ an automaton instrument, unless they can be made to express all the taste, feeling and variety of which keye~t instruments are capable, however mecbanically correct theymay be in their execution. In fact, such instruments, although they may serve to show the consummate skill of the workman, ought ne;er t d b e adnfitted as improvements, so far as the science of music is concerned, and will never be highly valued, excepting by those who cannot play. &~garf,'om Beets. The July number of the I.ondon Journal of Science and tile Arts, contains an interesting article, on the manufacture of Sugar, from Beet Root. W e extract, from that artiele~ the lbllowing information.
AMERICAN MECHANICS~ MAGAZINE.
|89'
" M r . Dubrunfaut, (a French writer) states, that there are actually i n I~rance " at present no less than 100 manufacturers of beet-root sugar, which may, he states, furnish altogether from four to five million pounds of raw sugar, (~000 to ~500 tons) which is not a twen' tieth part of the consumption of France. The largest manufacturers generally produce 40 to 50 tons per annum~ some ~ew more ; but the average, quantity,from his statement, appears to be only 9.0 to ~5 tons per annmn. He says the manu[~cturers are increasing in number; but if these data be correct, we are led to wonder why the manufacture has not been extended much more considerably in France, for in that country tile duty on imported raw sugar is about 15s. 5d. per cent., or rather more than 1~d.'per pound, fl'om which duty the mak-er~ ofbeet-rootsugar are exempted ; if they however, can produce their stl" gar at 5~d. or 3½d. per lb., the manut~tcture must be a very profitable on% as the sellin~ prices are actually 4,[d. to 5d. per lb. duty paid, and the article canno~ be produced in the West lndie's, and soltl ~luty paid in France, for less. Dubrunfaut acknowledges thi's, and states it as a fact, which ought to encourage the extension of the beet-root manufacture. As, however, it has now been carried on in France to a greater or less extent, fiw above ten years, it seems reasonable to conclude that it does not yiehl so great a profit as to encourage its great extension, in preference to othe," commodities, and, consequently, that it cannot be produced (according to the mode of producing ft now adopted) so cheap as is represented by Dubrunfaut. " I n England the beet-sugar 1 believe, could be produced nearly as cheap as in Fra,ce, weight for Weight, and as the cost of fltel for tile manufacture wouhl be much less, (in France it amounts to about {part of the whole cost of the manufacture, including the price of the roots,) it might be supposed that it would be a profitable manufacture; the more so, as the sugar imported from the British West India colo. nies, pays a duty of very near Sd. per lb. But it is probable the root would be much more ex~ensive in working, fromits greater bulk, and less, p roductive,...of su gar, from the j ' u i c e not bein.g so well matured, yb the sun, as ~t is m France. I beheve the experiment has not been tried. " I n Germany anti other countries of Europe. the duties on imported sugar, a,'e so small, that it is probable this-manufacture will not be attempted."
Vermont Gohl. A beautiful piece of native gold, weighing nearly ten ounces, was latel found in the town of Newfane, Vermont. It was picked up b y a bo y near a small brook, and was studded with crystals of quartZ. W'e have been favoured by Mr. French of this city, with the perusal of a letter from a fl'iend in that place, fl'om which we extract the following particulars. " A mass of native gold, weighing nearly ten ounces, has been found in this village, upon the |'arm of Samuel In.gram. In its general appearance, it strikingly resembles the INorth