A sweet, agreeable substance, manufactured chiefly from the Sugar Cane,[1] a native of the East and West Indies, South America and the South Sea Islands; it is much cultivated in all tropical countries. The earliest authentic accounts of sugar, are about the time of the Crusades,[2] when it appears to have been purchased from the Saracens, and imported into Europe. [Footnote 1: Most of the sugar in Europe is made from beets.] [Footnote 2: See Chapter XVII., article Navigation.] _Authentic_, true, certain. _Crusades_, holy wars. _Saracens_, Turks or Arabs. How is it prepared? The canes are crushed between large rollers in a mill, and the juice collected into a large vessel placed to receive it; it is then boiled, and placed in pans to cool, when it becomes imperfectly crystallized, in which state we use it. This is called raw or soft sugar: loaf sugar, or the hard white sugar, is the raw brown sugar, prepared by refining it till all foreign matter is removed. Is the Sugar Cane the only vegetable that produces Sugar? All vegetables contain more or less sugar, but the plant in which it most abounds is the sugar-cane. In the United States, a large quantity of sugar is prepared from the sap of the Sugar Maple Tree. The trees are tapped at the proper season by a cut being made in the bark, and the juice runs into a vessel placed to receive it; it is then prepared in the same manner as the juice of the sugar cane. What is Sugar Candy? Sugar purified and crystallized. What is Barley Sugar? Sugar boiled till it is brittle, and cast on a stone anointed with oil of sweet almonds, and then formed into twisted sticks. What is Sago? A substance prepared from the pith of the Sago Palm, which grows naturally in various parts of Africa and the Indies. The pith, which is even eatable in its natural state, is taken from the trunk of the tree, and thrown into a vessel placed over a horse-hair sieve; water is then thrown over the mass, and the finer parts of the pith pass through the sieve; the liquor thus obtained is left to settle. The clear liquor is then drawn off, and what remains is formed into grains by being passed through metal dishes, with numerous small holes; it is next dried by the action of heat, and in this state it is exported. The Sago Palm also produces sugar. What is Millet, and in what countries does it grow? Millet is an esculent grain, originally brought from the Eastern countries. It is cultivated in many parts of Europe, but most extensively in Egypt, Syria, China, and Hindostan, whence we are furnished with it, it being rarely cultivated among us, except as a curiosity. _Esculent_, good for food. For what is Millet used? It is in great request amongst the Germans for puddings; for which it is sometimes used amongst us. The Italians make loaves and cakes of it. What is Ginger?