"There are two distinct and separate methods of preparing the tobacco ground: the one is applicable to the preparation of new and uncultivated lands, such as are in a state of nature, and require to be cleared of the heavy timber and other productions with which Providence has stocked them; and the other method is designed to meliorate and revive lands of good foundation, which have been heretofore cultivated, and, in some measure, exhausted by the calls of agriculture and evaporation.

"The process of preparing new lands begins as early in the winter as the housing and managing the antecedent crop will permit, by grabbing the undergrowth with a mattock; felling the timber with a poll-axe;[73] lopping off the tops, and cutting the bodies into lengths of about eleven feet, which is about the customary length of an American fence rail, in what is called a worm or panel fence.[74] During this part of the process the negro women, boys, and weaker laborers, are employed in piling or throwing the brush-wood, roots, and small wood, into heaps to be burned; and after such logs or stocks are selected as are suitable to be malled into rails, make clapboards, or answer for other more particular occasions of the planter, the remaining logs are rolled into heaps by means of hand-spikes and skids; but the Pennsylvania and German farmers, who are more conversant with animal powers than the Virginians, save much of this labor by the use of a pair of horses with a half sledge, or a pair of truck wheels.

[Footnote 73: This is a short, thick, heavy-headed axe, of a somewhat oblong shape, with which the Americans make great dispatch. They treat the English poll-axe with great contempt, and always work it over again as old iron before they deem it fit for their use.]

[Footnote 74: The worm or panel fence, originally of Virginia, consists of logs or malled rails from about four to six or eight inches thick and eleven feet in length. A good fence consists of ten rails and a rider. It is called a worm fence from the zigzag manner of its construction.]

"The burning of this brush-wood, and the log piles, is a business for all hands after working hours; and as nightly revels are peculiar to the African constitution, this part of the labor proves often a very late employment, which affords many scenes of rustic mirth. When this process has cleared the land of its various natural incumbrances (to attain which end is very expensive and laborious), the next part of the process is that of the hoe; for the plough is an implement which is rarely used in new lands when they are either designed for tobacco or meadow. There are three kinds of the hoe which are applied to this tillage: the first is what is termed the sprouting hoe, which is a smaller species of mattock that serves to break up any particular hard part of the ground, to grub up any smaller sized grubs which the mattock or grubbing hoe may have omitted, to remove small stones and other partial impediments to the next process. The narrow or hilling hoe follows the operation of the sprouting hoe. It is generally from six to eight inches wide, and ten or twelve in the length of the blade, according to the strength of the person who is to use it; the blade is thin, and by means of a movable wedge which is driven into the eye of the hoe, it can be set more or less digging (as it is termed), that is, on a greater or less angle with the helve, at pleasure. In this respect there are few instances where the American blacksmith is not employed to alter the eye of an English-made hoe before it is fit for use; the industrious and truly useful merchants of Glasgow have paid more minute attention to this circumstance.



"The use of this hoe is to break up the ground and throw it into shape; which is done by chopping the clods until they are sufficiently fine, and then drawing the earth round the foot until it forms a heap round the projected leg of the laborer like a mole hill, and nearly as high as the knee; he then draws out his foot, flattens the top of the hill by a dab with the flat part of the hoe, and advances forward to the next hill in the same manner, until the whole piece of ground is prepared. The center of these hills are in this manner guessed by the eye; and in most instances they approach near to lines of four feet one way, and three feet the other. The planter always endeavors to time this operation so as to tally with the growth of his plants, so that he may be certain by this means to pitch his crop within season.

"The third kind of hoe is the broad or weeding hoe. This is made use of during the cultivation of the crop, to keep it clean from the weeds. It is wide upon the edge, say from ten inches to a foot, or more; of thinner substance than the hilling hoe, not near so deep in the blade, and the eye is formed more bent and shelving than the latter, so that it can be set upon a more acute angle upon the helve at pleasure, by removing the wedge."

The manner of preparing the soil in Virginia at the present time is thus described by a Virginia planter:—

"The crop usually, grown in Virginia is divided into three classes, viz.:—Shipping, Sun-cured Fillers, and Bright Coal-cured Wrappers and Smokers. The first may be grown on any good soil, upland or alluvial: the latter two on dry, well-drained upland only. All require thorough preparation of the soil to insure good crops. The work first necessary for this crop is to burn a sufficiency of plant land. To prepare the land for transplanting, put the land in full tilth, then mark off with a shovel, plow furrows three feet to three feet four inches apart, and into these furrows sow the fertilizers; then with turning plows, bed the land on these furrows, and to facilitate the hilling, cross these beds three feet apart with furrows by a shovel plow, and the hills are made, except to pat them with hoes. Hilly lands will seldom admit of this cross-plowing, and the beds must be chopped into hills. On new ground apply the fertilizers broadcast. It acts well, and for fine yellow pays better on new grounds than any other lands. The culture is essentially the same for all classes of tobacco. Stir the land up as often as necessary to promote a rapid growth of the plants, and to keep down grass and weeds. 'Shipping' tobacco may be plowed later and worked longer than 'fine yellow.' For 'coal-curing' sacrifice pounds for color."

The next operation to be performed on the tobacco farm or plantation is

TRANSPLANTING.



As soon as four or five leaves on a plant about the size of a dollar have appeared, they are large enough to transplant. Take the plants up with care, sprinkling with water and keeping covered. In taking them up, the earth may be allowed to remain on the roots, or shaken off, at the option of the grower. As a general rule, however, the earth should remain rather than be shaken off. Remove to the field and drop one at each hill, and where the plants are small, two. A common custom is to "set" every tenth or twelfth hill with two plants. This is a good plan, as they are frequently needed during hoeing time to "fill in." If holes have not been made, insert the first two fingers, making a hole large enough for the roots to remain in an easy and natural position. Press the earth gently around the plant if the soil is moist, but if dry, more firmly. See that the plant stands in an upright position. If dry after "setting" the plants, water them, and if a protracted drought follows, cover them up with grass or hay dipped in water; remove, however, in a day or two.[75] Plaster may also be used to advantage, as it keeps the hill moist, besides fertilizing the plant; put a little just around the plants. In taking up from the bed select large ones, leaving the smaller ones to grow. Transplanting should commence as early as possible that this result may follow.

[Footnote 75: Walker says of tobacco culture in Colombia (South America):—"It is advisable to cover the plant with a banana leaf, or something similar: by this means the tobacco is protected from the heat of the sun, and from the heavy rains, which would not prove less prejudicial."]



Plants with large broad leaves are considered the best, those that grow tall and "spindling" or "long shank" plants, as they are called at the South, are rejected and should not be set out when others that are more "stocky" can be obtained. Avoid, however, setting too large plants, as they are not as apt to live as smaller ones. Transplanting should be done as fast as possible, that the tobacco field may present an even appearance and be ready to harvest at one time. If the plants are to grow and ripen evenly, the transplanting should be finished in a week or two from the time of the first setting. This can generally be done unless plants are very scarce, when circumstances, beyond the growers' control, often make the field give apparent evidence of want of care, although the real trouble is a want of plants.

"It may be necessary to water the plants once or twice after transplanting; this in a measure will depend upon the season."

Tatham in his Essay on the Culture and Commerce of Tobacco, (London 1800,) gives an account of the manner of transplanting in Virginia at that period. Under the head of

"THE SEASON FOR PLANTING,"

he says:

"The term, 'season for planting,' signifies a shower of rain, of sufficient quantity to wet the earth to a degree of moisture which may render it safe to draw the young plants from the plant bed, and transplant them into the hills which are prepared for them in the field, as described under the last head; and these seasons generally commence in April, and terminate with what is termed the long season in May; which (to make use of an Irishism), very frequently happens in June; and is the opportunity which the planter finds himself necessitated to seize with eagerness for the pitching of his crop: a term which comprehends the ultimate opportunity which the spring will afford him, for planting a quantity equal to the capacity of the collective power of his laborers when applied in cultivation. By the time which these seasons approach, nature has so ordered vegetation, that the weather has generally enabled the plants, (if duly sheltered from the spring frosts, a circumstance to which a planter should always be attentive in selecting his plant patch,) to shoot forward in sufficient strength to bear the vicissitude of transplantation.

"They are supposed to be equal to meet the imposition of this task, when the leaves are about the size of a dollar; but this is more generally the minor magnitude of the leaves; and some will be of course about three or four times that medium dimension. Thus, when a good shower or season happens at this period of the year, and the field and plants are equally ready for the intended union, the planter hurries to the plant bed, disregarding the teeming element, which is doomed to wet his skin, from the view of a bountiful harvest, and having carefully drawn the largest sizable plants, he proceeds to the next operation, (that) of planting.

"The office of planting the tobacco, is performed by two or more persons, in the following manner: The first person bears, suspended upon one arm, a large basket full of the plants, which have just been drawn and brought from the plant bed to the field, without waiting for an intermission of the shower, although it should rain ever so heavily; such an opportunity indeed, instead of being shunned, is eagerly sought after, and is considered to be the sure and certain means of laying a good foundation, which cherishes the hope of a bounteous return. The person who bears the basket, proceeds thus by rows from hill to hill; and upon each hill he takes care to drop one of his plants. Those who follow make a hole in the center of each hill with their fingers, and having adjusted the tobacco plant in its natural position, they knead the earth round the root with their hands, until it is of a sufficient consistency to sustain the plant against wind and weather. In this condition they leave the field for a few days, until the plants shall have formed their radifications; and where any of them shall have casually perished, the ground is followed over again by successive replantings, until the crop is rendered complete."

In tropical regions, the plants are transplanted as well in summer and fall as in the spring, but more frequently in the early autumn. In Mexico, transplanting is performed from August till November. In Persia, the tobacco plants are "transplanted on the tops of ridges in a ground trenched so as to retain water. When the plants are thirty to forty inches high, the leaves vary from three to fifteen inches in length, when the buds are ready to be pinched off; the leaves increase in size until August and September, when they have attained their growth." In Turkey "when the young plants are about six inches in height they are removed from the small beds and planted in fields like cabbages in this country, and are then left to nature to develop them to a height of from three to four feet; three leaves, however, are removed from each plant to assist its growth."



A year or two since, a machine was invented and offered to the growers of the Connecticut valley, called a transplanter, of which we here give an engraving. The inventor claimed that the "American Transplanter" could do the work of several men and do it equally well. It rolls along the ridge something like a wheelbarrow, marking the hills with a sharp joint in the wheel and setting the plants as they are dropped into the receptacles at the top.

The tobacco plant, like most of the vegetable products, has many and varied foes. Not only is it most easily affected and damaged by wind and hail, but it seems to be the especial favorite of the insect world, who, like man, love the taste of the plant. The first of them "puts in an appearance" immediately after transplanting, which necessitates the performance of what is known to all growers of the plant as

WORMING.



There are two kinds of worms that prey upon the plants; viz: the "cut worm"[76] and the green or "horn worm." The first commences its work of destruction in a few hours after transplanting in the field. During the night it begins by eating off the small or central leaves called by the grower the "chit," and often so effectually as to destroy the plant. The time chosen by the planter to find these pests of the tobacco field is early in the morning, when they can be found nearer the surface than later in the day. Remove the earth around the roots of the plants, where the worm will generally be found. Occasionally they are found farther from the hill. If they are numerous, the field should be "wormed" every morning, or at least every other day, which labor will be rewarded with a choice collection of primitive tobacco chewers. Sometimes the worms are very small and difficult to find, while at other times more are found than are required for the growth and development of the plants. As soon as they disappear they make way for the "horn worm" who now takes his turn at a "chaw." By some the cut worm is considered the most dangerous foe; as it often destroys the plant, while the other injures the leaf without endangering the plant. A little plaster sprinkled around the hill sometimes checks their progress, yet we have never found any remedy that would hinder their depredations very much. The plants should be kept growing as soon as transplanted, which will be found the better method, as they will soon be too large for the cut worm to injure them much, if at all.

[Footnote 76: Hughes, in his History of Barbadoes, says that the common people call the worm kitifonia.]



The "horn worm" feeds upon the finest and largest leaves. They are not found as often on the top leaves—especially those growing on the very highest part of the stalk, as they prefer the ripe leaves and those lower on the plant. The horn worm, if large, eats the leaves in the finest part of them, frequently destroying half of a leaf. They leave large holes which renders the leaf worthless for a cigar wrapper, leaving it fit only for fillers or seconds. In Cuba the tobacco plant is assailed by three different kinds of insects—one attacks the foot of the leaves; a second the under side; a third devours the heart of the plant. In Colombia the following are the great enemies of the tobacco plant: A grub, named canne, which devours the young buds; the rosca-worm, which commits its depredations in the night only, burrowing in the ground during the day; the grub of a butterfly, called by the Creoles palometa; a species of scarabaeus called arader, which feeds on the root of the plant; and a species of caterpillar[77] which is called in the country the horned-worm, so voracious as to require one night only to devour an entire leaf of tobacco. At the South, and especially in Virginia, the housewife's flock of turkeys are allowed to range in the tobacco fields and devour many of these pests.

[Footnote 77: Wallace says of worming tobacco in Brazil: "The plants are much attacked by the caterpillar of a sphinx moth, which grows to a large size, and would completely devour the crop unless carefully picked off. Old men, and women, and children are therefore constantly employed going over a part of the field every day, and carefully examining the plants leaf by leaf till the insects are completely exterminated."]

Almost as soon as the plants have been transplanted, the work of

CULTIVATING

should commence. As the tobacco plant grows and ripens in a few weeks from the time it is transplanted in the field, it is of the utmost importance that the plants get "a good start" as soon as possible. In a favorable season, and with ordinary culture, the plants will do to harvest or "cut" in from eight to ten weeks after transplanting. From the rapidity of its growth it will readily be seen that the plant should come forward at once, if large, fine leaves are desired. In a week from the time of transplanting a light cultivator should be run between the rows, stirring the soil lightly, after which the plants should be hoed carefully, drawing away from the hill and plant the old and "baked" earth and replacing it with fresh. If the hill is hard around the plant it should be loosened by striking the hoe carefully into the hill and gently lifting the earth, thus making the hill mellow. This is apt to be the case with stiff, clayey soil, which, if possible, should be avoided in selecting the tobacco field.

It is doubtless as true a saying as it is a common one with Connecticut tobacco-growers, that the plants will not "start much until they have been hoed." Where the first hoeing is delayed two or three weeks, the plants will to a certain extent become stunted and dwarfed, and will hardly make up for the delay in growing. In from two to three weeks, the field should be hoed again, and this time the cultivator should mellow the soil a little deeper than the first time, while the hoeing should be done in the most thorough manner. Draw the earth around the plant and cut up with the hoe all grass and weeds, and remove all stone and lumps of manure and any rubbish that will hinder easy cultivation, or retard the growth of the plants. At this period the most careful attention must be given to the plants, as they are (or ought to be) growing rapidly, and upon their early maturity will depend the color and texture of the leaf.

In a short time the plants may be hoed for the third and last time (as a fourth hoeing is but rarely necessary). At this time they have attained considerable size, (say two or three feet high) and are rapidly maturing, and ere long will be ready to harvest. At the last hoeing the plants should be "hilled up," that is, the earth should be drawn around the plant under the leaves, causing it to stand firmly in the hill, and keeping the roots well protected and covered. The tobacco plant requires constant cultivation, and the cultivator may be run through the rows after loosening the earth and turning up the manure towards the plants.

Some growers of tobacco in the early stages of its growth apply some kind of fertilizers to the backward plants; this will be found to be of advantage, and should be done just before a rain, when the plants will start in a manner almost surprising. A little phosphate or Peruvian guano may be used, but should be applied with care or the plants may be retarded instead of quickened in their growth.

There is much to be done in the tobacco field besides cultivating and hoeing the plants. In many hills there will be found two plants, which should be re-set at the second hoeing if needed, and if not, pulled up and destroyed, as it is better to have one large plant in the hill than two small ones. Again, after the last hoeing, the tobacco should be kept free from worms. If any have been overlooked they will have attained to a good size by this time, and will devour in a short time enough tobacco to make a "short six."

From this account of the cultivation of tobacco as practiced in the Connecticut valley, one will readily see that the labor performed during the growing of the plants should not be superficial. On their rapid growth depends the color and texture of the leaf. Plants that are slow in maturing never make fine wrapping leaves or show a good color. Where the growth is rapid the plants will be more brittle than if of slower growth, and must therefore be handled with care in passing through the rows to worm, top, and sucker the plants.



A century ago the Virginia planters cultivated their tobacco fields in the following manner:—

"Hoeing commences with the first growth of the tobacco after transplantation, and never ceases until the plant is nearly ripe, and ready to be laid by, as they term the last weeding with the hoe; for he who would have a good crop of tobacco, or of maize, must not be sparing of his labor, but must keep the ground constantly stirring during the whole growth of the crop. And it is a rare instance to see the plough introduced as an assistant, unless it be the slook plough, for the purpose of introducing a sowing of wheat for the following year, even while the present crop is growing; and this is frequently practiced in fields of maize, and sometimes in fields of tobacco, which may be ranked amongst the best fallow crops, as it leaves the ground perfectly clean and naked, permitting neither grass, weed, nor vegetable to remain standing in the space which it has occupied."

The next operation to be performed in the tobacco field is known by the name of

TOPPING,

and is simply breaking or cutting off the top of the stalk, preventing the plant from running up to flower and seed. By so doing the growth of the leaves is secured, and they at once develop to the largest possible size. The leaves ripen sooner if the plant is topped, while the quality is much better. There are various methods of topping as well as different periods. Some growers top the plant as soon as the capsules appear, while others wait until the plants are in full blossom. If topped before the plants have come into blossom, the operation should be performed as soon as possible, as a longer time will be required for the leaves to grow and ripen than when topping is delayed until the plants are in blossom. In the Connecticut valley most growers wait until the blossoms appear before breaking off the top. Topping must not be delayed after the blossoming, in order that all danger from an untimely frost may be avoided. The top may be broken off with the hand or cut with a knife, the latter being the better as well as the safer way. Sometimes the rain soaks into the stalk, rotting it so that the leaves fall off, injuring them for wrappers. Top the plants at a regular height, leaving from nine to twelve leaves, so that the field will look even, and also make the number of leaves to a plant uniform. Late plants may be topped with the rest or not, at the option of the grower. This mode of topping refers more particularly to cigar rather than cutting leaf. Those varieties of tobacco adapted for cutting leaf should be topped as soon as the button appears; top low, thereby throwing the strength of the stalk into a few leaves, making them large and heavy. The number of leaves should not exceed fourteen. Let it stand from five to six weeks after it is topped. The object in letting it stand so long after topping is to have it thoroughly ripe. This gives it the bright, rich, golden color, entirely different from cigar leaf, but very desirable for chewing leaf. On account of the length of time it must stand after topping, it is desirable to take that which has been topped early, in order to have it ripen, and get it in before a freeze, although ripe tobacco is not injured by cold nights, and will sometimes stand even an ordinary frost.

The manner of topping in Virginia by the first planters in the colony, is thus described:—

"This operation, simply, is that of pinching off with the thumb nail[78] the leading stem or sprout of the plant, which would, if left alone, run up to flower and seed; but which, from the more substantial formation of the leaf by the help of the nutritive juices, which are thereby afforded to the lower parts of the plant, and thus absorbed through the ducts and fibres of the leaf, is rendered more weighty, thick, and fit for market."

[Footnote 78: Many of the Virginians let the thumb nail grow long, and harden it in the candle, for this purpose: not for the use of gouging out people's eyes, as some have thought fit to insinuate.]

Now the custom is to top for shipping from eight to ten leaves, for coal-curing from ten to twelve, according in both cases to strength of soil and time of doing the work.

In Mexico "as soon as the buds begin to show themselves the top is broken off. Not more than from eight to ten leaves are left on the plant, without counting the sand-leaf, which is thrown away," and destroyed in the same manner as the Dutch are said to do of spies. In some countries the plants are not topped at all, and the leaves are left upon the stalk until fully ripe, when they are picked.

The next labor following the topping of the plants is called

SUCKERING.

Immediately after topping the plants, shoots or sprouts make their appearance at the base of the leaves where they join the parent stalk. They are known by the name of suckers and the removal of them by breaking them off is called suckering. At first the suckers make their appearance at the top of the plants at the base of the upper leaves, and then gradually appear farther down on the stalk until they are found at the very root of the plant. The plants should be suckered before the shoots are tough, when they will be removed with difficulty, frequently clinging to both stalk and leaf, thereby injuring the latter, as the leaf very often comes off with the sucker if the latter is left growing too long. The plants should be kept clean of them and especially at the time of harvesting.

An old writer on tobacco says of Suckers and Suckering:—

"The sucker is a superfluous sprout which is wont to make its appearance and shoot forth from the stem or stalk, near to the junction of the leaves with the stem, and about the root of the plant and if these suckers are permitted to grow, they injure the marketable quality of the tobacco by compelling a division of its nutriment during the act of maturation. The planter is therefore careful to destroy these intruders with the thumb-nail as in the act of topping, and this process is termed suckering."



After this operation is performed the planter ascertains in regard to the

RIPENING OF THE PLANTS.

As soon as the plants are fully ripe they not only take on a different hue but give evidence of decay. The leaves as they ripen become rougher and thicker, assume a tint of yellowish green and are frequently mottled with yellow spots. The tobacco grower has two signs which he regards as "infallible" in this matter. One is that on pinching the under part of the leaf together, if ripe it will crack or break; the other is the growth of suckers to be found (if ripe) around the base of the stalk.

Tatham says:—

"Much practice is requisite to form a judicious discernment concerning the state and progress of the ripening leaf; yet care must be used to cut up the plant as soon as it is sufficiently ripe to promise a good curable condition, lest the approach of frost should tread upon the heels of the crop-master; for in this case, tobacco will be among the first plants that feel its influence, and the loss to be apprehended in this instance, is not a mere partial damage by nipping, but a total consumption by the destruction of every plant. I find it difficult to give to strangers a full idea of the ripening of the leaf: it is a point on which I would not trust my own experience without consulting some able crop-master in the neighborhood; and I believe this is not an uncustomary precaution among those who plant it. So far as I am able to convey an idea, which I find it easier to understand than to express, I should judge of the ripening of the leaf by its thickening sufficiently; by the change of its color to a more yellowish green; by a certain mellow appearance, and protrusion of the web of the leaf, which I suppose to be occasioned by a contraction of the fibres; and other appearances as I might conceive to indicate an ultimate suspension of the vegetative functions."



After the plants have ripened the operation of cutting or

HARVESTING

begins. The cutter passes from plant to plant cutting only those plants that are ripe. In harvesting a light hatchet or saw may be used or a tobacco cutter which is the better and not as liable to injure the leaves. The plants may be cut either in the morning (after the dew is off) or just at night, providing there are no indications of frost. Lay the plants carefully on the sides to avoid breaking the leaves. If the plants are cut during a very warm day they should be examined from time to time as they are liable to "sun-burn," an injury much dreaded by the planter, as sun-burnt leaves are useless for cigar wrappers.



After the plants are wilted on one side they are turned so that the entire plant will be in good condition to handle without breaking. Harvesting should be performed in the most careful manner. At this time the leaves are very brittle and unless the cutter is an experienced hand much injury may be done to the leaves. The stem of each plant is severed as near as possible to the ground and afterwards if hung on lath they are divided longitudinally to admit the air and dry them sooner. When the plants are to be hung on lath they may be wilted before "stringing" or not, at the option of the grower. Most growers are of the opinion now that the plants should be harvested without wilting at all, stringing on the lath as soon as cut and carrying them immediately to the shed.

When wilted in the field there is often much damage done to the leaves whether they are sun-burnt or not. Oftentimes the ground is hot and the plants in a few hours both on the under and upper sides become very warm and almost burnt by the rays of the sun. For this reason the manner of hanging on lath is the better way and in New England is fast displacing the old method of hanging with twine. When hung in this manner five or six plants to the lath are the usual number unless they are very large. When placed or strung on the lath the plants are not as liable to sweat or pole rot, owing in part to the splitting of the stalk, which causes the rapid curing of the leaves as well as the stalk itself. A new method of hanging tobacco has been introduced of late in the Connecticut valley by means of tobacco hooks attached to the lath. This mode is considered by many growers the safest way, and by others as no better than the more common way of hanging simply on the lath.



In Virginia in "ye olden time," the following method of harvesting was adopted:—

"When the plant has remained long enough exposed to the sun, or open air, after cutting, to become sufficiently pliant to bear handling and removal with conveniency, it must be removed to the tobacco house, which is generally done by manual labor, unless the distance and quantity requires the assistance of a cart. If this part of the process were managed with horses carrying frames upon their backs for the conveniency of stowage, in a way similar to that in which grain is conveyed in Spain, it would be found a considerable saving of labor. It becomes necessary, in the next place, to see that suitable ladders and stages are provided, and that there be a sufficient quantity of tobacco sticks, such as have been described to answer the full demand of the tobacco house, whatsoever may be its size; time will be otherwise lost in make-shifts, or sending for a second supply.

"When everything is thus brought to a point at the tobacco house, the next stage of the process is that termed hanging the tobacco. This is done by hanging the plants in rows upon the tobacco sticks with the points down, letting them rest upon the stick by the stem of the lowest leaf, or by the split which is made in the stem when that happens to be divided. In this operation care must be taken to allow a sufficient space between each of the successive plants for the due circulation of air between: perhaps four or five inches apart, in proportion to the bulk of the plant. When they are thus threaded upon the sticks (either in the tobacco houses, or, sometimes, suspended upon a temporary scaffold near the door), they must be carefully handed up by means of ladders and planks to answer as stages or platforms, first to the upper tier or collar beams of the house, where the sticks are to be placed with their points renting upon the beams transversely, and the plants hanging down between them. This process must be repeated tier after tier of the beams, downwards, until the house is filled; taking care to hang the sticks as close to each other as the consideration of admitting air will allow, and without crowding. In this position the plants remain until they are in condition to be taken down for the next process."

In Cuba about the beginning of January the tobacco is ready for cutting. If the harvest is good, all the leaves are taken from the plants at once. Tobacco consisting of those leaves is called Temprano, or "Early Pipe." If, on the contrary, the harvest is not good, the immature leaves are left to grow. Tobacco formed of these leaves has the name of Tardio, or "Late Pipe." In every respect, appearance included, the Temprano is much superior to the Tardio. In the purchase of tobacco, it is a principal thing to ascertain how much or how little Temprano a parcel contains. Moreover, there are what may be called bastard leaves, which grow after the leaves proper have been gathered.[79] Tobacco made from these bastard leaves is easily recognizable, the leaves being long and narrow, of a reddish color, and a bitter taste.

[Footnote 79: Second crop, or Volunteer tobacco.]

The mode of harvesting tobacco in Virginia at present is thus described by a Virginia planter:—

"In bringing to the barn place the tobacco on scaffolds near the barn-door, so that it can be readily housed in case of rain. As Bright Wrappers and Smokers pay so much better than dark tobaccos, it is advisable, whenever practicable, to coal-cure all that ripens of a uniform yellow color. The quality of the leaf will determine the hanging: 'Shipping' should be hung seven to nine plants to the stick four and a half feet long. To cure the plants properly requires some experience, great care, and much attention. The plants should not be 'cut' until fully ripe. Be careful in cutting to select plants of a uniform size, color, and quality, putting six or seven to the stick. Let the plants go from the cutter's hands on to sticks held in the hands of women or boys; and as soon as the sticks are full, place them carefully on wagons and carry them to the barn. Place the sticks on tiers about ten inches apart, and regulate the plants on the sticks.

"It is impossible to lay down any uniform system or give specific instructions. General principles will be suggested to guide the planter amid the changeableness of seasons and variableness of material to be operated upon."

In Turkey—

"The planters calculate always fifty-five days from May 12th, for their crops to be ready for gathering. When the leaves show the necessary yellow tips, they are carried to the house, and there threaded into long bunches by a large, flat needle, about a foot long, passed through the stalk of each."

In Ohio the process of harvesting tobacco for cutting is thus described by a grower:—

"When thoroughly ripe, having stood two or three weeks longer than is necessary for cigar leaf, it is ready to cut. This is done with a knife made for the purpose. It resembles a wide chisel, except that the handle and chisel are at right angles. Before cutting, the stalk is split down through the center. Being ripe, it splits before the knife, and following the grain the leaves escape unharmed. This splitting is done in as little time as is necessary to cut the stalk off in the ordinary way. Split it to within about three or four inches of the ground, and cut it off in the ordinary way with the same knife. Cut it off and hang it over one of your sticks that you have driven slanting into the ground near you. Cut and put six stalks on the stick, and then lay it down on the ground to wilt, taking the usual care to prevent sun-burn. When it is sufficiently wilted, haul to the shed and hang it up."

In the East Indian Archipelago, "as soon as the leaves are fully grown they are plucked off, and the petiole and a midrib are cut away. Each leaf is then cut transversely into strips about a sixteenth of an inch wide, and these are dried in the sun until a mass of them looks like a bunch of oakum."

In Persia, when the plants are ripe they are cut off close to the root, and again stuck firmly in the ground. By exposure to the night dews the leaves change from green to yellow. When of the proper tint, they are gathered in the early morning while wet with dew, and heaped up in a shed, the sides of which are closed in with light thorny bushes, so as to be freely exposed to the wind.

In Japan, the leaves are gathered in the height of summer. When the flowers are of a light tint, two or three of the leaves nearest the root are gathered. These are called first leaves, but produce tobacco of second quality. After the lapse of a fortnight, the leaves are gathered by twos, and from these the best tobaccos are produced. Any remaining leaves are afterwards broken off along with the stem and dried. These form the lowest quality of tobacco. After gathering, the leaves are arranged in regular layers and covered with straw matting, which is removed in a couple of days. The leaves are now of a light yellow color. They are then fastened by the stem in twos and threes to a rope slung in a smoke room, and after being so left for fourteen or fifteen days, they are dried for two or three days in the sun, after which they are exposed for a couple of nights in order that they may be moistened with dew. They are then smoothed out and arranged in layers, the stems being fastened together, pressed down with boards, and packed away in a dark room. D'Almirda says that in Java, the leaves are gathered and tied up in bundles of fifteen, twenty or thirty, and suspended from bamboo poles running across the interior of the shed, where they are left to dry for twenty days or more, according to the state of the atmosphere.

As soon as the plants have been hung in the shed the process of

CURING

begins. If fully ripe at the time of harvesting, the plants will "cure down" very fast and take on a better hue than when they cure less rapidly. During cool weather the doors and ventilators should be left open that the plants may have a free circulation of air and cure the faster. When, however, the weather is damp, they should be closed, to avoid sweating and pole rot. When a light leaf is desired, the tobacco shed should be provided with windows to let in plenty of sunlight, which has much to do with the color of the leaf. When a dark leaf is desired, all light should be excluded.

The time necessary for the curing of the plants will depend upon the ripeness of the plants as well as the weather during curing. There are three kinds or methods of curing, viz: air curing, sun curing and firing, or curing by flues. Air curing is the curing of the plants in sheds or barns. Sun curing is the process of curing in the open air, while "firing" is the process of curing by "smoke," the common method employed at the South and to some extent at the West. This is the common way of curing cutting leaf, while air curing is the manner of curing cigar leaf. Tatham, already quoted, gives the following account of the process as performed in Virginia of

"SMOKING THE CROP."

"From what has been said under the head of hanging the plant, it will be perceived that the air is the principal agent in curing it, but it must be also considered that a want of uniform temperature in the atmosphere calls for the constant care of the crop-master, who generally indeed becomes habitually weather-wise, from the sowing of his plants, until the delivery of his crop to the inspector. To regulate this effect upon the plants he must take care to be often among them, and when too much moisture is discovered, it is tempered by the help of smoke, which is generated by means of small smothered fires made of old bark, and of rotten wood, kindled about upon various parts of the floor where they may seem to be most needed.

"In this operation it is necessary that a careful hand should be always near: for the fires must not be permitted to blaze, and burn furiously; which might not only endanger the house, but which, by occasioning a sudden over-heat while the leaf is in a moist condition, might add to the malady of 'firing' which often occurs in the field."

In Virginia the manner of curing tobacco at the present time, is thus described by a planter. "For curing tobacco the simplest method is sun-curing or air curing and the one most likely to prove successful. The tobacco barn should be so constructed as to contain four, five or six rooms four feet wide, so that four and a half feet sticks may fit, all alike. Log barns are best for coal curing. All should be built high enough to contain four firing tiers under joists covered with shingles or boards and daubed close. Fire with hickory all rich, heavy, shipping tobacco.

"As soon as the barn is filled kindle small fires of coals or hickory wood, about twenty fires to a barn twenty feet square, four under each room. Coal is best, but hickory saplings, chopped about two feet long, make a good steaming heat. The successful coal-curer is an artist, and all engaged in the business are experimenters in nature's great laboratory." A North Carolina planter gives an interesting account of curing tobacco yellow. "Curing tobacco yellow, for which this section is so famous, is a very nice process and requires some experience, observation, and a thorough knowledge of the character and quality of the tobacco with which you have to deal, in order to insure uniform success. Much depends upon the character of the crop when taken from the hill. If it is of good size, well matured and of good yellowish color, there is necessarily but little difficulty in the operation. As soon as the tobacco is taken from the hill and housed, we commence with a low degree of heat, say 95 deg. to 100 deg. Fahr., 'the yellowing' or 'steaming' process. This is the first and simplest part of the whole process, and requires from fifteen to thirty-six hours, according to the size and quality of the tobacco, and this degree of heat should be continued until the leaf opens a lemon color, and is nearly free from any green hue. When this point is reached, the heat should be gradually raised to 105 deg. in order to commence drying the leaf, and here lies the whole difficulty in curing (I mean in drying the leaf). The last degree of heat indicated, should be continued five or six hours, when it should again be gradually raised to 110 deg., when it should be maintained at this point, until the tail or points of the leaves begin to curl and dry. Indeed it will probably be safest for beginners to continue this degree of heat until one-third of the leaf is dried.

"The temperature may then be gradually increased to 115 deg., and kept for several hours at that point, until the leaf begins to rattle when shaken, then again raise the heat to 120 deg., at which point it should be continued until the leaf is dried, after which the temperature may be increased to 150 deg. or 160 deg. to dry the stem and stalks; the latter should be blackened by the heat before the curing is complete. Ordinarily it requires from two and a half to five days to cure a barn of tobacco, dependent entirely upon the size and quality. Put seven or eight plants on each stick and place them eight inches apart on tier poles. In the yellowing process the door of the barn should be kept closed to exclude the air. When this point is reached for drying the leaf, the door may be opened occasionally, and kept open for twenty or thirty minutes at a time, especially if the tobacco gets into a "sweat," as it is called, or becomes damp and clammy.

"The temperature is raised in the barn by cautiously adding coal from time to time to the fires, which should be placed in small piles on the floor, in rows, allowing about five feet between each pile, which should at first contain a double handful of coal. In adding coal, you will soon learn the quantity necessary to be applied by the effect produced. Avoid raising the heat hastily after the drying is commenced, lest the leaf should be scalded and reddened; on the other hand, it should not be raised too slowly for fear of 'raising the grain,' or the leaf becoming spongy and dingy. Both extremes are to be avoided, and the skill required is attained only by experience and observation. We usually cut tobacco the latter part of the week, house it and suffer it to remain until the first of next week, that we may not violate the fourth commandment."

In California tobacco is cured by the method known as the "Culp process" from the name of its patentee. When the plant lies in the field, Mr. Culp's peculiar process begins which is described as follows:

"Tobacco had long been grown in California, even before Americans came. He had raised it as a crop for fifteen years; and before he perfected his new process, he was able usually to select the best of his crop for smoking tobacco, and sold the remainder for sheep wash. One year, two millions of pounds were raised in the State, and as it was mostly sold for sheep wash, it lasted several years, and discouraged the growers. Tobacco always grew readily, but it was too rank and strong. They used Eastern methods, topping and suckering, and as the plant had here a very long season to grow and mature, the leaf was thick and very strong. The main features of the Culp process are, he said, to let the tobacco, when cut, wilt on the field; then take it at once to the tobacco house and pile it down, letting it heat on the piles to 100 deg. for Havana. It must, he thinks, come to 100 deg., but if it rises to 102 deg. it is ruined. Piling, therefore, requires great judgment. The tobacco houses are kept at a temperature of about 70 deg.; and late in the fall, to cure a late second or third crop they sometimes use a stove to maintain a proper heat in the house, for the tobacco must not lie in the pile without heating. When it has had its first sweat, it is hung up on racks; and here Mr. Culp's process is peculiar.

"He places the stalk between two battens, so that it sticks out horizontally from the frame; thus each leaf hangs independently from the stalk; and the racks or frames are so arranged that all the leaves on all the stalks have a separate access to the air. The tobacco houses are frame buildings, 100x60 feet, with usually four rows of racks, and two gangways for working. On the rack the surface moisture dries from the leaf; and at the proper time it is again piled, racked, and so on for three or even four times. The racks are of rough boards, and the floor of the houses is of earth. After piling and racking for three weeks, the leaves are stripped from the stalk and put into 'hands,' and they are then 'bulked' and lie thus about three months, when the tobacco is boxed. From the time of cutting, from four to six months are required to make the leaf ready for the manufacturer. "Piling" appears to be the most delicate part of the cure, and they have often to work all night to save tobacco that threatens to overheat."

In Mexico the leaves are hung up on bast[80] strings, dried in the shade and then sent to the chief depots, where, when they have undergone fermentation, they are sorted, and tied up in bundles. In Persia, the plants are carried to the shed and heaped, and in four or five days the desired pale yellow color is further developed. The stalks and center stem of each leaf are now removed and thrown away, while the leaves are heaped together in the drying house for another three or four days, when they are fit for packing.

[Footnote 80: The inner bark of the lime-tree.]



In Turkey the bunches of leaves are exposed to the sun to dry, and some months' exposure is necessary before they are sufficiently matured for baling. Rain sets in at a later period, and the tobacco becoming moist and fit for handling, is then removed from the threads, and made into bundles or "hands" of about sixty leaves each and tied around the stems.

After the leaves are thoroughly cured they are in condition for

STRIPPING.

The leaves of the tobacco are easily affected by the humidity of the atmosphere and during damp weather every opportunity is improved by the grower for taking down the tobacco preparatory to stripping. After taking down from the poles the plants should be packed in order to keep moist until stripped. The tobacco should not be removed from the poles when it drips or the juice exudes from either the stalk or the leaves. If stripped in this condition the leaves are apt to stain and thus become unfit for wrappers. The operation of stripping consists in taking the leaves from the stalk and tying them in bundles or hands with a leaf around the base of the hand. Each "hand" or bunch should contain at least eight leaves and from that number to twelve. If the plants are large the leaves of one stalk will form a hand; a poor leaf is used for binding as it can not be used for the same purpose as the leaves around which it is bound.



The old planters of tobacco in Virginia called this operation of taking off the leaves and tying them up "stripping and bundling" which is here described.

"When the plants of tobacco which are thus hanging upon the sticks in the house have gone through the several stages of process before the time of stripping, and are deemed to be in case for the next operation, a rainy day (which is the most suitable) is an opportunity which is generally taken advantage of when the hands cannot be so well employed out of doors. The sticks containing the tobacco which may be sufficiently cured, are then taken down and drawn out of the plants. They are then taken one by one respectively, and the leaves being stripped from the stalk of the plant are rolled round the butts or thick ends of the leaves with one of the smallest leaves as a bandage, and thus made up into little bundles fit for laying into the cask for final packing."

Hazard gives the following method of assorting and stripping tobacco in Cuba:—

"Among the Cubans, the leaves are divided into four classes: first, desecho, desecho limpio, which are those immediately at the top of the plant, and which constitute the best quality, from the fact that they get more equally the benefit of the sun's rays by day and the dew by night; second, desechito, which are the next to the above; third, the libra, the inferior or small leaves about the top of the plant; and fourth, the injuriado, or those nearest the root. Of the injuriado there are three qualities; the best is called injuriado de reposo, or 'the picked over,' and the other two, firsts and seconds (primeros, sequndos).

"Tobacco of the classes desechito and libra, of which the leaves are not perfect, is called injuriado bueno, while all the rest, of whatever quality, that is broken in such a manner as to be unfit for wrappers are called injuriado malo. Amongst the trade in place of the above names, the different qualities are simply designated by numbers."

Meyer, a German writer who resided several years in Cuba, gives another classification, making ten classes altogether, while Hazard mentions only four general classes.

After the leaves are stripped from the stalk the process known as

ASSORTING

commences. Assorting tobacco is doing up in hands the various qualities and keeping them separate. In the Connecticut valley the growers make usually but two kinds or qualities excepting only when the crop is poor when three qualities are made, viz: Wrappers, Seconds, and Fillers. The Wrappers are the largest and finest leaves on the plant and should be free from holes and sweat as well as green and white veins. The leaves selected for this quality come from the middle and even the top leaves of the plant. The Seconds are made up of leaves not good enough for Wrappers and too good for Fillers. Such leaves sometimes are worm-eaten and of various colors on the same leaf—one part dark and another light. The fillers are the poorest quality of leaves to be found on the plants, and consist of the "sand" or ground leaves, one or two to each plant. Some of our largest growers in assorting the leaves keep each color by itself, an operation known as

SHADING.

This is a very delicate operation and requires a good eye for colors as well as a correct judgment in regard to the quality of the leaf. This mode of assorting colors in stripping is similar to that of shading cigars, in which the utmost care is taken to keep the various colors and shades by themselves. In shading the wrappers only are so assorted, and may be "run into" two or three shades depending on the number of shades or colors of the leaf. The better way is to make only two qualities of the wrappers in shading—viz., light and dark cinnamon "selections." Shading tobacco does not imply that it is carried to its fullest extent in point of color as in shading cigars, but simply keeping those general colors by themselves like light and dark brown leaves. Cutting tobaccos before being used are subjected to a process known as

STEMMING.

Tatham gives the following account of the process of stemming in Virginia a century ago:—

"Stemming tobacco is the act of separating the largest stems or fibres from the web of the leaf with adroitness and facility, so that the plant may be nevertheless capable of package, and fit for a foreign market. It is practised in cases where the malady termed the fire, or other casual misfortune during the growth of the plant, may have rendered it doubtful in the opinion of the planter whether something or other which he may have observed during the growth of his crop, or in the unfavorable temperature of the seasons by which it hath been matured does not hazard too much in packing the web with a stem which threatens to decay. To avoid the same species of risk, stemming is also practised in cases where the season when it becomes necessary to finish packing for a market is too unfavorable to put up the plant in leaf in the usual method; or when the crop may be partially out of case. Besides the operation of stemming in the hands of the crop-master, there are instances where this partial process is repeated in the public warehouses; of which I shall treat under a subsequent head.



"The operation of stemming is performed by taking the leaf in one hand, and the end of the stem in the other, in such a way as to cleave it with the grain; and there is an expertness to be acquired by practice, which renders it as easy as to separate the bark of a willow, although those unaccustomed to it find it difficult to stem a single plant. When the web is thus separated from the stem, it is made up into bundles in the same way as in the leaf, and is laid in bulk for farther process. The stems have been generally thrown away, or burnt with refuse tobacco for the purpose of soap-ashes; but the introduction of snuff-mills has, within a few years back, found a more economical use for them."

As soon as the tobacco has been stripped it is ready for

PACKING.



It is necessary to pack the "hands" after stripping in order to keep it moist, or in nearly the same condition as when stripped. Select a cool place, not too dry or too damp, but one where if properly protected, the tobacco will remain moist. It should be packed loosely or compact, according as the hands are moist or dry. It may be packed in the center of the floor so that it may be examined from either side, or against the sides of the packing house, as may be thought best. Hand the tobacco to the packer, who presses the hands firmly with his knees and hands, laying the tobacco in two tiers and keeping the pile at about the same height until all is packed. If possible pack all together, that is, each kind by itself, as it is better to have the wrappers or fillers all together rather than in several places, as the moisture is retained better than when it is packed in small piles or heaps. Use in packing a plank or board, placing it against the front of the tier and bring the ends of the hands up against it. This will make the tobacco look much better and also render the process of packing firmer.

The tobacco may be packed any height or length desired, according to the quantity, but usually from three to four feet high will be found to be convenient while the length may be proportioned to the height or not. Tobacco may be packed by the cord or half cord so as to be able to judge of the quantity—good large wrappers averaging a ton to the cord. Seconds and Fillers will not contain as many pounds to the cord as wrappers. After the tobacco is packed, cover first with boards—planed ones are preferable,—or even shingles—and press firmly, especially if the tobacco is dry, then cover with blankets or any kind of covering, adding plank or pieces of timber if additional pressure is needed. It can now remain packed until sold or cased, and will hardly need to be examined unless packed while very damp or kept packed until warm weather.

Wailes says of planting by the early planters of tobacco in Mississippi:—

"The larger planters packed it in the usual way in hogsheads. Much of it, however, was put up in carrets, as they were called, resembling in size and form two small sugar-loafs united at the larger ends. The stemmed tobacco was laid smoothly together in that form coated with wrappers of the extended leaf, enveloped in a cloth, and then firmly compressed by a cord wrapped around the parcel, and which was suffered to remain until the carret acquired the necessary dryness and solidity, when together with the surrounding cloth, it was removed, and strips of lime-bark were bound around it at proper distances, in such a manner as to secure it from unwrapping and losing its proportions."

In Turkey, after the tobacco is made into bundles or hands, it is piled against the walls inside the dwelling rooms and a carefully graduated pressure put upon it until ready for baling. In Java, when the tobacco is ready to pack the leaf is examined, and if found quite brown, it is tightly pressed and packed up either in boxes or matting for exportation, or in the bark of the tree plantain, for immediate sale.

The next process on the tobacco plantation is that of

PRIZING, CASING, AND BALING.

The term prizing originated in Virginia, and as performed by the early planters, is thus described by an old writer on tobacco culture:—

"Prizing, in the sense in which it is to be taken here is, perhaps, a local word, which the Virginians may claim the credit of creating, or at least of adopting; it is at best technical, and must be defined to be the act of pressing or squeezing the article which is to be packed into any package, by means of certain levers, screws, or other mechanical powers; so that the size of the article may be reduced in stowage, and the air expressed so as to render it less pregnable by outward accident, or exterior injury, than it would be in its natural condition.

"The operation of prizing, however, requires the combination of judgment and experience; for the commodity may otherwise become bruised by the mechanic action, and this will have an effect similar to that of prizing in too high case, which signifies that degree of moisture which produces all the risks of fermentation, and subjects the plant to be shattered into rags. The ordinary apparatus for prizing consists of the prize beam, the platform, the blocks, and the cover. The prize beam is a lever formed of a young tree or sapling, of about ten inches diameter at the butt or thicker end, and about twenty or twenty-five feet in length; but in crops where many hands are employed, and a sufficient force always near for the occasional assistance of managing a more weighty leverage, this beam is often made of a larger tree, hewn on two of its sides to about six inches thick, and of the natural width, averaging twelve or fourteen inches. The thick end of this beam is so squared as to form a tenon, which is fitted into a mortise that is dug through some growing tree, or other, of those which generally abound convenient to the tobacco house, something more than five feet above the platform. Close to the root of this tree, and immediately under the most powerful point of the lever, a platform or floor of plank is constructed for the hogshead to stand upon during the operation of prizing. This must be laid upon a solid foundation, levelled, upon hewn pieces of wood as sleepers; and so grooved and perforated that any wet or rain which may happen to fall upon the platform may run off without injuring the tobacco. Blocks of wood are prepared about two feet in length, and about three or four inches in diameter, with a few blocks of greater dimensions, for the purpose of raising the beam to a suitable purchase; and a movable roof constructed of clap-boards nailed upon pairs of light rafters, of sufficient size to shelter the platform and hogshead, is made ready to place astride of the beam, as a saddle is put upon a horse's back, in order to secure the tobacco from the weather while it is subjected to this tedious part of the process.



"That part of the apparatus which is designed to manage and give power to the lever is variously constructed: in some instances two beams of timber about six feet long, and squared to four by six inches, are prepared; through these, by means of an auger hole, a sapling of hickory or other tough wood, is respectively passed; and the root thereof being formed like the head of a pin to prevent its slipping through the hole, the sapling is bent like a bow, and the other end is passed through the same piece of wood in a reversed direction, in which position it is wedged. These two bows are in this manner hung by the sapling loops upon the end of the prize beam or lever; and loose planks or slabs of about five or six feet long being laid upon these suspended pieces of timber, a kind of hanging floor or platform is constructed, upon which weights are designed to act as in a scale. A pile of large stones are then carted to the place, and a sufficient number of these are occasionally placed upon this hanging platform, until the lever has obtained precisely the power which the crop master wishes to give it by this regulating medium.

"The prizing or packing by the old planters must have been a tedious affair, and far different from the quick work made by the screw-press now owned by all well to-do planters. The size of the hogsheads containing the tobacco was regulated by law to the standard of four feet six inches in length, but the shape of the cask varied according to the fancy of the cooper, or roughness of his work. At this period (a century ago), the tobacco hogshead was made most generally of white oak; but Spanish oak, and red oak, were sometimes used, when the usual kind could not be so readily commanded. Now the hogsheads are made of pine, but are nearly as rough as those made by the colonial growers.

"Tobacco, if well packed, and prized duly, will resist the water for a surprising length of time. An instance is recorded in strong proof of this, which occurred at Kingsland upon James river in Virginia, where tobacco, which had been carried off by the great land floods in 1771, was found in a large raft of drift wood in which it had lodged when the warehouses at Richmond were swept away by the overflowing of the freshets; an inundation which had happened about twenty years before this cask was found."

Tatham gives the following account of a similar instance:—

"On the sixth of October, 1782, I myself was one of a party who were shipwrecked upon the coast of New Jersey, in America, on board the brigantine Maria, Captain McAulay, from Richmond in Virginia, and laden with tobacco. Several hogsheads, which were saved from the wreck were brought round to Stillwill's landing upon Great Egg harbor; and amongst them some which had lost the headings of the cask, and the hoops and staves, were so much shattered by the beating of the surf, that it was not thought worth while to land them, and they were just tumbled out of the lighter upon the beach, and left to remain where the tide constantly flowed over them for several weeks, so that the outside was completely rotten, and they had the appearance of heaps of manure. In this very bad condition, I still persisted in trying to save what I supposed might remain entire in the interior of the lump, and at last prevailed so far over the ignorance and prejudice by which I had been ridiculed, as to effect an overhauling and repacking of this damaged commodity and to save a proportion thereof very far beyond what I myself had expected. Some of the heart of this was so highly improved, that I have seldom seen tobacco equal to it for chewing, or for immediate manufacture; and what was repacked was sold to a tobacconist in Water Street, Philadelphia, at a price so little reduced below the ordinary market, that the man very frankly told me, that if he could have had the whole drowned tobacco in a short time after it was saved from the wreck, he would have made no difference in the price but would rather have preferred it for immediate manufacture, as it would have spared him, some little labor in a part of the process."

Prizing tobacco applies to the packing of tobacco in hogsheads all such leaf being used for cutting purposes, cigar leaf being either cased or baled. In some sections about 800 pounds net is packed in one parcel, while in others 1000 pounds and sometimes even 1500 and 1800 pounds. "Seed leaf" tobacco in this country is all packed in cases instead of hogsheads, each case containing from 375 to 400 pounds net. It is necessary that all kinds of tobacco should be pressed in some kind of package before it is ready to be manufactured. There are exceptions, however, as in the case of Latakia tobacco, which is simply hung in the peasant's huts through the winter to be fumigated and to acquire the peculiar flavor this tobacco has. Tobacco in good condition to case must be damp enough to bear the pressure in casing without breaking and crumbling, while it must not be too moist or it will rot in the case. The number of pounds to the case will vary according to the size of the leaf, as well as the condition of the tobacco.

When ready to case the "hands" are packed in the case, laying them in two tiers. The case being nearly full the contents are then subjected to a strong pressure until it is reduced to one half its bulk, then another layer is placed in the case and again pressed, and succeeded by as many as are required to fill the case. The tobacco should be packed evenly in layers with the ends of the leaves touching one another or even crossing, and the whole mass presenting a smooth and even appearance. The "wrappers" should be cased by themselves and "the seconds" and "fillers" together or separate at the option of the packer. The tobacco should be cased hard so that the mass will rise but little when the pressure is removed. As the fillers are usually dry they must be moistened before casing or subjected to a very strong pressure. After packing the cases should be turned on their sides, and the grower's name marked on each case, also the kind of tobacco, whether wrappers or fillers, together with the number of pounds and the weight of the case. This is necessary to ascertain the quality of leaf produced by each grower, as well as to protect the buyer against all fraud in packing and casing.



The cases may be piled one upon another, but should be kept from the rays of the sun and in a dry room, so that the sweating of the leaf may be sufficient to fit it for use. It is necessary that the season during sweating should be warm, in order to secure a good sweat. It will commence to "warm up" sometime in April or May, and will be ready to sample or uncase about the first of September. After "going through a sweat," the leaf takes on a darker color, and loses the rank flavor which it had before. It is better to let the tobacco dry off before being used or taken from the case. "Baling" is packing tobacco in small bundles or packages containing from one hundred to two hundred pounds, and is the manner of putting up tobacco for export in Cuba, Paraguay, Algiers, Hungary, Mexico, Syria, the Philippines, China, Sumatra, Japan, Java, Turkey, and in some other tobacco-growing countries. In Cuba after being formed into hands or "gavillos" and four of these tied together with strips of palm-leaf so as to constitute a "manoja," fifty or eighty of them are packed together, making what is called a "tercio" or bale, the average weight of which is two hundred pounds. Hazard says of the number of pounds produced on the vegas:

"A caballeria of thirty-three acres of ground produces about nine thousand pounds of tobacco, made up in about the following proportions: four hundred and fifty of desecho, or best; one thousand eight hundred pounds desechito, or seconds; two thousand two hundred and fifty pounds of libra, or thirds; and four thousand five hundred pounds of injuriado. From these figures, taking the bale at one hundred pounds, and the average price of the tobacco at twenty dollars per bale, (though this is a low estimate, for the crops of some of the vegas are sold as high, sometimes, as four hundred dollars per bale,) an approximate idea may be formed of the profit of a large plantation in a good year, when the crops are satisfactory."

In Mexico, after being baled, the tobacco is sent to the government factories, where it is not weighed until two months afterwards. The price is high, varying from twelve to twenty-eight dollars per crate; and is paid in ten monthly installments. In Persia, when the tobacco is fit for packing, the leaves are carefully spread on each other, and formed into cakes four or five feet round, and three to four inches thick, care being taken not to break or injure the leaves. Bags of strong cloth, thin and open at the sides, are provided, into which the cakes are pressed strongly down on each other. When the bags are filled they are placed in a separate drying house, and are turned every day. Water is then sprinkled on the cakes, if required, to prevent them from breaking. The leaf is valued for being thick, tough, of a uniform light yellow color, and of an agreeable aromatic smell.

In Turkey, the tobacco after remaining in the dwelling-room of the house a sufficient time, is ready for baling. The bales average in weight about forty oques (110 English pounds). The covering of the bales is a sort of netting made by the peasants from goat's hair; it is elastic and of great strength. Vamberry says of packing tobacco in European Turkey:

"The tobacco is packed in small packets (bog tche), and only after it has lain for years in the warehouses of the tobacco merchants, is it honored by the connoisseurs of Stamboul with the title of 'Aala Gobeck.' This sort of finely-cut tobacco resembling the finest silk, is held in equally high estimation in the palaces of the Grand Seignior, in the seraglio, and in the divan of the sublime Porte, where the privy council debate the most important affairs of the empire, under the soothing influence of its aromatic vapors."

In St. Domingo and the United States of Colombia, South America, the bales are called Serous, and in Holland and Germany, Packages. Tobacco is sent to market in bales of various sizes and made of various materials. In Cuba, the tobacco is bound with palm leaves. In South America it is packed in ox hides. From the East it comes in camel's hair sacks or "netting made from goat's hair," while from Persia, tobacco is exported in sacks of strong cloth. Manilla tobacco is shipped in bales containing four hundred pounds net. It is covered first with bass and then with sacking, made of Indian grass tied around with ratan. Each bale contains a printed statement, of which the following is a copy:

PROVINCIA DE CAGAYAN,

PARTIDO DE CITA. Cosecha de 186.

Clas de conteine 40 manos de tabaco aforado por la junta de aforo y enfardelado por el que subscribe. Tuguegarao de de 186.

El Gobernadorcillo caudillo. V.{o} B.{o} Vicente Lasan. El Interventor de aforo.

The tobacco plant while growing is easily affected by a wet season, while it is also liable to injury by the opposite extreme of heat or drought. If a drought occurs soon after the plants are transplanted, their growth and development is greatly hindered. When, however, the plants are nearly grown, a severe drought affects the plants but little, the large palm-like leaves forming a kind of canopy and keeping the earth moist and cool. During a wet season, and sometimes when the plants have been set in damp soil, they are affected by "brown rust," or, as it is called at the South.

FIRING.



It is supposed to be caused by very damp weather, and is much dreaded by all growers of the weed, as it is sometimes quite common, and on low soil affects the crop to a considerable extent. It spots the leaf with hard brown spots that often fall out, producing holes fatal to the value of the crop. The lower leaves on the plant are more likely to be injured than those higher on the stalk. The spots vary in size; sometimes they are as large as a three cent piece, but more frequently about the size of a small pearl button. At the South, rust or "firing" is much more common than in the Connecticut valley, and often whole fields are badly affected by the malady. Some seasons hardly any rust can be discovered on the leaves, and if any spots are found they are fixed and do not spread.

Small plants are more liable to be injured than large ones, and not unfrequently nearly every leaf is covered with the spots. Many theories have been advanced in regard to the cause of rust and how to prevent it. It usually occurs just before, or after, topping, and if the plants are ripe enough to harvest, they should be cut before the rust spreads to any great extent. It makes its appearance very suddenly, and if the weather be favorable (damp), spreads rapidly, often in a few days injuring the plants to a great extent. There are two varieties of rust or "firing," brown and white; and while the former is dreaded by the grower, as it injures the quality of the plant, the other is regarded with special favor, as it gives value to the leaf.

The white rust,[81] as it is termed, is a small white speck (often noticed on cigars), making its appearance on the leaves of the plant towards the latter part of its growth, and usually found on the top and middle leaves. It is usually found on the best, and more frequently on light than dark tobacco. Unlike the brown rust, the white does not fall out, but is as firm in its place as any part of the leaf; sometimes the spots are as white as chalk, and again they will be of a yellowish shade, though lighter in color than brown rust. The lighter the color the better their effect on the leaf upon which they are found. Leaves thus "spotted" make the finest of wrappers, and light-colored leaf thus affected brings the very highest price. It is well known to manufacturers of cigars that such leaves burn well, and almost invariably make a light ash. Good judges of cigars always pick for those thus affected, and watch with interest the ash of the cigar, noting the color as well as the flavor.

[Footnote 81: Florida tobacco is noted for the white rust found on the leaves.]

Some seasons this kind of rust is quite common, and it is supposed to be caused in the same way as the brown, although there are some growers who think that it is produced by altogether different causes. There is, however, a marked difference in the appearance of the leaves thus spotted; the white rust is not usually as thick upon the leaf, and is more generally found along the sides of the leaf, while the brown rust is found more in the center than along the sides. Tobacco of a light cinnamon color thus "marked" is considered the most valuable, and could the planter obtain such a crop at option, he could realize the very highest price for it. Large growers who find much of their tobacco "spotted" in this manner, would do well to keep such leaves by themselves, and sell direct to the manufacturer. Both kinds of rust are more commonly seen on the plants during a wet than a dry season, and particularly if the plants have grown rapidly during the latter part of the time.

Formerly buyers of leaf tobacco were more interested in leaf of this description than now; and some of them, more anxious than others, made liberal offers to any grower of tobacco who could ascertain how such tobacco could be obtained. It is hardly probable that any method of culture could be devised so as to obtain such leaf; it seems to be a freak of nature, depending somewhat on the soil as well as the humidity of the atmosphere, and without doubt is beyond the control of the grower. Various theories propounded and experiments tried have not met with any success that we are aware of. Some growers are of the opinion that light manure spread on moist soil will tend to produce leaf affected with white rust, while others affirm that such leaf is common on high ground when manured with light fertilizers. It is a matter of doubt whether such leaf can be obtained by any preparation of soil, or any system of cultivation whatever.

SEED PLANTS.

The selection of large, well-formed plants for the maturing of the seeds, is of more importance than most growers are aware of.[82] Not only should the altitude of the plant be taken into account, but also the size and texture of the leaf.

[Footnote 82: Liancourt says of the selection of seed plants in Virginia:—"The seed for the next year is obtained from forty to fifty stalks per acre, which the cultivator lets run up as high as they will grow, without bruising their heads."]

If a variety foreign to the soil (on which it is cultivated) is grown, then particular pains should be taken to select seed plants resembling those cultivated in its native home.

In cultivating foreign varieties, even the first season plants may be seen that do not resemble the majority, but are seemingly trying to accommodate themselves to the soil and climate, and in consequence resemble in a measure the variety commonly cultivated. Growers of Havana tobacco in the Connecticut valley can testify to this, and especially to the increased size of the plants. There are, however, growers of Havana tobacco, who claim that it will never deteriorate in quality, and that seed from Havana is not required in order to secure the delightful flavor of the Vuelta de Abajo leaf. Our experience is the reverse of this, and applies more directly to the flavor of the leaf than the size, color, or texture. In the Connecticut valley Havana leaf retains in a remarkable degree the texture and color of leaf, but not the flavor. Fresh or new seed is required from time to time. Sieckle says on the choice of seed:—



"The selection of seed is one of the principal conditions for raising good tobacco, especially when intended for the manufacture of cigars. In the United States now and then Havana seeds are planted. The tobacco raised therefrom generally resembles the real Havana in shape and color of leaves. But in order to reproduce approximately also the fine taste and flavor of genuine Havana tobacco, it would be required to impart to the soil exactly the components which constitute the famous tobacco-ground, viz.: the soil of the above-mentioned Vuelta de Abajo in Cuba. We say approximately, because the climate is a thing that can be neither transplanted nor fully equaled by artificial means. Havana seed propagated in the United States usually degenerates very soon, even in the course of two or three years. In other countries the experiment has been made to acclimate foreign seeds, for instance, Havana, by crossing, respectively changing the sexes and giving the male influence now to the foreign, then to the home plant."

In the Connecticut valley the cultivation of Havana tobacco is increasing year by year, and it promises to become the principal variety cultivated. All of the leading qualities of Connecticut seed leaf, such as color, strength, and texture, are preserved, while the flavor is as fine as that of much that is imported. The plants selected for seed should be allowed to fully ripen, when the leaves may be stripped from the stalks, that the capsules may receive all the strength of the growing and maturing plants. The seed plants should be left standing some six or eight weeks after the other plants have been harvested. If the nights are very cold and frosty, the top of the plants may be covered with a light cloth or paper to protect the seed buds.

When the capsules are of full size and brown in color, the top may be broken off and hung up in a dry, cool place to cure, after which the seeds should be taken from the capsules. To do this, the end of the seed buds may be cut, when most of the seeds will fall out if the buds are fully ripe and dry. A southern planter gives the following account of the curing and management of seed plants:—

"There are four classes of tobacco grown in Virginia and North Carolina, viz.: Shipping, filling, smoking, and wrapping; and it is important that planters desiring to raise either one of these should choose the kind of seed best adapted to each particular class. The Pryor makes the heaviest, richest shipping, and can only be grown to perfection on alluvial or heavily manured lands. The Frederick or Maryland grows larger, but is not so rich and waxy. The Oronoko is far preferable for fillers, smokers or wrappers, being sweeter in flavor, finer in fibre and texture, and more easily cured yellow. This is the kind best adapted to our gray soils, giving best returns. The product is not so large as on black or brown lands, yet with skill in curing and management, the difference in product is more than made up in quality.

"The Oronoko, therefore, is the only kind suited to our gray lands, and of this there are several varieties, the two most in favor being the yellow Oronoko, and the Gooch or Pride of Granville. The first is the kind that gave character to the Caswell (North Carolina) yellow tobacco more than twenty years ago, and is still preferred by a very large number of planters who grow the finest yellow smokers and wrappers. The latter is preferred in Granville county, North Carolina, that produces the finest yellow tobacco grown on this continent, or, perhaps, in the world. This latter is clearly an Oronoko tobacco, very much resembling the former, except that the leaf grows rather broader, and by some is considered sweeter. These two kinds have been grown with special reference to their adaptation to producing the finest quality of wrappers, smokers, and fillers. I am satisfied that the art of curing and management have not only been very far advanced toward scientific perfection, but that in perfecting the kinds of seed grown much improvement has been made. For instance, in the saving of seed, by adopting the plan of turning out the forwardest plants growing in the best soil, and afterwards observing to cut off all the heads of plants that ripen up coarse, narrow or ill-shaped, or of a green color on the hill, and saving only those heads that ripen yellow in color and of a smooth and fine texture, much has been done to improve the kind. Besides, the most important point in the saving of tobacco seed is to cut off all the lateral shoots, leaving only three crown shoots to perfect seed, thereby securing larger pods and more perfect seed that always ripen in good time, and are more reliable for seed beds and the production of early, vigorous plants.

"By following this mode of saving seed with special reference to the growth of a particular class of tobacco, in a few years the seed is not only greatly improved, but as like begets like in the vegetable as in the animal kingdom, becomes sui generis—the first of its species. The writer can bear testimony to the above facts and desires that others may profit thereby. Where any plant attains its highest perfection, there is the place to secure the best seed. The home of the tobacco plant is in Virginia and North Carolina, and the growth and perfection of the kinds here cultivated have reached a point unattained any where else. The West and South would do well to procure their seed from us, and then save and propagate after the instructions above given."

SECOND GROWTH.

The first account we find of raising a second crop of tobacco on the original field, is found in the early history of the Virginia colony; who, not satisfied with the vast amount cultivated in the usual manner, allowed a second growth to spring up from the parent stalk and thus obtained two crops from the same field in one year. The inferior quality of this growth at length caused its prohibition by law, as described elsewhere in this work. Of late, however, this "new departure" in tobacco culture seems to have attracted some attention, particularly in the Southern States, where numerous experiments have been made, and in some instances with complete success. In Mexico and also in Louisiana and California, two and even three crops are gathered, thus adding to the profit of the grower, but hardly to the fertility of the tobacco fields. Whatever the fertility of the tobacco field may be, or the care and attention given to the second crop by the planter, it can not equal the first crop, and must from the nature of the case be quite inferior in size, texture, and flavor of leaf.