Tobacco : Its history, varieties, culture, manufacture and commerce, with an account of its various modes of use, from its first discovery until now / [E R Billings].

  • Billings, E. R.
Date:
1875
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Tobacco : Its history, varieties, culture, manufacture and commerce, with an account of its various modes of use, from its first discovery until now / [E R Billings]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    extent than during the three hundred years succeeding its discovery. Now its cultivation has been reduced to almost an exact science, and the quality of the leaf is in a great measure within the control of the growers of tlie plant. Formerly it was supposed that the varieties that grew in the tropics could not be successfully cultivated in the tem- perate regions, but recent and repeated ex])eriments have demonstrated the fact that the tobacco of Cuba can be grown with success in the Connecticut valley. While the tobacco of the tropics is the finest in flavor, th'e'Tnore temperate regions produce the finest and best colored leaf. The tobacco of the tropics, as to the uses to which it is j3ut, is limited, while the tobacco of the more temperate regions can be used for all the purposes for which the plant is designed. The cultivation of the plant varies with the variety, the soil, and the use to be made of the leaf. Thus a tobacco designed for cutting purposes is cultivated somewhat differ- ently from that designed for the manufacture of snuff or cigars. In the one case the plant is allowed to remain grow- ing longer in the field, while in the other the work of topping the plants is performed at an earlier stage of their growth. Primarily 'but little attention was paid to the color and texture of the leaf, the principal object being the production of a leaf of large size, rather than one of good color, and of a silky texture. Now, however, these are most important con- siderations, and give value to the tobacco in proportion to the perfection of these qualities. The soil, too, is carefully chosen and fitted in the most thorough manner, while the fertilizers used are selected with reference to the color of leaf desired. When first cultivated in the United States it was thought that tobacco designed for various uses could not be grown in the same state or section; now, however, tobacco for cigars and for cutting are grown nearly side by side. But in the fineness of the leaf, tobacco culture has made its greatest stride. By a careful selection of soil, and by the judicious application of proper fertilizers, the leaf tobaccos of Connecticut, Cuba, and