Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1860-04-28
Snuff Dipping in New York City.

Snuff Dipping in New York City.
A graphic sccount was published by one OF
our cotemporaries few days ago. OF the dis.
gusting practice of "snuf dipping" so exten-
svely 10 vogue among women Of oil classes in
the Southern States. People from the
North, travelling through Virginia, the Car
olinas. Georgia and Alabama, have been
astonished at behodiDg the open and matter.
of.fact method of indulgng it-at seeing
pretty young girls, lovely ladies, married
women and SINGLE sitting in circles, formed
expressly for this purpose. Each snuf.dip.
per has her bottle and swab stick, or box and
mop, from and by which che conveys the
filthy dust to her lips and then, Withdrawing
the mop, perhaps passes it along to her neigh.
Dor as an act Of delicate attention. Without
doubt this habit Of snuffdipping would be for
more uuseemly than that OF tobacco chewing
if prsctised by men, and when it is considered
that women only have adopted it, one can
hardly repress shudder of disgust.
Many Of our readers will be surprised to
learn that q great mistake is made in suppo.
sing that this foul and pernicious habit is
confined to the females Of the South. We
have to record the fact, based upon the care
fol investigation, that it ia moro or less
secretly in practice among the women of our
own city, and to quite considerable extent
The article used for this purpose is the old
fashioned yellow Scotch snuff Of which four
times as much is consumed in this way by the
women of New York ss for the titlation OF
the olfactory organ by all the snuff takers
Of both sexes. Certain tobacconsts on
Broadway and the Dowery have established a
reputation for the particular quality Of snuff
which they manufacture, and soll the greater
portion of the amount consumed. With
them anG their customers the practice is
called digging" instead Of dipping" and
those who are slaves to it go by the title of
"diggers"-a name that certainly seems most
appropriate, il intended to convey the idea Of
analogy between their habits and those of the
Digger Indians, Who Of oil wretcbed and bar
barous tribes, live on the most unnatural and
loathsome Diet
The votares Of snuff chewing are not con.
fined to any particular class of the women of
New York. Though probably it is most
females, yet all the settlers agree that large
part of the demand is from genteel and high
bred ladies 10 the fashionable walks OF life
Females of all ages are among the customers.
Girls OF the town are often addicted to the
use Of this snuff, finding 10 it stimulant
more soothing aud enduring in its effects
than the liquors with which they seek to
drown their misery and shame. The combi-
nation Of the various snuils is kept q trade
secret by the manufacturers, but about 20
| per cent. is made up Of salt, pearlash, aud
other puugent substances, which add favor
aud stimulating power to the article. Hun
dreds of women buy their snuff under the
pretence Of cleaning their teeth, and is claim.
ed by the dealers that oil their digging"
customers, old or young, have their teeth in
remarkably sound and lustrous condition.
How the practice came SO extensively
spread in New York is not known, though it
! is probably Southern Importation, and had
rot obtained much OF footbold until within
the past fifteen years. Those who are addict.
ed to it here do not display their babis
openly, as at the South, but conceal it care
fully from their uearest-friends, shutting
themselves in their rooms and secretly in.
dulgipg in snua debauch. They deposit
the mixture with peculiarly. shaped horn or
silver spoon, in the inside OF the lower lip
There it is allowed to remain until thorough.
iy moistened, when it is passed around to the
sides Of the mouth, where it stays till ex.
hausted of its essential powers.
When this habit has once fastened upon q
woman, she rarely, if ever, is able to shake il
of. Neither ruined health, self respect mol
love for her husband, children and friends
can give her sufficient resolution to abstain
from snuff chewing. Among other instances
narrated by prominent iobaccouist, illustra
tive Of this fact, was the case of rich and
fashionable lady, whose husband presented
her, at different times, with horse and car
riage, and other costly gifts, as pledges that
she would abandon the habit, but, after 9
short abstinence, she invariably returned to
her snuff. On one occasion, having taken
the steamer for Charleston, or some other
Southern port, and having forgotten, In heI
hurry, the precious box Of snuff, she gave
black stewardess 50 for a fsw spoonsluls o'
like quality which the latter had 10 her pos
session. That our readers may form some
idea of the enormous prevalence OF this habit
in their midst, We may state that one To-
bacconist, having small store on Broadway
retails one hundred pounds per week, to his
"digging" customers alene. Ills snuhng Gus
toners consume but twenty-five pounds
One firm, keeping store on the Bowery ant
another down town, make and sell thres
barrels 600 pounds) in the same number o
DAYS, ali of which is consumed by women o
New York City The amount used by eact
"digger" varies from one quarter OF pound
TO pound per week !-1fibune.