Indiana State sentinel. (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1862-04-28

1he nations OF the civilized world are deriving
just now one of the largest items in their respec
tive revenues from this weed which vanishes in
smoke. The Pope would be bankrupt in month
if tobacco should fail, or men should stop smok-
ing, for he enjoys an income of some hundred
thousand scudi every year out OF his monopoly of
the trade, which is farmed out to a well known
banking and commercial house in Rome France
would suffer enormously if the anti tobacco So
ciety should convert the French nation from ci-
garettes, pipes and snuff. England would reduce
he- revenues disastrousy if the practice of using
tobacco were abandoned there.
The revenue of Great Britain from tobacco
alone was last year E5 6O4 ,032, or say S2S ,000,-
600. The revenue of France from tobacco, for
nine months in the year 1860, was l3S 1855 900
francs, or say S27 ,000,0 900, to which add one
third for the remaining three months, and we have
an item of $50, 900 900 going into the Golfers of
the Gallo emperor every year from the smoking
and snuffing habits of his people. Chewing is
not a French or English vice. The item in the
Papal revenue is so large that we may safely af
firm that Louis Napoleon would be spared the
bother of settling the question of the temporal
power, if he could extngush pipes and cigars in
the Roman dOminions. Who ever thought be-
fore how largely the Catholic Church is depend
ent on the vapor of nicOtinel
America and England are the only civilized
nations which we now call to mind, in which the
growing preparing, selling and using of tobacco
is entirely free from Government interference, by
direct taxation but this is not to be the here
after, and we are to join the other great nations
who derive parts of their internal revenue from
the smoke of the Virginia weed. France mOnop-
olizes the trade entirely. Spain does something
Of the same sort. The Pope sells, directly or
indirectly, all the tobacco that is used in his do
miniOns
When it thus appears that the habit of smoking
is a matter of national and world wide impor-
tance, the history of the habit becomes more in
tereStlng than as mere curious question of the
past 1t has been by some doubted whether it
was of American origin. The well known story
OF the importation of the custom into England
from the shores of the Western continent is with
out doubt correct, but it has been suggested that
the fact of finding the greatest nation OF smokers
in the world in the Orient, namely the Turks,
and finding tobacco there also, indicates knowl-
edge of the custom in the East wholly indepen-
dent OF the American discovery. Examination
leads, however, TO the conviction that this is one
of the customs which the Turks have derived
from civilization. 1t is well known that prior to
to the 18th century all the western part of Eu-
rope thoroughly familiar with the LeYant.
The Saracens, Turks, Arabs and all the
inhabitants of Syria, Egypt and Turkey were
known to the Venetians, Spaniards French and
tom of smoking Tobacco could exist in the East
and not be known in the West. 1t is nowhere
mentioned in the numerous descriptions of the
inhabitants of the Eastern countries, written and
published prior to the 18th century, and indeed
the surprise and curiosity which the introduction
of the custom into England caused in that nation,
is alone sufficient evidence that it then new
thing to European and Asian habits of life. The
smoking of opium and hasheesh in the East may
no more resemblance to smoking tobacco, than
drinking opium does to drinking wine. The one
process is mere short and rapid application of a
stmulant for the sake of its effects, quite differ
ent from the custom of burning a weed, and in
haling, or taking into the mouth, its smoke, fDm
hour to hour. The Mohammedan religion for
bids the of tobacco, drinking tobacco as
they call it, during certain prescribed fasts
Hence. it has been argued. tobacco was known
to Mahommedans long before the discovery of
America. The argument fails, for tobacco is
not mentioned in the Koran, nor in the earlier
traditions which the Moslems regard as of equal
authority with then sacred book. But it is in
cuded in some of the general formulas of fast
ing, where it is forbidden to eat or drink during
certain hours and DAYS, and no one can fix an
early date to these specifications.
We think it may be regarded certain that
America furnished to the world the greatest of
Its present eXtraVagant habits, ana 10 the nations
of Europe their most prolific source OF revenue
Since the discovery of the weed here its culti-
vation has extended over the world and the East
rivals the West in the production of good
ticle. The chewers of tobacco of course go no
farther than Virginia for their supply, but smo-
kers not thus content. The varieties of smo-
king tobacco in the markets of the world are nu-
merous. Cuba furnishes the most highly priced
cigars Connecticut furnishes Cuba with leaves
for the wrappers of many of these very cigars;
Virginia supplies from her immense factories a
bacco; France grows indefinite quantity of
cGDOrGL; the mountains of Switzerland, especially
some of the slopes near Vevay, produce the best
tobacco grown on the continent of Europe; while
the Northern slopes of the Lebanon mountains
grow the most delicate and highly priced tobacco
in the world, which is almost exclusively sold to
the Egyptian market, and seldom seen west of
Alexandria. Persia produces fine varieties of to-
bacco, and the cultivation extends into all parts
of Asia where the plant will grow.
All this for smoke, and yet a smoke which
keeps money stirring to and fro, freights Ships
turns the wheels of factories supports kings and
dynasties. One does not feel it quite as much in
America in Europe. but in France or Italy,
when a man enjoys quiet cigar he adds to the
pleasure of the weed, a satisfaction in knowing
that he is humbly contributing to keep in motion
the great wheels of Empire, and hereafter Ameri-
can smokers may add the same considerations
to their peasure.-N Y. Jour. Of Com.