Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1872-09-15

The Tobacco Mandatory OF McO"

few days ago we visited the tobacco manu- ;,
factory of Messrs. McCallum & Co., slIua'eu
lust beyond the corporate limits in East MnoA
vile. and were kindly shown over the puiiu,ns
nv Major Hensley, the Superintendent VINO mas
1870 of vears' experience in this branch OF
industry, and who explained the oinefen' pro-
cesses to which the weed . Is sup!ecteo from
the time the seed is planted until 1t is ready LOT
the consumer.
Tn this latitude tobacco is planted during the
monthsof May and June, on good soil, but
not of necessity extremely rich, though most
people labor under the impression that tobacco
Impoyerishes the soil more than any other crop,
but to show the fallacy of this belief it is Gus
tomary in tobacco producing regions to SOW a
crop of wheat after the tobacco is cut, which is
usually done.iA September.
After being cut it is cured for short while,
the leaves are then stripped and tied in bundles
and hung up to cure thoroughly and dry, ana
after drying they are struck down and
packed in large hOgsheads, when they are SOLD
to the manufacturers. This ends the planter S
trouble, and he returns home from the trip with
his pocket book of plethoric dimensions, to re-
peat the same course the next year.
The preparatory curing done by the plan
ter takes place during the winter and his market
is in the spring On its arrival at the mandatory
the tobacco is weighed and given to the pickers
who assert it in grades, doing it with rapidly
that astonishes the beholder. 1t is then favored,
the compound used, being. sugar and llcorlce,
which imparts sweet and pleasant taste. All
tobacco for the Southern market is so treated,
consumers having acquired the habit OF using
only that so treated and will have no other.
After the leaf remains in this havoring pro-
cess long enough it is turned over to the STEM
mers, generally small boys, whose nlmbie nm
gers remove the main stem without INJURY TO
al. L.
type. 1t is then taken by men who put up the
leaves in rolls weighing a quarter of a pound.
These are the plugs in their first formation.
Each ROLLER has scales convenient, put tneir
eye is generally SO correct that the variance Is
scarcely appreciate.
The rolls are then placed on scaffolds about
one hundred in each, and dried in the sun.
About two days is sufficient, according to the
state of the weather. 1t then is packed together
and goes througha drawing" process, whereby
the moisture is distributed equally through the
rolls and wrappers. The rolls are then placed IN
"crimps," whereby the shape is obtained. and
next placed in the mills and then subjected to q
heavy pressure. The levers are iron, about Tiff
teen feet long, and when the plugs come out they
are in proper shape for being placed in boxes.
After they are packed in the boxes, they are
again put under pressure and the heads put In,
when the boxes are stamped and the tobacco is
ready for sale.
The boxes are of twenty -fve and fifty pounds
weight ana are KNOWN as quarter anu HILL
boxes. There is but little waste, even the stems
being utilized for: the manufacture of snuff and
are shipped to Richmond. McCallum 81 Co., man.
ufacture several noted brands, among them be-
ing "McCallnm & Co.'S Extra Extra" Our
Favorite," BELL of Tennessee" "Ocoee," and
"Hiwassee." They employ about thirty hands
and average PTSbably three thousand pounds pound,
grades made in Virginia, and though it is but q
Short time since they engaged in business yet
they are rapidly building up trade.
With the success of the above named firm we
anticipate an extension of the business. Tobac-
co growers and manufacturers of long expe-
rience say that our climate is equal if not, in:
deed, superior to that of Virginia, while the soil
isAqually adapted to its cultivation. Mr.. j. W.
Trent, Of Strawberry Plains, raises as fine to-
bacco as any in the Old Dominion, and our farm,
ers should take lesson from his efforts and
begin the cultivation of this staple. tits cash
article and is always seasonable. and great deal
of the work necessary to be done in preparing
it for market can be done atintervals when there
is no other work to do. A Virginia paper said
that "Lynchburg is as large as tobacco can
make it." Let the effort be made to increase
the prosperity of Knoxville by the same means