The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1876-09-10
CIGARETTE SMOKING.
The Increasing Consumption OF Tobacco in
the United States.

The smoking OF cigarettes has become so
common in New York that It has made very
serious inroads upon the business Of the cigar
maker According to the report OF the Com
missioner OF Internal Revenue for 1875 the num-
Der OF cigarettes manufactured IN this country,
taxed at $50 per thousand, was 27,3l15O), and
OF larger sort, taxed at sl75, there was 1885,
3S3 In that year In addition to this largo guam
tity OF cigarettes OF home production, vast
quantities are brought from Havana. Cigarettes
that cost only So per Thousand packages In Ha-
vana or from $40 to f45 IN bond-gOld under.
stood, of course-cost, after duties are paid, $40
gold, or say from si6j to tl7O currency The eI
plan nation Of this exorbitant charge Is that,
whereas, prior to ISL each bundle OF cigarettes
was counted a. single piece and so taxed,
now each cigarette In the bundle IL held to be an
independent tiece and taxed as much a. should
be taxed Tor the whole bundle. About hve
this market, undertaking the honest impcrta-
tons and SIN paying enormous FRONTS To the
smugglers, that there was scarcely any sale Tor
the duty paid articles II l. so easy To throw
overbo lrd rom an incoming steamer. To a con-
federate III boat. few thousand packages Of
cigarettes, neatly wrapped in sheet rubber or
oiled silk, ana the profit ON the transaction-
four or nye hundred per ceut.-is 50 tempting,
that the wonder really h, no. that cigarettes are
smuggled, hut that We have any from Havana
that are not.
The best cuban cigarettes are the Uonradez.
Hanana, A-trel, Chorto. q lrca. and Henriqlez.
hey are all made mainly Of the scraps from the
cigar factories and wrapped In the thick. coarse,
Wnlte or ll4nt brown f'phul-u DtItT. tnht DuTnb
with a strong smell The delicate French paper.
on the other hand. such as tho Paper Persln,"
sans Norm" "Jou." or ltz La Crox.' Is
made OF rice straw or hulls, IA very much thin
ner. burns without any smell the genuine ar
ticle and Il 50 pure tnat N lighted sheet OF u
is thrown into the AR, 1t Is SO almost entirely
consumed that the eve can scarcely discern the
delicate film Of snowy ash II leaves.
All cigarette smokers agree that the purest
and most delicious wrapper IL the thin, tnner
husk OF Indian corn. The primitive wrapper
used by the natives OF san salvador, as first seen
by Columbus, was PAIN leaf :" IN a sort Of all
tunnel. In which the dried leaves OF the tobacco
were placed. Fire was applied 10 IT, and the
smoke was inhaled. No true cigarette smoker
pufs his cloud from his mouth as he would In
! smoking a cigar or a pipe, but he inhales IT,
! drawing 1t into the lungs, often holding II there
while he eats. or drinks. OF speaks, then eKpel'
! ling IL through the nOstrils.
| A close computation shows that the total con.
! sumption OF tobacco Annually IN the United
/ states amounts to little over three pounds for
! every man. woman. ana child in the country
] One New York firm alone turned out last wear
/ no less than 100000 pounds of plug, 10000
| pounds OF smoking, and 2,uJOO pounds o
! chewing tobacco. OF the plug. only smal
! part ever nnds its way Into cigarettes; but prob
/ ably thirty per cent. oftne smoking takes tina
direction.