Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1882-09-25


stylish, colorv, or is it flavor that yor
want %
Are there styles and fashions in cigars ?
"To be sure" the tobacco man replied
Fashions and styles change in cigars
even more than they do in dress. The
judges OF really good cigar are very few
indeed. The average smoker buys cigar
through his eyes. Now, here is one,
taking it from gathering showcase,
that sells for five cents. You will no.
tice that it Is rich, dark, glossy, and
handsome. 1t has no quality, but a
smoker is satisfied with it because it looks
well, and stuck in his mouth, it serves
the purpose OF twenty-five cent cigar.
L remember when it was fashionable to
smoke light-colored cigars, Claro or Col,
orado as they are known in the trade,
but now every body wants dark, colory
goods. This has led to the use of color
ing extracts, and Havana tobacco extrac.
ia now staple article of merchandise Ia
the trade. In shapes the cigar mauufact
urers are controlled by mold-makers,
who, in order 30 stimulate their business,
are as eX0rsble in their seasons chan ges
as are the makers Of hatters' blocks.
Cigars are pressed into wooden molds
before the wrapper is put on, and, accord.
ing to the mold, the cigar is turned out
to be thick or thin, dumpy, pointed at
end, or entirely round. Smokers, as |
said before, are attracted by appearance,
and some shapes become very popular
and have great run; others don't take
IS all, and then the mold makers get up
another shape. As for quality it "a sim.
ply q matter OF taste. Same men actu-
ally prefer the taste of nickel cigar,
just as an irishman will cling to his clay
pipe and niger. head But it is a curl
GUS fact that If smoker once inhalss
the flavor of fine cigar, he loses all
taste for a cheaper article.
Yes; the people are gradually bccom-
ing educated IN the matter of taste, and
there would soon be no market for nickel
cigars II the ranks OF smokers were not
constantly recruited from boy cigarette
smokers. Last year the consumption of
cigarettes was ii 600, 900 less in this country
than the year before. This shows that re-
eruits have been added To the ranks of CT
gar smokers. Perhaps you don't know that
New York has become the largest manu-
featuring center of the cigar industry in
the world. For the seven months of this
year ending July 30th there were AL, 1856
600 cigars made in New York City. These,
at Sc per Thousand, yialded a very hand
some revenue to the Government.
'The cigar industryis controlled by for
eigners, and all have made money. Cigar
makers come principally from Germany :;
many are from Bohemia, and few are
from Belgium, Holland ard England. Ger-
man cigarmakers are coming over now in
large numbers. and are settling in New
York at the rate of 1900 year. They
all find employment at remurerstive wages.
A good workman gets 81 30 per LOCO for
making cigars, and be can turn out froa,
az t. 20 cigars day.
. Tobacco IS peculiar plant. Every
leaf differs. The more tender the Leaf the
finer the quality. No machinery has yet
been perfected TO supplant the akilIful
manipulation OF the human hand, although
there have been numerous attempts to
make cigars by machinery. Tie essential
parts of cigar are the filler and the binder,
which is called a bunch, and the wrapper.
The wrapper is not the thitsieth part of o
cigar, and yet it is the part which imparts
flavor TO the whole. 4 bad wrapper viii
spoil the filler and binder, while q COCO
wrapper put on poor bunch will make 6.
very good smoke, TAe introduction of a
new tobacco. grown on the Island OF
Sumatrs, into this market has lately caused
a great futter in the trade. This tobacco
is grown under the direction of wealth.,
Dutch syndicate at Amsterdam, which EN-
ploys coolies to raise tobacco on thaiT pos
sessions il the East Indies. The tobacco
has only been in this market two wears,
vat n 70 foy IL A.
importations OF IL have increased at the
rate of one hundred per cent. year. In
1874 the total tobacco product of the Is
land of Sumatra was only 96,463 pounds.
Last month l47, pa pounds alone were
brought to New York. The Sumatra leaf
is cured so well, and is go glossy and hand
some in appearance, that cigsrmakers
eagerly take to it. Its quality is very
poor, bat since four pounds of it will
cover 1000 cigars, where twelve
pounds of seed or domestic are ordi.
narily used, it is much cheaper to use
Sumstra tobacco where appearance only is
considered, notwithstanding It's duty of 80
cents pound aud 10 per cent ad valorem.
Cigar manufacturers cay that American
growers Of tobacco have become very care
less IN the cultivation of their tobacco
crops. IL requires one year OF curing be-
fore the crop Is ready for the market, and
the so and 81 crops have been found so
poor that in self.defonse the handsome Su-
matrian stranger has been given the pref.
erenoe. Lately the Tariff Commission,
while at Long Branch, heard arguments for
the suppression of this imported tobacco by
placing on an additional so per cent, or
100 per cent. ad valorem duty. Cigar man
ufacturers aver that they prefer to use
Pennsylvania or Connecticut tobacco if
they can get it for use in cigars. The ma
tive leaf, they say, has the quality, but it
is poorly cured aud OF bad color. Tne sort
ing of colors of Sumatra tobacco is graded
with the most perfect nicely. There are,
for instance, thirty, three shades OF brown
comprising dark rel, yellow and middle
bro%ns, and light and dark fallow. l. is
the NICE arrangement Of coiors which causes
the Sumatria tobacco to he preferred. and
it is said that American growers might
take a valuable lesson from the care and
skill which chaEActers, the coolie labor"
New York Sun.