Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1882-01-10
TOBACCO.
OUR CHEAT STAPLE,
General Delivery Of the Crop Begun.

buyers and sellers. The early buyers, who
believed the crop was going to be Il failure.
and who bought the weed as it stood in
the fields OF hung green upon the poles,
and contracted to pay hign prices for the
same, We're generally cautious euuueh to
bind the sellers down to very strict terms
The grower had to guarantee not merely
that the tobacco should be sound, well
assorted, free from white vein, and deliy
cred in good merchantable condition, but
also that the leaves should be of certain
specified length. and all leaves falling
short Of the specified length were to fall
into the next grade below. For example
a dealer buys Il crop at %, 10 and s. the
condition being that the wrappers shall
measure 20 inches or over. The farmer
feels sure that the great bulk of his crop
will be sold for % cents but when hc
comes to strip it he finds large proper
tion that measures only IS or 10 inches.
What will he do about it: He knows that
his 19-inch tobacco is almost rs
good as the 2O-inch, and yet, if he acts
strictly according to his contract, rs he
ought to do, he will only get two.iftls of
the price he expected to get for Il great
portion Of his crop. Ii he is honest. he
will grin and bear it, and be more careful
next time in making Il bargain. But some
times he is not honest and devises various
methods to save himself ut the expense of
the buyer, but he don't always succeed.
One OF the methods used to make hand
of Is Or 19-inch leaves measure 20 inches,
is to carefully slip about one half of the
butt ends an inch or two below the other
hall, SO that the points oi these leaves will
protrude an inch or SO beyond the others.
BY measuring the protrudiny butts at one
end and the protruding points at the other.
the leSerdemain is accomplished to the
satisfaction of the farmer-but not the
buyer. That astute gentleman has been
there himself and knows all about it
When the tobacco is delivered he ut once
detects and exposes the trick and docks
the shallow farmer enormously.
Another trick of dishonest farmers, who
have sold their crops to be delivered in
certain specified lengths. is to measure
c7refully and tie up all that is long enough
and to hide away all that is a little short.
The long wrappers, u few seconds and
filters are then delivered to the purchaser
and the shorter ones are held in the name
of some other grower probably, and sold
to some other dealer at twice as much as
they would have brought had the grower
faithfully fulfilled his contract. This trick
is more difficult to detect than the former,
and its preparation may III some measure
account for the very light average weight
per acre of which dealers ami farmers
alike complain.
Another dishonest practice is to tic up
the hands of wrappers with two or three
filler leaves, and thus get wrapper prices
for filters. The trick does not often suc.
coed, however, as the buyer knows almost
intuitively the quantity of filters that
ought to belong to any given crop.
On Saturday crop of pretty good to-
bacco was delivered at ono OF the city
ware houses, in which there WEI G no filters
at all! The dealer asked the grower where
his fillels were, and he said he had Home
his crop was all wrappers and seconds.
but being pressed, he finally aciSnowl
| edged that he had taken his filler; to tic
up the rest Of his crop. His dishonesty
was not only exposed, but the sharp buyer
made him pay dearly for his whistle, by
estimating the weight of filters at Il great
deal more than it really was.
Another trick is to try and hide white
vein leaf in hands of sound wrappers, but
this, too, is generally detected by the
buyer, who not infrcauently condemns Il
NAOlC UuASp w "hV'o CipI,
because OF a comparatively small quantity
of white vein attempted To- be hidden
i'll it.
But these dishonest practices arc the ex
ception. and not the rule, among Laucas
ter county farmers, and we mention them
here to show that honesty is the best
policy among tobacco growers, as Gcll as
among other classes OF people.
ST how many tricks uf the ir ufs ,,ro
! practised by dishonest buyers We arc not
smart enough to find out. They are
credited with being able to see white vein
! in almost every Leaf until after they have
bought and paid for it when, presto
the white vein disappears and they are
| the happy holders of the best packing in
the county Inferior leaf from York and
Chester counties becomes first class Ian
caster tobacco us soon as it crosses the
SusQuehanna Or OctorarO. Yes, even
Ohio and Wisconsin trash arc instantly
metamorphoscd into prime Pennsylvania
rs rapidly as they arrive. Indeed, it is
! firmly believed by some of the knowing
| ones ESQ they say who have not bought
any of our present crop, but who would
not object to getting little at 10 cents
for wrappers, that Pennsylvania is about
played out, and that within = very few
years the great tobacco houses of LaHcas-
ter will be unOccupied and go into rapid
decay.
We are pleased to believe, however, that
these croakers form an insignificant por-
tion Of the buyers, who as a class are up
right, shrewd, fair-dcaling business men,
whose intelligent labOrs to advance their
own fortunes have very greatly advanced
the wealth Of the county. and especially
of the tobacco farmers. There should be
no antipathies between the two classes.
Each is necessary to the wei!-be;rg Of the
other and as q rule each trusts the other.
In conversation with several heavy buyers
yesterday, we were informed that they had
very little trouble III settling with the
farmers who have delivered their crops.
Most Of the crops were assorted ill ac-
cordance with the contracts made at the
time of purchase, and were brought in in
an excellent condition, there being much
less white vein than was expected. With
very few exceptions, when the farmers
fcctivc or failed to come up to the standard
agreed upon. they readily acceded to make
the deductions asked. a few were dissat
isficd and had their contracts cancclct.
Il is the almost unanimous opinion oil
those who have the best means OF know
ing that the 'S1 crop will yield good
deal less than was expected. Al
though the acreage is far greater
than ever before the yield per acre
is light. Many farms Oh which 1000
pounds per acre have been grown in former
wears did not Weld 500 mounds last season