The Osceola times., 1883-11-10
CIGAR TRADE SECRETS.
Interesting and Instructive Disclosures
Made by a Dealer.
CHICAGO News

Interesting and Instructive Discios"res
Made by Dealer.
Chicago News.
A reporter of the Daily News CHANGED
into one of the largest wholesale and re-
tail importing tobacco houses in Chicago
lately. While there wealthy mer-
chant, whose love of good weed is well
known among his friends, came in and
asked: as it possible for me to get a
genuine Havana cigar?'
"Ycs. sir" answered the proprietor
briefly, oourtcously and positively.
"Let me have one," said the merchant
The cipar-dealer went to his safe, pro-
duced tin box, opened it, and took
thcrefrom large sized cigar incased In
tin foil.
81 think you will find that good
one," he said, as he handed it to the
merchant.
The smoker took the cigar, lighted it.,
and asked.
"How much?"
"One dollar" sdd the cigar-dealer'
blandly, but without smiling
The merchant frowned. isn't that
pretty high for cigar?" he asked.
at is a good deal of money to pay for
a single smoke" said the cigar-dealer,
"but it is not high price for that cigar
in the sense that you use the term. By
the high you mean excessive; and as
sure you that can sell you two cigars
for 25 cents and make as much profit on
them as shall make on selling you the
cigar you are now smoking for 81. And
they will be genuine Havanas, too"
II wish you would explain that to me, "
said the merchant, lying down a trade
dollar, which the cigar dealer disdained
to touch, but instead squared himself for
speech, which he intended to prove as
"clincher."
"I've said this thing great many
times before he began, "but I'll say it
again, and say it slow; ther you'll be
sure to take it all in. In the first place
there is no pleasure in retailing Havana
cigars; your customer grumblcs at the
price; you don't really make any profit
on them; your customer won't believe
the cigars you sell him for Havanas arc
genuine, and in most cases his taste has
become so depraved that he can't ap'
preciate the genuine article, even if he
gets it, Again, there are very few-how
few | could scarcely make you believe
genuine Havana cigars imported into
this country. They are in demand all
over the world, and the demand is many
times in excess of the supply. Besides
the very name of Havana is a misnomer
| have smoked cigars made out Of native
Connecticut tobacco that were bet
ter than some cigars imported direct
from Cuba. The real Havana lea
has very delicate fiber. Its veins art
not straight, as in most tobacco, but arr
zir-zag. The more they zig-zag the bet
Ter the tODaCtb. iIlttT tllc Idlls
Havana, a tobacco which grows only il
the Tuelto Abajo District, near the city
of Havana. they purchase all kinds OF to
bacco which grow in Cuba, and the Cub
ans themselves will tell you that some o
it is the worst in the world. Yara, which
is fine grade of Cuban tobacco, if uset
when fresh, is lagely worked up as Ha
vana, but not to so great an extent al
, that grown in Vuelto Arriba. Some o
the last named has really a fine favol
and taste, but the leaf is much coarse
, than the Havana leaf, and much of it il
as coarse in flavor as in appearance. Yet
whatever flavor it has is generally supe
rior to that grown in the United States
and gives tone TO the Connecticut seet
tobacco, with which it is usually nixeo
to make the ordinary seed and Havans
. cigar. We use, in the Uuitcd States. {
great deal of tobacco from Suniatra, ia
maica and Mexico, but the bulk Of tn,
so-called Havana tobacco comes from the
! Vuelto Arrida. The real Havana, thai
, from Tuclto Abajo is almost entirely alb
sorbed by Cuban manufacturers, the pro
duct of the best plantations beinl
mortgaged tor years in advance, as wa
once the case with many cotton planta
tions of the Southern States. You may
, be sure that very little of this tobacco
ever gets into the Northern markets. A
common error among wealthy smokers
is to suppose that because they buy an
imported cigar they must get good one
Many of the brands of imported goods
which have their run here, such as the
, Figaro, Espanola and Partaga, never
were fine grade of goods as compared
with other Cuban cigars, and many OF
, the limitations made here and sold BY
millions as genuine are actually better
than the original Some excellent
brands of cigars are imported here from
Cuba, but in very small quantities, the
bulk of the best goods being sent To
Europe. could give you further point
ers about the cigar trade, but don't
know that | could say anything more
about Havanas. Oh, yes We don't get
our cigars by way of New York, as many
persons suppose, but by the way Of
New Orleans, and Chicago receives and
smokes more fine cigars than New York
does. There are quantities of smuggled
cigars received in New Orleans every
year, and many of them find their way
to this city. OF course our house does
not handle them, but we know they are
handled in the city"
The merchant picked up his trade dol.
lar, which had been lying neglected on
the showcase. He pulled out a SIC
greenback and said:
Can you give me a dozen of these
) cigars for Sl0?"