The Delaware ledger. (Newark, Del.) 1879-19??, 1884-03-29

A letter from Mariendal, sumatra,

A letter from Mariendal, Sumatra,
says:
1--WE are now several miles from the
town, in the midst Of enormous tobacco
plantations, every one OF which is like
province in itself.
Gaunt, half-clad, brown faced men
may be seen creeping like ants about
the edge of the jungle, while on every
side there start up out of the sea Of
vegetation those long, low, barrack-like
sheds where the tobacco leaves are dried |
and pressed, in the nearest of which are
working the 400 Cinnamon who were
summoned to their labor an hour ago by
the blast of a cows horn.
"Now, isaid our hospitable host, Myn-
heer Van der Hoeven, with the bright
ness Of a genuine Dutch welcome on
his bold brown face, 1--WE must show
you and your lady how we work here.
1t is a pity that you did not come in the
spring time, for then you would have
seen the planting and the growing, and
the packing, and all the rest Of it. But
now there is nothing going on except
the drying of leaves, which is being
done in that shed that you see yonder.
1t is but seldom that you can get two
crops in succession (crops of tobacco.
1 mean) from one piece of land. Some
of our neighbors have done it, but in
general it is better to plant it with rice
or something Of that sort and not try
tobacco on it again for six or seven
years. That what we have done here,
as you see." He points to wide belt
of padi rice which stretches far away to
the right, its tender green contrasting
very prettily with the dark masses of
wooding behind it. In the edge of the
jungle gapesa a deep cash, showing where
fresh ground is being cleared for new
tobacco plantations.
"That's one Of the sacred trees of the
Malays," explains our guide, in answer
to my questioning look. "There are
several which they hold sacred, and
when we begin cutting down the Jungle
to clear new soil for our tobacco plant
ing the people come to us and beg us to
spare this tree or that tree, and, of
course, we always do it. Now, here we
are at the drying-shed; shall we go IMP"
In we go accordingly. The interior
is very much like a rick-yard. with
tobacco stacks instead of hay-ricks,
among which a perfect army Of balf-
clad Chinese coolies, 400 strong, are
hard at work sorting, ranging and stow
ing. So overpowsringly strong is the
scent of the half-dried tobacco leaves
that smoker would have nothing to dc
but to take in an empty pipe with him
: and enjoy good hard smoke gratis,
merely by inhaling the air through 1T.
But the Cinnamon, whether habituated
to 1t by long use, or fortified against II
: by the superior power Of opium, breathe
this perfumed atmosphere as easily as il
, it were the purest air of the sea. "That
, is how we measure the heat, you see, u
{ says our host, calling our attention tc
, the hollow bamboos, thrust through the
, heart of each stack, with stick inside
it, which, when pulled out, is almost toe
hot to touch. SIT must never be above
! or below certain point, you know. In
! stead of stripping off the leaves at once
we hang up the whole plant TO dry, and
do not strip it till it is quite dried. The
} Sumatra tobacco, however, will not dc
for cigars. 1t is only used for what We
generally call 'deckblatt' (cover leaf
which covers the outside of the cigar
Q Last season the United States took &
Q great deal of our tobacco, and we ex
l pect that they will take more still, il
, spite of the duty, which is one guildel
40 cents) per bale of 160 pounds. Tht
= usual price is two and half guild
ers (Sl) per pound, and the ordinary
: cost of transport to Europe about s.
{ per bale.
Midway along the grove of tobacco
stacks leach nearly as high as MANI
n head), which runs down the centre O.
the building, hangs ponderous irol
1 steam-punch, all ready to squeeze thu
loose leaves into those compact bale!
which fit INTO the hold of merchant
man as neatly as bits of mosaic.
"Do you go much into coffee, growing
}, in these parts2" asked /, suddenly re
i calling the now forgotten Dutch move
= of 'Max Havelaar" (which read year
!, ago in st. Petersburg), and its furiou
d tirade against the unparalleled iniquit,
5 of Dutch coffee e-growers and Dutcl
n coffee brokers in the far East. "No
: Java's more the place for that. Her
i in Sumatra we grow very little, for as
d rule it does not even pay its own ex
: penses. L have a small plantation
y few miles from here, but don't expec
) 1 shall ever make anything out of it
IS Tobacco's the great thing here, and th
a profits upon that are very large in spit
/, Of the duty. The Deli company, whicl
e is the chief tobacco.g growing concern il
" these parts, paid a dividend of 9S pc
Il cent. this last year, and 1 think they'l
y go:even higher than that before long
't especially if America continues to bu
IL from us"
70 'If you so seldom get two tobacc
le crops in succession off the same piec
. of ground, and if you have to clea
,, fresh land every year for your planting
u some of the plantations must be of
II very respectable size."
10 "They are indeed One plantatio
4 belonging to the Dell company, whic
I, you passed on your way up here, extend
e straight in one direction for thlrty-sl
"a miles. and there are soma LARGER eve