Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1885-02-14
A VALUABLE WORK


That Should be Preserved.
To the Tobacco Trade of the United States
! GENTLEMEN We ask your aid ir
the effort to preserve the only full and
, complete history OF the great staple
Tobacco" which has ever been compil
ed. This History now lies in mutt.
lated form in the Census Bureau al
Washington, D. G. A united appeal
to the Government would no doubt
cause its restoration to its pristine per-
feet condition.
: When the Census Bureau was or
ganized to take the 1880 Census the
Tobacco Department was placed under
the charge of Col. J. B. Killebrew, a
gentleman of rare scientific attain
ments, and former Commissioner of
the Bureau of Agriculture, Mines
and immigration" of the State of Ten
nessee. A more happy selection of
peculiar fitness and talent, could not
have been made. Col. Killebrew
threw into this work the trained en-
energy, great research, and conpre-
hensive mind, which had worked such
great results in the Tennessee Agri-
cultural Department. In gathering
the material for this complete History
of the staple Tobacco" he travelled
many thousands of miles by raiL
water, and on horse back visiting
every section of the union which
planted tobacco, from New England
to Wisconsin and from the Atlantic
coast to Perique Louisiana.
He personally investigated the cult
ure, curing, &c of every type of to-
bacco grown in the United States, fol-
lowed it to its home markets, and
traced it to the final American or
Foreign consumer. He called to his
aid the best tobacco talent in every
market for classifcations, descriptions,
uses &c, of every type and grade Of
tobacco grown in the United States,
and prepared full series of colored
maps showing the habitant of every
American variety of the weed. We
had the good fortune to see much of
this work while it was progressing
and do not hesitate to pronounce it a
complete history in every detail of |
culture, curing, handling, classifica-
ton, analysis of plant and soils, &c.
DC. OF the American types of tobacco,
the subject was treated exhaustively. |
The work is an invaluable instructor I
to our trade and Foreign countries /
importing from us. Now what is the /
present condition OF this great work
upon which Col. Killebrew expended /
so much time, untiring energy and
research, celebrating it to every use
full detail. We will tell you; the Cen
sus Bureau unable rapidly to arrange
and print the immense mass of mater
ial gathered by the Census collectors,
the Government ordered reduction of
the material, as saving time and ex-
pence.
And SO, this great tobacco work has
been "cut." reduced in volume, perhaps
as the reduction was not
in the hands of the author, but of
clerks, who not being
tobacco experts" could not judge of
that most valuable to be saved. So, to
save few thousand dollars, this COM
plete history Of our staple is shOrn of
its perfectness, and the tobacco trade
deprived of portion of its useful
knowledge. A poor recognition of
the seven hundred millions of dollars,
which our trade has poured into the
United States Treasury, in the past
twenty years.
But fortunately the loss is not ire
the material though unused,
is not destroyed, but still lies in the /,
Census Bureau, and we call upon the
tobacco trade in all its various ramifi- +,
to use every possible influence
with the government to restore to us d.
1ur tobacco History"
The tobacco tax of an hour or so, :
would pay the whole printing bill,
We are yours fraternally,
NJ. II. CLARK & Bro.
Leaf Tobacco Brokers.