The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1886-09-16
DARK COLORED TOBACCO.
The Resweating of the Weed to Meet q
Popular Craze.

One of the latest tricks i'm the tobacco
trade, says the Pittsburg Times, is the
artificial resweating of the weed to meet
the popular craze for dark-colored ci-
gars. The craze arises from the false
impression that because all good cigars
are dark-colored, all dark-colored cigars
are good. The ground taken for this
later impression is that the dark color is
an indication that the tobacco has been
naturally sweated through about three
summers, and has thus reached per-
fection of flavor.
The color was formally an indication
that this was the fact, but it is so no
longer, for the increased demand for
tobacco of the requisite age caused
manufacturers to find way of aging
it, or giving it the appearance of age,
artiiicially. This was at first done by
painting. but speedier and more
wholesale process has been invented
within the last three or four years called
resweating. The fact that tobacco
sweats is well known. The first sum-
mer after it is cut, tobacco sweats very
heavily so that it can be twisted and
tied in knots like 'kiil-me-quick" tobies
The next summer it sweats much less,
and the third summer the sweat is hard
ly noticeable. After each summers
sweat the leaf assumes Il darker color,
until it reaches the hue of the best Ha-
vana brands
In order TO sweat tobacco the box is
opened and the leaf ceased" or damp
| ened. one "hand" or LAYER Mt time,
by dipping it in water. The tobacco is
then repacked in the box and the box
n m a CT III nh al 10.
inches from the floor A jet of steam
rises through the floor of this chest,
right underneath the box, and the steam
is allowed TO play necessarily on it for
| seventy-two hours. producing as pro-
fuse Il sweat as that of II fat man run
ming uD hill with the thermometer at
100 degrees in the shade. The box is
then taken out and allowed TO cool off.
1t is then repacked and is ready for use.
Great care has TO be exercised after
sweating tobacco to prevent it from be-
coming moldy. Ii it is found to mold it
is often Tipped in beer to kill the mold.
Here is a probable explanation OF the
inebriating effects of some cigars. The
tobacco must always have passed
through one summers sweat before be-
I ing resweated.
Ahi" P'ONNH'o IuC lOOat'So til &C vi
four years, but whether it improves the
quality proportionately is an open ques-
tion with the trade. Some say that rs
resweating has the same effect as the
natural sweat. resweated tobacco is
perfectly equal to that which has aged
naturally, Others say that it Injuries the
flavor. Others. again. say that it does
not affect the flavor prejudicially or fay
orably. All agree that it makes the leaf
! tender and difficult to work and there
! by causes loss to the manufacturer.
What is admitted by all judges is that Il
natural sweat invariably improves the
quality SO that the question remains
how to distinguish tobacco natural
sweated from that which has been artI-
ticially resweated. 1t is difficult one
to answer, the only guide being that ar
titicial sweating often makes the leaf al
most black, and always makes it a
darker color than the natural sweat
produces.
The Piitshurger's delight, the toby, is
usually made OF tobacco which has
stood one summers sweat but at the
present time the crop of 1885, which is
now undergoing the natural process, is
being used. Hence the great elasticity
and dampness of many tobies now on
sale.