Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1889-08-01
FACTS ABOUT CIGARS.
TOLD BY A ToBAccoNlsT WHO
HAS STUDIED THE SUBJECT.


grant Havana-some Heavy Smokers.
"Much has been written about cigars
and smokers" said La Sale street to-
bacconist, "but there are some things
that haven't been told yet. For in
stance, do you know that dry smoking
is on the increase? A dry smoke is max
ing away with the cigar without lighting
it-crunching, chewing, crushing away
on it with the teeth until the last particle
Of juice Is extracted"
"What Is the origin Of this habitY~
asked the reporter, as he pulled away at
a fragrant Havana the cigar dealer had
passed over to him.
"In nearly every case 1t begins with
heart scare. You see, in some forms of
dyspepsia the stomach distends with
wind and presses a trif1e against the
heart. The smoker turns pale as he re-
fleets that the red corpuscles Of the blood
have become triangulated, as his scien-
tifc doctor told him they would, and
now he must give up smoking If he
would live. But giving up smoking is,
with most tobacco users, far easier said
than done. Then comes the compromise.
The frightened smoker holds the cigar in
his mouth but does not light it. Every
nerve in his body is a-quiver, and moth
ing but the extract of tobacco will allay
that nervousness The teeth press down
upon the unlighted torch, the nicotinous
fluid starts. This is a dry smoke The
man soon learns to like it, and the habit
grows upon him just as the real fire
smoke habit had done. But he is no bet
ter off. He gets fully as much tobacco
into his system by that practice as by the
other-in many cases more"
"Can a man get away with many ci-
gars in that way?"
81 should say SO. have customer
"a well known attorney-who buys
daily box of twenty-five imported Ha-
vana cigars. for which he pays me $3.50,
or eighteen cents apiece. He is wealthy
and can afford the expense. He dry
smokes these cigars pretty thoroughly,
too. l have another customer-a real
estate broker, and one of the most COM
Danionable and sociable of fellows-who
Nuys thirty-five straight ten-cent domes-
tic cigars every morning, and he smokes
every one of them himself. Should he
give one to friend he buys another to
take its place. He is systematic in all
things, and he will smoke no more and
no less than the number mentioned"
The reporter subsequently saw this
broker, who confirmed the statement.
and denied that his nerves or his health
were in any wise affected by the large
number of cigars he smoked.
"Men's whims and caprices are shown
as decidedly in the matter of cigars as
in anything in the world, A physician,
and popular one, too, smokes just
seven cis ars Il day, no more and no less,
and they are of q special brand. He has
smoked them for thirteen years. Dur
ing all this time, he assures me, he has
never smoked one more or one less than
seven day. Physicians are called out
so irreSularly that one would least ex-
pect to find method in their ranks; yet
he has regular hour for smoking. and
will let nothing interfere with it. He
pays twenty-five cents apiece for his
cigars"
''Is there such acute taste as that in
cigars? Is it possible for man to be
educated up to u particular brand. so
that he can enjoy 10 other?'
Imagination plays big part in that
particular A certain brand which has
had big run will suddenly grow un-
popular. Smokers will declare the
quality has deprecated, but such is not
the case. Any honest manufacturer will
seek above all things to maintain the
quality. It's imagination. I demon
strated that once to my entire satisfac-
ton. l had an excellent brand, which
for convenience I'll call the 'Escurial,
but it palled on my customers taste,
Knowing it to be a splendid cigar, the
qest quality of goods carried, I got the
manufacturer to change the name to
well, let me call it THE Amber and al
once those who had rejected it under an.
other name took to it handsomely. That
was a year ago, and I have no more
popular cigar in my entire stock"
"Has the color of the wrapper any.
thing to do with the strength of cigarsY
'It has very little. You will observe
how small part of the weight it is. Il
is the filler, the great Inside bulk. which
determines the quality of cigars
strength, and not the binder or the
wrapper, neither of which constitutes {
twentieth part of the volume of goods
used"
Concerning favored Havana cigars?'
There it is again How often have
heard self styled connoisseurs in import
ed cigars invite attention to the delight
fulperfume in q certain brand and alleg'
that therein is the virtue of the cigar.
'Let me tell you there is not manu-
facturer in Havana who ever did or eve
will export scented cigar. They d.
place stems in hogshead and fill it will
water, and use the water when it be
comes impregnated with the strength O
the stems for the sgrinkling of the tobac
CO when they work it. But this is dom
to give slightly added strength to th'
goods, not to perfume it. There is NJ
essence or extract on the face of tn
earth that can compare in excellence
from the smokers standpoint, with tn
natural bouquet of choice tobacco grow
in Cuba Let me get back to the wrap
per business to say this:
"Don't you know that the Sumatr;
wrapper is being used more and NOR