The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1889-04-19
TO MAKE To8AccO SWEAT.
The Process Explained by Warehouse
Clerk-ResuIts Obtained.

Clerk-Results Obtained.
baltimore Herald
Sweating and resweating tobacco. "
said young man in the top story of q
South Charles street warehouse ARE very
interesting and curious industries
What does the term sweating mean?"
asked the reporter.
drying out the raukness and the gum, "
answered the young man. ut also
brings out the dark colors / will eX-
plain the process to you briefly, 1t is
applied only to the leaf tobacco which is
used for cigar wrappers After the to-
bacco is cut it is put on bulk-that is. in
large piles. where il remains during the
winter Then. the following summer.
after being closely packed. it is put
through the first sweat 1t is put ON
bulk in large warehouses like huge bun
dies of hay, and there il stays during the
summer. The natural heat generated
suttices to do the sweating. Sometimes
the heat becomes so great that pile is set
on fire by spontaneous combustion. though
this does not often occur. The tobacco il
packed stalk by stalk with the leaf at
taChed. each stalk and leaf being called
hand
The resweating is done, as l said be-
fore. To dry out the Tankness and the
supernuous gum and TO bring out the
dark colors that are so much admired in
Cigar wrappers. This. ~ fact, is the only
way in which the desirable Maduro and
Oscuro shades can be produced The re-
sweating does not affect the strength
of the leaves, but only the
color. Or perhaps. l should
say, it does not render the tobacco
more strong. 1t is n popular fallacy that
a strong cigar must have Il dark wrapper.
or that dark wrapper indicates a strong
cigar As IA matter of fact if anything.
Shc dark Tesweated leaves are milder than
than the natural buff and snutf.colored
leaves
"lIow is tho resweating done2" fell
from the mouth of the listening scribe
We get the hands of tobacco in largo
boxes from the dealers 10 is first taken
out of these boxes and cascd-there.
like that. hc said. pointing TO "A man who
was gathering up double handfuls OF the
stalks and dipping them. butts down
ward, for Il moment in trough filled
with water, which was deeply dyed with
the cOloring matter of the leaves After
soaking the ends of the bands in the water
they are placed on casing table, stems
upward, where they are allowed 10 drain
this consuming from fifteen minutes 20
one hour The stalks are then put back
into tho original boxes. and there they re-
main for forty eight hours Each OF
these boxes holds from 800 to $50 pounds
of leaf tobacco.
Next the tobacco il tightly packed IN
Theoretically scaled cast iron boxes. lined
with wood. tho boxes holding one third OF
a case apiece After being sealed up. tho
boxes are subj ectod TO n steam heat rang.
ing from GO degrees 10 100 degrees during
periods varying from three days to thirty
three days. nc ording TO the kind of TO.
ba co under treatment Tho quality Of
leaf varies very greatly In this particular.
For Instance the crop OF Pennsylvania
leaf OF 1881 was the hardest To sweat of
any / over 20 In the establishment whilO
that Of 1888 and of 1884 was compare.
lively easily treated. No two crops of
tobacco are alike. This years
crop from tho same ground with
far as We know. tho same condi
tons every way. may DO no more like
that Of last ycar than Havana leaf IN like
Connecticut leaf II diiicra In strength.
favor. quality aud texture. aud for no ox-
plnlnablc reason. Sometimes doubtless
the season has something TO do with H.
"Aftcr the tobacco comes out Of tho
swcatiuR room 10 h removed from the air
tight cases and nghib put on bulk In small
piles, where IL gradually cools during
from forty 10 forty eight hours. After
ward II IL pacised In the original cnaca and
10 ready for tho market. Alter being To.
gwcatGd the leaf has sweet 0dOr very
unlike the rank perfume IL gives of IN It's
NATURAL state The width of tobacco lea, oa
vary from four inches 90 two feet Tho
coat Of reswcating Is 90 per case or 2 cents
per pound