The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1889-08-04
CIGARS THE PIONEERS USED
Manufacturing Them Was0nce a Thriy-
ing Industry in the Growing Capital.
Farmers Raised Good Crops Of Tobacco and
Brought 1t to Market-Besides Cigars
Plug Was Made Free from Drugs.

Plug Was Made Free from Drugs
Those who remember the revival of the
tobacco manufacture here about the year
1850, in the line of cigars mainly or wholly.
however, are apt to think it the beginning
of the business, and may be q little sur
prised to learn that fifty years ago the gen.
eral manufacture of tobacco was the
largest industrial interest In the city. and
had been active and advancing for four or
FIVE years. Cigars were made. but they
were a subordinate branch Of the manu-
facture and were confined entirely to one
class, now never made, or at least never
known. called the melee" The Connect
icut leaf was talked of as a good cigar
stock. but never worked; and the only
variation of what may be called the in
digenous growth, the big, heavy leaf,
coarse-stemmed, strong-veined, rough and
rank as red onions" was light, yellow
lsh small leaf, called Brazil" which was
said to be the degenerate product of Cuban
seed in colder soil. 1t made better cigar
than the ''melee," but there was not
enough of the tobacco produced to
enable a separate brand to be introduced,
The "meleo" cigar was made OF the COM
mon tobacco, then largely produced
through central Indiana, as it is now in the
southwest section, and occasionally In 9TH
er parts OF the State. This coarse, rank
leaf was soaked barrelful at a time, for a
day or two, till its poisonous strength was
reduced, and then the lighter and finer
leaves were cut into wrappers. the Others
we have it now, was unknown. There was
plenty of pipe-smOking, but the tobacco
was the common leaf in the hand" or big
twist" or In the chewing plug cut OF and
dried.
The plug" for "chawing.n was the chief
result of the early tobacco manufacture.
1t was sold in the stores, which, In those
days, sold everything, as the old back
woods description made it, from scythe-
snaths to hymn- books" and more, probably,
was peddled about the country than was
sold in stores. The process of manufacture
was as honest and unsOphisticated as the
most exacting consumer could ask. The
farmer brought his wagon-load of cured
leaf, In hands" sometimes III barrels,
sometimes rolled up in quilts, and as often
as otherwise piled up in hiswagon like corn
or potatoes. He cured" it by hanging it
up in his barn. or in some sheltering
she she'd safe from .hd rain but but open to
in in Hands D of '.H twenty OF thirty
or fifty leaves tied round the butts with
another leaf. The manufactures took these
hands," stored them away till he needed
them and then laid them round and round
in a circular heap on the floor. sprinkling
each layer freely, till he had ceased" as it
was called, as much as he had occasion.
Then this tobacco lin case" was given to
the Shippers" or ''stemmers," who laid a
heap of 1t on the floor on one side, broke
and pulled out the stems and laid the split
leaf on the other side. which the foreman
weighed as he took it to work it, and paid
for that weight. Directly from the strip
per" the tobacco was taken to the foreman's
table: where he rolled up long round
chunk as big as mans wrist, wrapped it
good deal like big cigar and laid the rolls
away till he had enough to fill cask.
When the cask was filled it was put in
the press and squeezed down till the bu i
vacancy was filled and the press again put
to work, operated this time by a long heavy
iron lever. When filled again the pressure
was renewed till the cask would hold no
was brought to bear, the cask tempo
rarily headed up and, and put in the
less furnace hole where the pressed
tobacco ripened, and came out as black as
tar and about as fragrant. The better
grades of Virginia tobacco were used main
~ in the towns, but the common black
plug was the dependence of the farmer and
nottingham, and pure, at least, and If pol
sOnOus it wasn't from drugs. And it was
Zine cut" so long a favorite till within
few years, was made in the Indianapolis
factory occasionally. The cutting appa-
ratus was big strong oak box and frame on
product was little different from that made
now; except that the stock now is better
from better cultivation. So little demand
was there for it that the cutting machinery
was never put to work but once In four or
i've years.
Caleb Scudder, our pioneer cabinet-mak-
er, and one of our first justices of the peace,
with his partner In the drug business. the
late William Hannaman, founded this in-
dustry in 1S34-5 in an old log house on the
land street. about opposite the present
Cleaveland Block. This old house had been
In past times residence but later was oc-
cupied by a carding machine or two that
made rolls of the farmers wool for his
wife to spin Oh the old-time wheels
then in universal use in the coun-
try. The tobacco. manufacture -four
lshed because most of the farmers
had been accustomed to grow the leaf at
their old homes and they wanted to do it
here, and the new factory gave them a pay
ing chance. Besides, the strong, new soil
of the White river valley produced well
both in acreage and weight. The foreman
and manager was Mr. Charles Cooper. long
boys of the neighbOrhOod did good deal Of
the stripping" at the odd hours out of
school, and many put in Saturdays that
way, at profit of q cents or more, instead
of fishing. or swimming, or skating. In
fact, the old tobacco factory was quite a
refOrmer in its early days. in making idle
boys industrious and inspiring them with
the notion of saving money.
In 1888 the "sweat-house" took fire from
the furnace, and set fire to the other build
ings. and the tobacco manufacture went
under for little while, at loss to the
owners of $4,000; no insurance, for Insur-
ing was almost an unknown process in
those days. In 1S43 Scudder 81 Hannaman
sold out to John Cain, long the post
master here, and he. failing, trans
ferred to the late Robert l.. Walpole,
as agent of the creditors. and he
continued it for two or three years Then
the tobacco manufacture ceased from
among us" and there was no indication
that anything of the kind had ever existed.
Other industries set in operation about the
same time-pork-packing, beer-brewing.
linseed oil-making, mattress-work, cotton
spinning. carpenters OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
renewed since, we .believe-have, all but
the last. left legacy of labor and place to
put it in some remaining form or other; but
tobacco, during the earlier years of the
''fOrties." went off altogether, and only
partially reappeared in the cigars of inn