The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1890-07-17

until one hundred and ten degrees are
reached. Here you have reached the
most critical point in the difficult pro-
cess of curing bright tobacco. The
condition and appearance of the to-
bacco must now be the curer's guide.
No one can successfully cure tobacco
until he can distinguish the effect of
too much or too little heat in the ap-
pearance of the leaf Too little heat,
in fixing the color, operates to stain
the face side of the leaf dull brown
color, and is called "sponging," and
may be known to the novice by its ap-
pearance only on the face si1e of the
leaf. Too much heat reddens the leaf,
first around the edge and then in spots
which are visible on both sides. Now,
to prevent sponging on the one hand
and spotting on the other, is the aim
of the experienced curer. No definite
time can be laid down to run from one
hundred and ten to one hundred and
twenty degrees. Sometimes four hours
will suffice, then again eight hours is
fast enough. While it is usual at this
stage to advance about five degrees
every two hours for medium tobacco,
the condition of the tobacco often in
dicates,to the practiced eye, the necessi-
ty for slower or faster movement. But
it is safe not to advance above one
hundred and ten degrees until the
tails begin to curl up at the ends. Ar
rived at one hundred and twenty or
one hundred and twenty five degrees,
this IS the CURING process. The heat
should remain at or near these figures
until the leaf is cured, which will re-
quire from six to eight hours, according
to the amount of sap in the leaf to be
expelled. When the leaf appears to
be cured, advance five degrees every
hour up to one hundred and seventy
degrees and remain until stalk and
stem are thoroughly cured. To run
above one hundred and eighty degrees
is to endanger scorching the tobacco,
and perhaps burning both barn and
tobacco.
TO recapitulate
First. Yellowing process, 80 degrees, from
24 to 50 hours.
Second. Fixing Color, 100 degrees hours
Second. Fixing Color, 100 to Ito 213 de-
grees every hours.
Second. Fixing Color, 10 to 120, to s
hours.
Third. Curing the leaf, 12o or 1a5, 6 to
hours.
Fourth. Curing stalk and stem, 125 to 40,
j degrees an hour And continue at one
hundred and seventy degrees until stalk
and stem are thoroughly killed and dry,
which usually requires from twelve to
fifteen hours.
THE NEW METHOD.
The curing process for yellow to
bacco, as heretofore laid down, was
first published in the year 1871, and
was the first systematic treatise given
to the public on the difficult art of
curing yellow tobacco; and it has re-
manned substantially unaltered through
six editions of the pamphlet, aggregat
ing largely over 100000 copies.
Thousands in several States have taken
it for their guide and been enabled to
learn to cure successfully, without any
other assistance. But the yellow to-
bacco industry has greatly progressed
and extended during the past decade,
and new light has come through ex-
perlence to further perfect the art of
curing.
The following is given as the latest
improvements in curing tobabco:
House the tobacco as soon as cut,
and after warming up the barn for
two or three hours, at temperature
CT about 90 degrees, advance the heat
rapidly up TO IFS degrees-or as high
as it will bear without scalding the to-