The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1891-11-24

tare il any IiEze Or
IL any Land.
The history IF yellow tobacco dates
back 70 a rT-Ci Immediately suo9@-
q1eut to he #ar u IS12-'I4 Previous
- that time the dark export ' Dc. reek-
Ing with nicotine AID cT-~1te. vas the
type il demand by foreign markets
rnere Tie euLITe crop went. eEcept the
small portion used for home c5n-ump-
ton. To met \ demand from the
French. VINO ara fashions - taste
and epicUr-S IN ever. thing. u lev
type vas prpLuc-3. the EeIo" : ebeli
notified type. which Ha@ much sought
after by shippers 70 rha- government.
and IL prizes largely - ex@e-@ u tny~e
paid for tn old dark cEr@
This French t10acco vas grown
On gray fresh soil, AMI The process Cf
curing vas - Commence with small
fires under tie tobacco and continue
till the Leaf was properly ye-lOwed.
and then u Increase TIE hres and cure
a. yellow a. Il Vas possible With open
wood fires. The manufa"ture Of To-
baccO commencing about this tune. tn
mIlder. brighter types came more IL
demand for that purp5=e. and Planters
We'd with each other n raising the
best cCl1red sweet and mild tCC4cc0s.
COAL CURING.
The most careful and scrutinizmc in
qIiry has failed { o find OuC the ladivid
uaI who first uz+d charcoal in curing
tobacco: but 1t i generally conceded
that he was a North CaT0lInIan and
Caswell COUNTY his home. TIE honor
les between Captain A0iEhal Siade and
NJ. William Long. both men # marked
sagacity. energy and success II tobacco
planting. In 81 article on this subject
prepared by this srribe seventeen years
ago. the date fixed was 1926. but subSe-
quent investigation has convinced the
writer that 1924 ioauguratei the coal
caring process
FLCE CURING.
DR.. DavsG Tuck. Halifax county.
Virginia. was the first TO U.s. fuee II
curing tobacco. and was granted d pat
en- therefor IN 1929. To Dr.. Tuck also
Uelongs the honor Of Introducing the
Thermometer A. q guIEe Ii Ae curing
process. The plan II tna Tuck fue
was : ErEe singh fucDana. tie mouth
Il which pTelad I1S!Ie u The narb. and
the fGrHHne terminating IL = chimney
OF the outside
Tn defective - =-ILct,On 4 this
fue cauzej many f them 70 burst and
burn the barns. ani consequently trey
never came Into general u=. Tn
writer remembers bursting Il Z
On his fathers premises II the var
1881. and the narrow rscap- Of tLs
burning OF the barn. The bursting Of
thermometers III afJ@r~a3d with
les dangerous Consequences.
B~EEEFACTORS.
The pioneers in this great Industry
S.ade. Long an Tuck-have ali passed
from the sage # action. but their
names should never D. forgotten while
UDbaCco X planted ana 'Brishfs hold
the lead u ali types.
The first two. Aesers Shade ard Long.
lived hJCorable and useful lives and
died amidst The %5@LeoT their profitable
labOrs
DR.. Tuck moved to Christian county.
Kentucky. where h accumulated a
handsome property and died honored
aTi beloved IN the home Of his adCp
ton.
These men were b~enefactors. and de-
serve monuments To perpetuate their
memory. Others. possibly equally de
sketch. but I an admCnished 10 be
brief.
Up to the year 1850 the production
OF yellow tobacco was confined to very
narrow limits, mostly II the counties
Of Casweu. North Carolina. and Pitt
sylvan-a, Virginia.
Captain Abishai SIada was invited to
Cluster Springs in Halifax county, Viz
GINA. in the summer Of 1850, to meet
a number of planters by appointment
and instruct them 10 the mode OF coal
curing yellow tobacco. The writer.
then a resident Of the State Of Aiseis-
GippL, was present on that occasion and
listened with deep interest to the plain.
lucid and enthusiastic talk of Captain
Slade. This dated the commencement
Of the coal curing process IN Halifax
county, Virginia. The earliest clear
and specific essay on coal curing was
from the pen Of Captain Slade. and
published in the Southern Planter.
From 1850 to 1860 the production Of
yellow tobacco greatly extended. espe-
Cially in Caswell county and in those
surrounding; still. comparatively none
Of the yellow type was produced in
Granville and other counties. now
noted for the best tobacco lands and
most skilled planters in the world.
It Is claimed 70: Mr.. Dennis Tilley,
that he is the pioneer or certainly one
of the first in coal curing tobacco in
Granville cOunty-1S61. The fue cur
ing process, never successful till since
the war, was revived and gave a won
derful impetus to the production Of
this most profitable type Of tobacco,
which has carried hope and prosperity
wherever introduced on congenial soil.
The improvement IN the construction
Of fues has been so great, and the fue
process 50 vastly superior to the old
charcoal fires, that the fue has come
into general Use, superseding the use
of coal.