The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1892-02-18
TEN YEARS WITH TOBACCO.
Results OF the experience of Practical
Planter.

After the tobacco is cured In the barn
it is then to be made ready for market
If the weather is very dry the leaf cannot
he handled, and frequently planters wait
until nearly Christmas before the wealth
er is damp and soft enough for handling
tobacco. But there is way of producing
artificial moisture which comes in very
handily sometimes. Take green bushes
with leaves on and place them on the
floor of the curing barn and sprinkle
them with water. Then start small fires
in the fues-just enough to raise the
temperature a few degrees, and you will
soon find your tobacco soft enough for
handling. This method OF bringing the
leaf in order is safe and can be relied on
| at all times. It will be remembered that
if the weather is damp and warm no ar
! tifcial method is needed to put the leaf
in handling order.
If the tobacco has been cured off the
stalk the work of preparing the leaf for
market is much easier than when cured
on the stalk. The only thing now to be
done is to select The different grades and
put them in piles to themselves. This
requires experience, and the new planter
should not attempt to grade his tobacco
without aid from an experienced grader.
These can usually be had from the older
tobacco districts at very reasonable prices.
If such help cannot be had the tobacco
can be shipped to any we'll established
warehouse, and the grading done there at
the rate of one dollar per hundred
pounds. Most warehouses now keep
full force of graders at work, grading leaf
from new tobacco planters.
For grading there will usually be about
three grades of leaf according to color
and size and about two grades of lugs or
lower leaves. About eight leaves Of the
larger grades should be tied together and
about ten leaves of the smaller. Negroes
generally make excellent graders, and
especially the negro women, who seem to
have the faculty for Distinguishing color
highly developed. Wrappers, filters, cut.
ters, smokers and lugs should be laid in
its respective pile-care being taken hot
to let leaf of one grade get among that
of another grade.
In asserting the planter should also be
careful TO do the square thing all the
time, as it never pays to grade or pack to.
bacco dishonesty. The buyers are gen
orally keen enough to discover the fraud,
and then look out for boycott of all
such tobacco. The planter who is known
to "nest his tobacco" has his name put on
what is called a "black list" by the buy
ers, and iu buying his crop due allowance
is always made for an unfair mixture of
the grades, and lower prices is the result.
Therefore, it pays the planter to grade his
tobacco honestly ell the time.
After the tobacco is graded the next
step is packing, preparatory to shipping
or hauling to market. When The tobacco
is hauled Oh wagons no packing is neces.
ssry, aside from properly packing in the
body of the wagon. If the leaf is to be
shipped, pack in strong wooden boxes or
hogsheads; the latter are generally sup
piled by the tobacco warehouses free of
charge to the planter. If you have a
whole package Of any one grade, let it all
60 in the package together. If there is
less than package of one grade, place
strips of paper between the different
grades, 80 as to keep them separate from
each other. When the package is full
nail on the cover if box, securely if
hogshead, have the head securely fastened
in. Mark the package plainly to the
warehouse where it is to be shipped and
write your directions to the ware house
man about selling. If to be sold at once
you will wait only short time before re
ceivipg your check.
AS the reader may know, the tobacco
business is still in the control of the
Government, and has some restrictions
still clinging about it which most people
in the business would gladly zee abolish
ed. So far as the planter is concerned
these restrictions do not amount to much,
though it is necessary to know what they
are. The present revenue law requires
the planter to keep record of all the
tobacco he grows each year in pounds, to
whom sold and at what price, though he
can sell his crop whenever he wishes.
These accounts of the planters are seldom
ever examined by the revenue authori-
ties. Still it is we'll for every planter to
keep all his bills of sale on file, 30 if call.
ed upon at any time he can render cor
rect account. Failure to do 80 will sub
iect the planter to severe fine.
n. E. HARMAN.
Winston, N. c.