The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-07-25
ABOUT CIGARS.
How the Size and Make Can Be Told by
the Names.

There are four things about cigar which
the buyer should be able to learn positively
at once-the color,~the age, the size and
shape, and the name of the maker. The
cancellation Of the United States stamps
gives the date of the boxing of the cigar, or
the date of it's shipment from Havans. The
name of the manufacturer. il 1t is popular
brand, is prominently displayed on the box,
and II is Is domestic imitation Of the popu-
lar imported brand, the factory at which it
is made can be found by turning over the
box and looking for the factory, district
| and state on the label at the bottom.
But about the sizes and shapes there is no
general agreement Thore is a range Of
difference of one-thIrd in the amount Of
Havana tobacco put by different makers
into their Perfecto cigars. The Perfectos OF
some are g little larger than the ReinaS Of
Others, and their own Reiuas may be no
larger than other manufacturers Conchas.
There Is a possibility, OF course, of making
almost an infinity of minute changes in the
shape of cigars, but no smoker keeps track
OF them, aud few smokers know the names
of more than q dozen different sizes and
shapes. In the Inviuoi5le cigar, for in
stance, the tapering might be gradual from
the tip to the center and so to tbs end,
though that is more to be expected In Per-
fecto. The maximum circumference of an In
EAuClUIS cigar u1lRuJ DS LOCdAbO du Nu6fe
along its length OF 81 to inches and the
manufacturer might still call it an Irwin
chile, though the ordinary shape has its
greatest circumference between the center
and lighted end. Whether the biggest part
of the cigar is one-third or one-Quarter
nearer the lighted end does not make much
difference to the smoker, but IL he has been
used to smoking the Invincibles OF manu-
facturer who makes them six inches long,
and happens TO buy of another maker In
vincibles only five inches long, he soon
learns to regard Invinclbles as a name for a
big long cigar applied without reference to
its size or the amount Of tobacco init.
AS the Invincible is the largest Of the sizes
usually found in q cigar shop. there is less
confusion about it than about cigar like
the Concha, which is smaller and varies SO
much in size that the buyer asking for a
Concha, without stating the name of the
maker, may get cigar half larger or a
great deal smaller than the brand the smoker
has been accustomed TO.
10 would simplify the cigar trade to have
the cigarmakers agree on certain general
dimensions for the different sizes and then
mark the deviatio1s therefrom, so that the
smoker could order intelligently without
having to make cigar specialist OF himself
The cigarmakers' convention might fix on
general Perfecto size of Az or AZ inches
length, with a diameter Of "a of an inch.
QAU WOulQ 10 10 Eu6 DuyeTe
They know the Perfeoto shape, and when
asking for Psrfecto cigar they would be
sure that they would get tobacco rolled in
the proper form, AZ inches long and % inch
maximum diameter. As all smokers know,
the Perfecto has a small tip, small end and
big bulge.
The opposite in many ways In shape to
the Perfecto cigar is the Panetels. Instead
OF being squstty and bulgy, like the Perfecto
with a sharp tip and conical end, the Pane
tela is long and slender, almost the same
diameter throughout. 1t il about an inch
longer than the Perfeoto and contains less
tobacco.
The invincible is generally as long as. or
a little longer than the Panstels, and has
almost twice as much tobacco. The big, fat
Invinc. bic carries as great a diameter as the
Perfecto. though half its length, and is the
cigar wish substance for long smoke.
Here is an instance of how knowledge OF
the different shapes and sizes If cigars may
profit the smoker. Ii uniformed, ne might
choose q Princesa because he could get two
of them for a quarter, in preference 60 a 25
cent Iuviaciblsa But IL he knew that
Prineesa was 316 inches long and q Of an
inch in maximum diameter. while the In
vincible was g. inches long aud y of an
tnoh In maximum diameter, he could figure
out that he was realty getting more tobacco
and longer smoke nor the money by buy
ing an Invincible.
The Prinosss is oneof the smallest OF the
standard sizes. The Coqueta sometimes
runs smaller, but it is not so common a
shape. The Princesa is about three inches
long and about fve-eighths Of an inch In
diameter. The Coquesa is the same in
length, and less than half an inch in
diameter.
The Coucha, one of the best known shapes,
is 4-inch cigar, over half an inch in di-
ameter through the greater part of its
length, with fairly blunt tip and a square
chopped end.
There are many varieties of the regular
Concha shaped, such as Concha Specials,
Conchas de RegaIia. These designations
mean that the shape is a special make Of a
certain factory, or that it is a mixture of
two shapes. The Regaia cigar is more
sspering and bulging cigar than the Concha,
ond the term Concha Rsgalia carries an
Ineligible meaning. But what Couohs
Special is the buyer must make a special in
vestigatton to find ont.
Reina Victoria is another well-known
shape It is somewhat harder to roll than
the plain Concha, and makes more SWELL
ing curve about the middle. 1t is about ~
inches long and three-qusrters Of an inch In
diameter and might almost be called small
Perfecto.