The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-11-11

the trade, make it necessary for far
more extensive experiments to be tried
IN the western states before the crop IS
attempted on a commercial scale. Its
quality is affected by the soil, fertiliz-
ing and irrigation, TO perhaps a larger
extent than is the case with any other
crop.
These problems have been studied most
deliberately in the Connecticut valley,
where the farmers who have been in the
business for years and have studied close
" all experiments that have been made,
have become really scientific growers of
wrapper leaf. A few of these experts
the most scientific methods and highest
culture, succeeded in producing in 1897,
some of the finest cigar wrappers ever
grown in the world. We think the Chap
man crop grown that year at Lake City,
Northern Florida, equal in all the essen
tial qualities of fine wrapper leaf to any
Sumatran or Cuban wrapper
About the same time quite extensive to-
baccO paintings were made in Southern
ana southwestern Georgia by indlyldu-
ais ana by certain firm OF New Ork
cigar manufacturers. The Florida expert
ment station, realizing the immense pOSS-
Utilities of the crop in that state if in
diligently grown, put forth great efforts
to distribute seed, to instruct planters,
and to aid them in diSpOsing of their
crops. About the same time experiments
were also begun IN Texas, and some very
fine crops were grown in the BraZos val
ley, and scattered crops in several of
the more southern counties. The latter
The depression of the tobacco market,
which set in after the elections of 1892,
has discouraged many in the south who
were enthusiastic eXperimenters in '9l
and '92, though enough planters have kept
on growing cigar leaf varieties to demon
strate that, taking one year with another,
an extra fine quality of wrapper leaf can
be produced on properly selected soils and
locations in Northern and Central Flor
ida, southern Georgia and Eastern and
Southern Texas. There is also a strong
probability that leaf equally as good as
that grown in the Connecticut valley can
be produced in other of the southern
states.
But the crop must have the very best of
care. Shiftless culture will not do. If
the crop has not been grown in your
vicinity it may require two or three years
experimenting to demonstrate which soil
is best ADAPTED to it, The fertilization
of the wrapper leaf crop is also a delicate
problem. which can only be insured on
any particular soil by actual experiment
Even with soil, fertilization and culture
all that could be desired, the weather
may be such as to cause a crop of in
fertor quality. Even the scientific tobac-
co raisers in the Connecticut valley rarely
secure two crops in succession of the
best quality. Their '92 crop was almost
perfect in that respect, but the 1913 crop
was very Inferior the "a was not up to
the standard, but the 95 crop in that sec
ton is again of promising quality.
The trouble with the market for cigar
leaf has been this: A peculiarly light
the island of Sumatra, in the East Indies.
From 100 to $50 Of its cured leaves are re-
quired to make one pound in weight.
Hence one pound of Samaritan leaf will
wrap as many cigars as four pounds of
domestic wrapper. This product of Su-
matra was imported very largely prior to
1891, to the practical ruination of the
American wrapper growing industry. The
duty on it from 1888 to Oct. 6. 49, was Is
evaded that the bulk of the wrappers
paid only the filler" duty of 30 cents
per pound. About 100000 pounds of
wrappers We're thus fraudulently I'd
mitted from 1885 to 1890 inclusive.
With the cooperation OF Florida and
Georgia, domestic wrapper leaf growers
secured a non-evasible duty of 81 per
pound on wrappers in the Mckinley bill.
This cut down imports compelled manu-
facturers to buy American wrappers re-
stored prosperity to domestic growers, and
ture in the south. But before the Nc
Ktnley bill went into effect, immense
stocks of the SUmatran wrappers were
imported at the 75-cent rate. This stock
and the smaller imports of 1S9l-94 supplied
the market Then the Wilson tariff fixed
the duty on wrappers at 81. so per pound,
and imports again increased faster than
consumption, until the stock in bond is
to-day over 100000 pounds. Much Of this
leaf is inferior and with '95 and "a do
mestic crops yielding little fine wrappers,
tive prices for the O. crop. Hence the
outlook for next years crop is also bet
ter than IL has been for several seasons,
and should a higher tariff on this luxury
be restored it would further help the sit
uation for several years to come