The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1895-09-05
OUR NICOTIANA
TABACUH.
THE GOLDEN WEED THE TRUE
<sPEARL OF THE PEE DEEP
Two ssBreaks'' in Florence.-FactS and
Figures on Tobacco Culture,

SOIuLlUtG LAS Gu1o w VI SOOV1!
Cardinals tobacco boom: The genus
Nicotiana, the beauteous and seductive
golden weed, leaved like the palm, the
weed that has since the discovery of
America soothed many worried brain
and over-taxed nervous system, and
its growth for the market in the Pee
Dee section of South Carolina is that
with which have to deal today, and
after witnessing the mad rush of buy
ers and spectators among the hundreds
of piles of yellow leaves in the different
warehouses, at the Florence @'break, !"
I feel that I will mske 40 ''break" in
citing here what Burton in his 'tAnat-
omy of Melancholy" says of the puz-
zling weed, the rapidly advancing foe
of the 1eecy staple as our standard
h product. Burton puts it thus: ''To-
bacco, divine, rare, super-excellent to.
bacco, which goes far beyond all the
panaceas, potable gold and philoso-
pher' sstones, is sovereign remedy in
all diseases. A good vomit, I confess,
virtuous herb if it be we'll qualified,
opportuuely taken, and incidentally
used, but, as it is commonly abused
by most men, which take it as tinkers
do, It's a palgue, mischief, violent
purge of goods, lands, health--hellish,
deyilish and damned tobacco, the ruin
and overthrow of body and soul.
Both extremes Of the use of this mystic
weed are here presented. Have
s'break' and weed out the excesses and
one finds left glorious panacea for
the nerves, whether the tobacco be
the famous Persian Tumbiki of Shiraz,
or the still more famed Latakia of the
English smoker, produced in the pro-
vince of Saida, in northern Syria, or
the beautiful "bright" tobacco Of the
Pee Dee section OF South Carolina.
There is now no longer the shadow
of doubt that South Carolina soil is
among the best adapted in the world
for the cultivation of fine tobacco and
that The States advice so often and
emphatically given, that unproftabe
eEopS Ps s. sgt ths asaa ND tha 5
has been taken. The ball bas been set
in motion; the Pee Dee section is now
RECOGNIZED as o valuable tobacco rails
ing county, and the record made this
wear is calculated to astonish the na-
tives.'
But before.these pleasant facts are
detailed, glance backward should be
taken to see what is known of this val
liable commo ~Fhe plant is known
in Spain as 'stobaco," ," in Italy as sta
bacco," in France as ''tabac, p" and the
name comes from that given the pipe
in which the Indians or Caribbees
smoked the weed, being later applied
to the weed itself. The word comes
from the name Tabaco, q province IN
Yucatsn, where the Spaniards first
saw the pipes; some say it took its
name from the Island Of Tobago, one
of the Caribbees. The plantisa native
of America, known in the botanical
world as ssnicotiano tabacum." Before
the discovery of America in 1892, moth
ing was known of the existence of such
weed. In 1902 the pipes were seen
in the mouths of the Caribbees by the
Spaniards, and thence dates the dis
covery Of tobacco. Heaven knows what
the courtiers prior to that time did to
bring about the effect produced by to-
bacco. Imagine the world deprived of
it today, and hear the vail that will
\ arisel Europe never knew what tobac-
co was until 1865, when Francis Fer
nandeo was sent by Philip II to find
out about it. Itsintroductioninto Eu-
rope was due to Jean Nicot, the French
ambassador to Portugal, who sent
some to Queen Catherine de Medici.
In recognition of this act, bis name was
given the plant. 1t was introducedinto
England by Robert Lane and Sir Fran
els Drake, who brought tobacco and
pipes to Sir Walter Raleigh. So much
for the origin of the weed.
In the new continent the weed
thrived, and Cuba, Virginia and North
Carolina became noted for its produc-
ton. It was soon transplanted to Per-
sia, Syria and other countries, but
American soil has always held its own.
In 1881 472, 900, 900 pounds were pro-
duced on 10000 acres of land, netting
s45, 100000. Since then the increase
has been marked.
Tobacco is new commodity IN
South Carolina. For years it was
thought that it could be raised on
South Carolina soil, and the present
condition proves this surmise correct,
but its cultivation was attended by so
many peculiarities, the tobacco plant
being very tender, that no one dared
experiment.
Finally about ten yea, ago, Mr.. F.
NJ. Rogers, the tobacco farming pio-
neer of South Carolina, planter iv-
ing ten miles from the city of Darling
ton, began to experiment with tobacco,
hoping to find staple crop that would
take the place of cotton, for cottcn's
prices were rapidly falling of. His ex-
pertinent proved that the soil of the
Fee Dee country would produce to
oacco said to be finer in color, charac
ter and texture than any section of the
bright tobacco belt of North Carolina
or Virginia; that no tobacco was finer
for smoking purposes, though the ma
hogany" tobacco needed for plug man
ufacture was not forthcoming. He had
not solved the problem OF cheap pro-
duction, however, and the farmers
were chary of embarking in the culture
Of the weed. They did not wish to
cultivate anything at loss Mr.. Eog-
ers lost money. But the seed was
sown, and in 1889, when planter, Mr..
D. NJ. Smoot, planted FIVE acres, the
culture Of tobacco took fresh i'm