davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1898-12-22
HERBA SANA .SANCTA.
The Creation Of the Justly Celebrat.
ed Havana Cigar.
Something About Americas Ac1uisi-
ton in the vuelta Abajo-Obser--
vations on. the Tobacco
Culture OF Cuba.

Tsp ecial Kingston (Jamaica) Letter.
Did the late war with Spain have
no other result than the opening
of the great Havana cigar industry
to American enterprise, this should
alone prove ample compensation
for the financial sacrifices. involved
But it so happens that it is only one in
long procession of advantages to ac-
crue from American control of Cuba,
and for that reason it's individual sig
nificance is apt to be obscured. A
brief descriptive sketch of the industry
may therefore be found of timely in
terest-the more so, If based, as is he
following, on exact information derived
from experts.
Tobacco grows all over Cuba, as also
in Borneo, Jamaica, Java and other
quarters of the globe. But in only one
spot in all the world does the genuine
leaf grow from which the famous '.Ha-
vana' cigar can be made. This spot is
the Vuelta Abajo, or the province of
Pinar del Rio, west of Havana. Even
the aboriginal Inhabitants recognized
this superiority, and long before the
close of the sixteenth century the Con-
quistadores of Velasquez had estab-
lished the tobacco industry which has
latterly gained such magnitude. But
it was not until the middle of the
eighteenth century that the govern
ment established a royal factory, and
The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1898-12-22

The systematic development of the
Vuelta Abajo was commenced; and yet
another half century elapsed before the
removal of the government monopoly
gave real Impetus to the industry.
Development then became rapid despite
the handicap of characteristic Spanish
restrictions, until in 1890 the Vuelta
crop valued $30,000,000.
The general character of tobacco soil
is arenaceous and the temperature
moist; the chemical secret Of Vuelta
Abajo is, however, one, of the unsolved
mysteries of nature. 1T is so because it
is So" The technique of cultivation re-
quires the vega" Tor farm) to comprise
but one "caballeria" of 80 acres; but of
late years economical concentration has
been adopted by combining two or more
planta tons. Bananas are grown for
the double purpose of screening the
young plants and feeding the workers.,
this fruit being their chief sustenance
Each vega must have it's own establish
ment, no system of coopera tive central
ization being practicable, as in sugar
cultivation. The hands are mostly poor
whites and mulattoes, who can engage
in this form of manual labor in that
tropical land because most of the work
is done in the cool hours or under shell
ter, and at night.
Apart from the secret of the soil,
which il beyond human cognizancc and
contro:. the most important mystery"
The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1898-12-22

~>A>~eS
in the cultivation of Havana tobacco
IS the 7eguero's art-or rather instinc-
tive knack-7how to regulate during the
growth of each plant the exact quanti-
~ and quality of it's ultimate product.
It is claimed to be hereditary gift that
no acquired skill can rival; and the ex-
perien:e of foreigners has invariably
corrobora,ed the claim. A certain in
telligert and moneyed American spent
20 years in endeavoring to acquire the
lrt; and when the instruction ruined
and drove him out he was no nearer the
goal, but still depended on native en-
ployes. It appears to be an extracrdi-
nary development of the faculties Of
feeling AS though the fingers possessed
some superphyslcal delicacy. Be it
what it may, the practical result APP
plies t. The limitation of buds which
regulates the height of the plant and
the trimming necessary to produce Just
precisely such and such quality as well
as quantity Of leaves uniformly on the
rega. e.
This is the basis of the arbitrary
4uaitics of tobacco of which one hears
20 much and can ascertain so little
about. although it is of course in the
cigar factory that the distinction is de-
veloped to its ultimate conclusion. But
The vesuero encounters ether and far
more ordinarily appreciable cares in
the maturing Of his crop. His is no
deal existence, but one of incessant
toll and warfare with inimical pow ers,
the most notable oflwhich are the in
,ect pests that threaten his work at
every stage. OF these latter the most
formidable are the ''vivija gua," or
The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1898-12-22
MINNESOTA NEWS.
THE STATE FAIR.

From the report Of Secretary E. ".
Randall Of the state agricultural 90
ciety, as filed with Governor CIoug1b,
that association has no reason to COM
plain OF the past year. Making toea1
Of bills receivable and cash on hand ie
has between 5000 and $4,000 IN IL
treasury to represent the success Of the
last state fair. The total receipts were
$66,o33.7o, and expenditures $s6,8so94
That the attendance this year was
smaller than last the report attribuses
to the fact that the typhoid fever on
the grounds kept many away, and TO the
unfavorable weather. Notwithstznd-
ing, the ticket sales reached total Of
nearly $4,000. In referring to the
water supply OF the grounds the report
says that it seemed as II the wells Of
the vicinity had become contaminated
and therefore an expenditure was au-
thorlzed by the governor for a Gomez
ton with the artesian well in Como
park. This water IS available IN sum
mer only, however, as the pipes are
not laid below the frost line.
Two new buildings are considered as
necessary, an amphitheater in which to
show of stock and an agricultural hall
The latter department has grown 70
such degree that the former betting
ring OF the grand stand was utilized this
last year for display Of agricultural
produce.
The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1898-12-22

still to her the Prince Charming who
won her heart when she was toasted
the loveiest girl in her ''set."
At five and forty Mrs. Wetherell
judged all marital relations from her
own vantage ground-the love that is
eternal. It was this refreshing, Ar
cadian strain in her nature that at
tracted and held the affection Of Eliza
beth Pentland, whose knowledge of
"men and things" had come from hard
knocks with the world. ~. !.
II am sick unto nausea" sighed Mrs.
Wetherell, "of the problems involved in
the modern love story. How refreshing
it would seem to meet once more in
print love on the old familiar groundsl 1"
Fancy" laughed Miss Dashaway,
sketch artist of Good Form, 1.-THE tag
end of this century wading through
Jane Austen!"
Notwithstanding the speed and
spirit of the times" said Return Be-
tram. sculptor who had outlived his
contemporaries, consequently his fame,
material for Jane Austen stories is not
wanting in our own day."
mo, not while you are with us, Be-
tram" chucl1led the city editor, replen-
ishing the patriarchal chiseler's glass.
The ox-like eyes of the sturdy little
sculptor, dilating with the youth that
in art is never old, blinked knowingly.
"Betram has story he is bursting to
TELL" cried the city editor. MRS. Weth-
erell has given him the cue. I wager
a choice public is about to be supplied
with a revised, annotated. up-to-date
edition Of Jane Austen
"Imagine a Jane Austen of the Latin
quarter!" smiled Mrs. Pentland, with
an encouraging nod.
"For once the clever Mrs. Pentland is
in error" said the sculptor, settling
in his chair with the ease of raconteur
sure of one telling arrow in his culver.
Nothing could be more remote from
The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1898-12-22

neighbor in the arms Of q stranger.
It was the frstevisitor that had come,
in Hillhouse's time, to that modest
door. The next. day itsnowed steadily;
but about three in the afternoon his
neighbor surprised him by appearing
at the street door. bonneted. With
rapid strides she disappeared down
the avenue-to appear before he had
smoked three pipes at her favorite seat
in the window. The light fell strong
~ on the profile, which now seemed
rejuvenated by some inner glow. Hill
house snatched the clay and made haste
to finish the interrupted sitting. He
had not worked long, however, until
he was sharing his models quiet mirth.
"A street fakir had evidently in
weighed her into buying a mechanical
toy, such as abound in the streets of
our large cities during the holiday sea-
son. Far into twilight this stately au-
tumnal flower sat playing with the
trivial thing; and the footprints of
time magically vanished from her
sweet face, as she repeatedly pulled the
string, and the grotesque wooden
monkey, with it's multi-colored jacket,
slid up and down the yellow pole.
Through the veil of snowflakes Hill
house continued to watch his neighbor,
and as her smiles at the monkeys an
tics broadened his outlaws filled the
lonely studio with companionable
echoes. Suddenly there was rift in
the lutte. The incorrigible monkey
was perched at the top of the pole
and refused to bulge. In vain the sor-
ceress cast her spell. The toy fell
from her hands wreck; disaster, dire
distress, beclouded her face. Not a
shadow escaped Hillhouse. In iiffy
he had seized his hat and was knocking
at her door.
~ have observed from my window
I am your neighbour he exclaimed, To-
eating his eerie den across the way
The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1898-12-22

her family ties, nntil she was left alone
in the world. with q mere pittance that
cut her of from the gay circle iii which
she was once. so bril- liant nm ornament. /"
"Well, she must be moss-grown
foxglove,'' laughed Miss Dashaway. 81
thought the species extinct. Fancy a
modern woman pining over delin-
quent lover, burying herself in a hall
room with an Angora cat and a window
garden!"
"How does it come, Betram,' said
Pentland, shat your quasi-Austen hero
inc escaped clubdom? i
"No reflection on club women" re-
proved the hostess. ITO forget history
there is nothing like helping to make
it," A.,
"Bravo," cried the telegraph editor.
II can understand Miss Foxglove,"
said Mrs. Wetheren, giving the story
teller sympathetic smile. "She was
born too early to grasp the spirit OF
the new movement and adjust herself
to it's .exactions. Being an offspring
Of the old order of things. she chung
instinctively to a belief that her hearts
desire would some day be fulfilled.
As she waited, opportunity slipped Bly,"
IF I recollect rightly" said Froth-
ingham, Everything had plenty Of time
to slip by in Jane Austen story"
''But isn't it time for the cleric?'
smiled Mrs. Wetherell. Jane Austen
without the clergy is Hamlet without
the prince"
Betram's glowing eyes took in the
guests who had followed his story with
the bantering old friendship admits.
Tomorrow at high noon,'' said he,
'Rev. DR.. Broughton will await you at
the Red Brick church, and after the
ceremony Lavinia and will be at home
at the studio-its latch string, you
know, is always out-where we hope
to dispense Christmas cheer through
out the year,"
"The deucc!" cried the city editor.
"You said the chaps name was Hill
house."
''And so it isl smiled the sculptor
"Return, Hillhouse Betram." - Ida
Ross McCabe, in Detroit Free Press
The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1898-12-22

tiger-art, ind the ''cachaga." whiek At
tacks the leaf stems and eats upward
around the edges. No device short Of
hand picaing answers for the destruc-
ton Of these and kindred foes; and this
necessltarcs the veguero and his hands
occupying themselves through the
morning and evening hours and some
times whole nights in the warfare.
All trials and chances Of cultivation
overcome--of which we nave here but
. suggestive outline-the raw product
is divided into four great classes. eac;,
having its subdivisions. These classes
Of tobacco are the ''desecho limpio, I" the
choicest leaves from the top of the
plant; the ''descchito." or second
stratum OF leaves: the ''libra," the
small. inferior leaves from the top. and
:he "injuriado." or leaves from the
ground layers. The manufacturers Of
the richest laces do not handle their
delicate fabrics with more gentle care
than does the veguero his ''desecho"
and ''desechito" when making them up
into "gavillas" for shipment to the iHa-
vana factories. There is an unvarying
uniformity in the making up of the
"tercios." or bales, for shipment, which
il itself no unimportant branch of the
business, and when finally neatly cased
up in palm leaves the bales weigh from
100 to 125 pounds and are conveyed to
the factories by mule caravans.
= So much for the simon pure raw ma
terial. Let us now consider the proc
ess of converting it into our familiar
friend, the incompatible "Havana."
All told, the "fabricas'' Of Havana ex-
coed 200 in number, many of which
make an average annual output of from
100000 to 3o,OOO.OOO cigars, willie the
less pretertious grade off to modest
hundreds of thousands. As this APP
plies only to the bona fide "Havanas"
of commerce, the reader may form some
idea of the magnitude of the Cuba to-
bacco industry as a whole.
The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1898-12-22

but didn't used to be-
Where the parson and his family. all for
Sunday meeting drest,
VI the presents hung upon 1t always have
the most and best!
Where the little ragged urchin. with his
face clad in regret,
Can look with wide-eyed wonder at the
things he'll never get!
There were no velvet cushions on our
nineteenth century chairs:
NO fine and padded tapestry where we
knelt to say our prayers:
NO costly paintings on the walls that some
how always stay,
In sort Of hooking elegance when the
guests have gone away.
No gaslight throwing diamonds In your
eyes at every turn.
Nor frappe from the punch bowl. tea from
No prancing steeds and butler. with furs
and furbelows,
To shield the rose-clad maidens from the
prying winter SHOWS!
But the old log house in Herman, that was
such coy home.
With its shingle-covered arches that to
us was heavens dome;
Its Eastwood floor of puncheon, the pegs
beside the door,
Just enough to hang the wardrobe of the
family and no more.
The rifle and the powder flask. with its
The belt with sheath knife in it, bullet
molds and everything,
Hung upon the dry, cracked rafter out Of
reach of careless hands,
But ready, opportunity, when sudden cal!
demands.
Along III first December, when the woods
and fields were white,
And the owls were holding concerts OF the
hooting kind at night,
There were hints of coming Christmas, and
half unconscious awe
Settled on our youthful features in a way
you never saw!
Six of us in that household. l we'll may call
1t seven.
But that one, little three-year-old. had
strayed away to Heaven;
Six make even numbers. if we count it two
by two,
But III put the other in it for complete
ness: wouldn't you?
We were told to hang our stockings and
then to quickly leave
This was early in the evening Of that IA
nous Christmas eve
And we scrambled up the ladder to the
chamber overhead,
To whisper specula tons the things
that had been said.
Outside the storm was dancing in fantas-
tic flights amain,
Sowing crystal stars In showers against
the window pane;
Yet sheltered in that household we little
cared for this,
When no harm would dare to venture be-
tween US and mothers kiss!
Very early in the morning, while the stars
were shining bright
For the clouds had fed the scandal Of dis
robing in the night
We sought our hanging stockings on the
backs Of every chair
The ones we wore the day before, for we
had no more to spare!
Comp AIRED with what we have to-day 1t
would be counted small,
But the gifts were rich in kindness: for
each one gave his all;
The apples were like spheres of gold, and
all the little things
Were more to US than diadems from
crowns Of ancient kings!
The hands that filed our stockings on that
night so long ago.
The hearts that beat for those they loved,
are whittier now than snow
That. scatters on this Christmas eve its
crystal fleece of white,
Reminder of that household where in
dreams we live at night.
Edward William butcher. in Banner Of
Gold.
The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1898-12-22
TREE CULTURE.

For the encouragement OF tree cul-
ture in some of the prairie counties of
the state, the legislature makes an an
nual appropriation of $4,000, known as
the tree bounty appropriation.
State Auditor Dunn yesterday made
a distribution OF this fund among the
1890 applicants for its benefits Every
man who plants and grows an acre Of
trees received $40 per acre as boun-
ty. No one is allowed bounty on
more than 10 acres To be exact, Mr..
Dunn made out checks aggregating
$lo,553.68, representing reward for the
culture OF 8,I47 acres of shade trees.
The amounts ranged from $40 to SIS.
requiring the signature of the state au-
ditor 1850 times.
The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1898-12-22

that you have met with an accident.
I am not without some mechanical
skill, and thought might be of serv-
ice.'
''She opened the door wide for him
to enter. In the dignity of her pres
ence the shabby gentility of her sur
roundings vanished.
"'You are kind, sir she said. To-
morrow is Christmas
"'Ah! so it u.s. said Hillhouse. had
forgotten
"I promised to take Christmas din
ner yesterday after long years of sep
aration. There is a little boy in the
family, and thought the toy would
amuse him.
"'And so it WILL laughed Hillhouse,
as it has you and me-
"She colored like an old-fashioned
garden pink, and her 1impid gray eyes
dropped as he picked up the mutilated
monkey. In less time than it takes to
tell, this grotesque representative of
the missing link was restored to it's
pristine agility.
HOW can Lnank your
"'By telling me some day. said Hill
house, that your young friends en-
joyment of the toy has been greater
than ours
"Some days elapsed: before Hillhouse
had the courage to knock second time
at his neighbours door. In the inter-
val he had learned little of her his
tory. It was not without purpose that
he scanned the bookcase until his eyes
lighted on strangely familiar volume
81 see Miss Foxglove is an admirer
of Lucille remarked Hillhouse.
"'It belongs to the past
"'Then it has not been opened for
some time?' -
miss Foxglove's gray"ey turned
within. -.
IA quarter of century, she said.
"He took the volume from the shelf,
and with strange misgiving turned the
leaves until arrested by much under
scored canto, from which fell a faded
foxglovc. a. u I
{" With a smile whose divinely deep sweet
Some depths in her nature he never had
"The eyes of Lavinia Foxglove met
his.
. The volume has never been opened
she sudden pallor in her queenly
presence-'sihce an old, old friend Dor
rowed it, returned it-and then
them
"'What happenedr ~
"'He went away
"'And then?' 4. -.
The world changed sg...,. ..
"She took the volume Hillhouse hand
ed her to read in the lines the foxglove
had stained the. confession she had
waited in vain to hear from the lips of
the borrower so long ago."
you don't mean to tell u.s." cried
Miss Dashaway, "that there lives in
this age a man stupid enough to ex-
pect woman to look in a book for a.
proposal?" '"}s h'.'.> '|.:11s. 49,.
"But that happened quarter of a
century ago." laughed Mrs. Pentland.
"True," said Betram. ''and the poor
lout supposed that the girl had eagerly
devoured every word UNDERSIGNED;
while she naturally laid the volume
away and never looked at it again until
Hillhouse opened it and babe her read
the lines which embodied his proposal.
Not having heard from her, he went
away in q moment of pique and never
returned. From time to time he heard
Of her conquests, but it seems they were
but flirtations which he stroye in vain
to forget. Youth passed away, as did
The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1898-12-22

Taking any average good factory for
our observations. we see the bale con.
tanning our specimen cigar opened in
a room on the ground floor, the arrange
ment of which as to light, temperature,
etc, is carefully adjusted on well-de-
fined principles. And here the leaves
are separated and sorted with rapiLi-
~ little calculated to indicate the con-
summate skill really employed. In
the moistening-room, whittier thew are
next taken, they are carefully layered
in large wooden watts containing a soIu-
ton OF saltpeter, where they remain
some hours. The next stage is the press
ing process, which has been reduced to
fine art only equal to that of unfolding
the leaf again and detaching the stem
which is the succeeding operation.
The unfolded and des1emmed leaves
are now finally separated according to
classes into "capas" and "tripas" (the
wrappers and filings for cigars), which
is done by workmen seated at large ta-
bles down the middle of an immense
room, and under the eye Of experts
called "escojedores," one of whom pre-
sides at each table. Around the sides
CT this room are ranged numerous small
tables, which are occupied by the cigar
makers proper. or the "torcedores."
These take caps and filings by the
handfuls as needed from the large CEN
trail tables, and with a celebrity that is
astonishing to the uninitiated specta-
tor RI an; lol -
of the litter of coffee-colored strips and
rags before them.
1t is really quite difficult to follow
this process. Our torcedor spreads
strip of "capa" before him and flashes
a cleaning knife about it. The eye
ours, at least-cannot follow the move
ment, but almost instantly. with no 9th.
or measurement than that of the eye,
he has carved the leaf with mathemat-
ical exactness. Then with equal preci.
sion and swiftness he grabs the neces-
sary amount of filling from the pile,
places it on the capa and rolls the cigar
into shape. The whole process is one
of 'Hey, presto!-Your cigar, senor."
1t is more than mere expert work-it
is positive jugglery, because for all his
infinite celebrity his cigars never vary
a fraction in size or weight, accord
ing to the class he may be making.
Born instinct as we'll as experience is
necessary for his work, which is second
only to that of the escojedor. He is not,
therefore, overpaid at five dollars day
any more than is the escojedor at seven,
whilst the subordinates at the large
tables earn from three to four dolla ].
Our. "havana" is now made-and We
will enjoy it all the more for having wit
messed its creation from the green leaf
in the vega to the fingers of the cour-
teous toTcedor. But we must not smoke
it yet. To get the full flavor we should
allow it to mature through the sorting
room, where we next witness it's cias-
sification, counting in and doing up
into bundle of rs, to be boxed dnder
one of the numerous brands known to
the trade.
When one thinks of the greatness at
tained by this industry under the
sitting restrictions of Spanish policy
he begins to appreciate the possibilities
that open up to it under Cuba libre"
by an American protectorate.
~ +. P. PORTER
The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1898-12-22
BAPTISED IN A BATH ROOM

Joseph S. Baker, young citizen Of
Minneapolis, was baptized with due
ceremony by representatives of the
Mormon church, the chief of whom, was
John S. Bea1. The plunge bath in the
Lumber Exchange barber shop was
used because OF the rightly of the river.
and in addition to the Mormons there
were several interested spectators, who
saw little difference in the Mormon and
other methods OF immersion. The
Mormon missionaries live in the CITY
and this is their first baptism in Min
neapClis.