The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1899-02-23
MANILA TOBACCO.
Little Danger of Competition With
American Goods.


'.Just at the present time" said a prom
inent tobacco man, lit is of interest TO
consider the relation of the Philippine to-
bacco industry to the United States. There
need be no fear of competition. We will
sell them infinitely more than We will ever
buy from them, and as the islands get
more civilized and more Americans and
Europeans settle there we will sell them
more and more tobacco and cigars and buy
less. though we cannot take many fewer
cigars than we do now
Il have several acquaintances. English
men, who occasionally like a Manila cigar,
ana they have to get them of one dealer.
he sends TO Canada for these cigars in
single ease lots, for there is no stock kept
IN this country. and yet they make in the
Philippines matter OF lJ0,uG0.000 cigars
year. There have been from time to
time efforts TO introduce these cigars here,
but without much success. In England
they sell very largely mainly in bundles
OF i"e and six, which cost 20 cents a bun
die. These are both cheroots and cigars.
rather roughly turned out, banded with
strips of red and yellow paper about a
quarter of an inch broad. They come 500
IN big cedar box with a sliding lid and
cost the English dealer. duty paid, about
$3.50. They are TO be found in nearly every
drug store in the country. The tobacco is
Of peculiarly light color, most of it rather
dull looking, and il has. to my taste. the
flavor among tobaccos which the beet has
among vegetables, rather earthly. 1t is
also heavy in type, and makes the smoker
rather sleepy, which gives rise to the mis-
taken idea that there is opium in it. Our
people viii not smoke it at any price. 1t
is good enough, but not the type they pre-
fer.
When the last rebellion in Cuba began
and the supplies OF Havana leaf tobacco
fell off. among the srowths introduced as
substitutes was Manila, but even under
these favorable conditions the importa-
lions neser amounted to much more than
drop in the ocean. In 1892 we brought in
$50 pounds. valued at S1,193; in 1898. 1,26S
pounds. valued at 5000; in 1894, none. and
in 1896. 1850 pounds, valued at Sl,72i.
None of this was classified as wrapper to-
bacco. In cigars, the importations in 1892
were $50 pounds, valued at si42; in 1893.
526 pounds valued at 1917; in lS94-5. l,2S0
pounds, valued a SSGS. and in 1896. 1885
pounds. valued at S6li. The great bulk of
these shipments came from Canada. Out
side of one uptown store, which deals in
every tobacco under the sun, or pretty
nearly I dc not think you could find d
Manila cigar in the city. except memem-
tos recently brought back by soldiers.
The principal tobacco factory at Manila
is the Isabel. with a capital of $4,000. 900,
employing 10000 hands, and making So
O0O,0 600 cigars, 400, 600, 600 cigarettes and s.
cO0,0oU pounds of cut tobacco year. The
value CT the leaf tobacco at the planta-
ton is fixed by an agreement which pro-
vides that no matter what the supply or
condition these prices shall never vary.
with the exception of a comparatively
few high grade cigars from Cuba, no for
eign cigar has ever been able to gain
a foothold here. and probably never will.
Fully nine-tenths of the cigars sold as
imported are made right in this country
CT imported leaf tobacco and are of ac-
knowledged higher quality today than the
cigars OF Cuba"