The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1900-01-12
THE
Wisconsin Tobacco Reporter,
Edgerton, Wisconsin.
NOTE BOOK SKETCHES.

NOTE BOOK SKETCHES.
The recent advance in lumber has
made the item of cases an important
matter to packers of tobacco Cases
are costing this season nearly 5O per
cent more than former years and as the
tobacco is generally sold without pay for
cases, it means a total loss to the packers
of the east of the package. Ii ca ses con-
tinue to advance in price the tobacco
trade will sooner or later be forced to
look about for some other material from
which to construct their castings. The
ordinary case contains about SO feet OF
lumber so that it requires to pack the
cigar leaf tobaccos produced in this
country over two million feet OF lumber
each year. The cases are seldom used
the second time and that amount of
lumber is practically destroyed every
year. A few packers have attempted to
reduce the expense of cases by using
cheaper grade of cases but such pack
ages will scarcely stand herough usages
of shipment and most dealers prefer to
use the No. l case as the best economy.
The scarcity of lumber suitable for to-
bacco cases and the advanced prices
may drive the packers to adopt some
other kind of package. Tobacco can be
put up much more cheaply into bales
4lo,, Or4n Loot
are enclosed, but this method of handling
would require the tobacco to be sweat IN
bulk before being baled and in this event
the shrinkage would fall upon the pack
er and there would be an end of selling
at marked weights as the prevailing
custom now is. The case question how
ever is live issue.
***
The American Tobacco Co. realize the
force of the case situation and have ar
ranged to save about $4,000 this season.
The trust have about 1000 old cases at
their factory in Cincinnati which it
proposes to utilize in packing the 81
crop. Some of their cheap tobacco will
be shipped in the bundle from Wiscon-
sin points to Cincinnati and there pack
ed. The saving will not alone be con-
| fined to the cost of new cases but the
freight on the package as we'll. An ex-
| perenced packer will be sent from this
state to superintend the work.
XIX
=, Pres. Freye of the n. 3. Tobacco
| Growers Association has written the fol
| lowing in reference to admitting tobacco
| free from our new insular possessions:
Given free trade with Porto Rico the
| result to leaf tobacco and cigar interests
will in this country be:
First, the acreage of tobacco on that
| island will at once be increased 400 per
cent, and can be increased more than
that. The cost of growing tobacco there
| is only five cents pound; so good is the
demand for it now in this country that
| it is being imported and sold at profit
after paying 35c per pound duty. You
will readily see, therefore, that with the
abolition of that duty, we could use every
pound (either leaf Or manufactured in
cigars) that the island can produce.
Therefore, as tobacco would at once be-
come the most profitable crop grown on
the island, every available acre of land
would soon be planted to tobacco, an
area many times larger than the $1,000
acres grown in New England this year.
Second, it is not true that 'only filler
lea" is grown there, and it is true that
Americans and Germans, with their su-
perior methods of cultivation, curing,
handling, ETC., will soon SO improve the
character of that tobacco as to produce
large percentage of wrapper leaf. In
deed, they confidently expect to do this
and under'the stimulus of possible free
trade, they are buying up lands and
plantations for that very purpose.
Third-Answer to second question,
Yes Once the precedent of free trade
is established with Porto Rico by 'act of
congress" that precedent must and will
be followed out eventually in the Philip
pines and Cuba, too, whenever the latter
shall become United States territory.
Therefore your conclusions that ultimate
ruin to the tobacco interests, not only of
New England but all other tobacco leaf
sections, is within sight the moment
congress admitsPorto Rican products into
this country free of duty, are correct.
After having recommended congress to !
at once establish civil government in
Alaska, Hawaii and Porto Rico, the pres
ident, speaking of the Philippine islands, |
says, "It does not seem desirable that [ |
should recommend at this time specific |
or final form of government for these ISL
ands. When peace shall be restored it |
will be the duty of congress to construct /
plan of government, which shall es-
tablish and maintain freedom and order
and peace in the Philippines
Clearly the only distinction in the
presidents mind then between the re-
lations which the Philippine islands bear