The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1904-03-04
ARTIFICIAL HEAT IN CASING TOBACCO.
Paper Read Before The Wisconsin Tobacco Growers
and Dealers Convention BY S. 3. Reddles of James
vile. Feb. 8, 1904

tHtc, ECu. D. toVf
In treating with the subject of fer
mentation | only try to give you brief
outline of the process from my own act
ual experience, and will not attempt to
treat the subject from scientific stand
point.
Ole OF the greatest problems confront
ing the leaf tobacco dealers In Wiscon-
sin today is how to care for their pack
ings in the curing process, and how to
avoid the danger which occurs to more
or less extent every year in going through
the natural curing process, or which is
generally termed the sweat. In my judg-
ment the climatic condition has as much
to do with the curing of tobaccos as it
has the growing of it, and when both are
favorable we have sound tobacco. The
question | have been asked to treat with
is artificial heat in curing tobaccoS
This, believe, is the only safe way,
and the only way known to me, to avoid
damage from must, or even black rot.
But great care must be exercised in the
treatment of new tobaccos. In order to
cure with artificial heat it is necessary
to equip our warehouses for the work,
which means to put in steam boiler,
pipe the building, and make such ar
rangements so that we can maintain a
reasonable degree of heat AID moisture
in our curing rooms at any or all times,
In the treatment of cigar leaf wrap
pers or binders, taking them as they are
regularly packed in the sorting room,
they should be placed in curing room
with the temperature about go degrees
Fahrenheit. At this degree of heat fer
mentation will start slowly and thereby
avoid the danger of giving the tobacco q
re sweat smell. The only moisture re-
quired at this period will come from the
new tobacco in passing through what is
commonly termed the water sweat.
My experience has been, where have
kept hydrometer in my curing room to
ascertain the humidity or moisture, that
it would register at about 80 degrees or
normal After goods have been in the
sweat from three to four weeks, great
er degree of heat can be used without
risk Of damaging goods, and as the goods
advance in the sweat it will be necessary
to maintain higher degree of tempera-
ture. | aim to run my curing room at
70 to 70 degrees. And as soon as the
summer season comes we only use artih-
cial heat in the event of cold or damp
vantages of artificial heat is to be able
to maintain the proper degree of heat re-
quired for fermentation besides keeping
our buildings sweet and free from damp.
| foul air, as the latter condition is sure
| to generate must or mould. Good results
have been obtained by me in my expert
| ments of curing new tobaccos by putting
| the goods in the curing room about four
Or five weeks. or until they are partly
cured, and have shrunk about Z per
| cent, then removing them to other stor
age above freezing point and allow them
! to finish in the natural sweat during the
summer months.
1t is conceded by nearly all that proC-
er fermentation improves the aroma
! and quality of all tobacco. But the fad
for light wrappers and binders has COM
pelled the trade to throw upon the mar
ket raw and uncured product which
they can only obtain by light packing
and not allowing the goods to ferment
properly.
Tobaccos cured by artificial heat, when
properly treated, have a tougher fibre,
finer aroma and surer burner than the
natural sweat goods.