The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1905-01-20

NOTE BOOK SKETCHES


The money returns which the growers
are receiving for their tobacco crops so
far delivered remind US more of old
times than anything seen since 1900.
The tobacco coming to the warehouses
up to this date has yielded the growers
considerably over 500 an acre on an av-
erage. The tobacco is generally in good
packing condition and the delivery made
without kick or complaint, so the sat
isfied smile which the farmer has on re-
ceiving his check is going long way tozs
ward reestablishing tobacco in the good
graces of the agriculturists So much
has been written of late about the profits
resulting from sugar beet growing that
The Reporter has resolved to give some
figures showing what farmers are receiv-
ing for the present tobacco crop. With
the permission of the dealers we shall
attempt each week to print the names of
growers with the number of acres and
the amount of cash they received. With
these facts before them, the farmer can
be his own Judge regarding the merits of
the two crops. While the figures will
probably show nothing extraordinary or
equal to some former years, they will be
more encouraging than for some seasons
back.
There promises to be an abundance of
help to be obtained for handling the
tobacco crop this season. At every pack
ing point where warehouses have opened
more help has been turned away than
was given employment. While the crop
is short one, there must be close to
lO0,gOO cases to be packed and in the ag-
gregate several hundred thousand dollars
Will be distributed in labor before the
tcbacco handling season closes. Now
that the work is under way it will prove
g great help to the laboring classes, es-
pecially those having families depending
upon for support to have several uaonths
of steady employment in sight. The
present crop being an unusually sound
one the asserting will se Comparatively
an easy matter to some years when she'd
burn, stem rot and other iunperfections
have to be contende6 with. The help
is therefore assured OF making fair wages
at the former price of table work, while
the crop is peing rapidly handled
#s*
At the ann0al convention of the New
England Tobacco Growers Association,
held last Tuesday at Hartford Conn, H.
S. Fry of Poquonock was elected presi-
dent, to succeed Edmuud III. Halliday,
who declined renomination. The other
officers elected were Thaddeus Graves
of Hatfield, Mass, vice-president; and
William S. Davis of Hartford, secretary.
***
An interesting solution, of the Philip
pine problem bGs been suggested to the
Secretary of War to the effect that the
of purely tropical products
should be stimulated in the islands, in
stead of sugar and tobacco which COM
pete with similar products in the United
States. For Imstance, in 1900 we paid
Brazil alone nearly fifty three million
dollars for coffee and rubber which could
be produced ia the Philippine Islands,
where both grow to perfection. We an
nually import frora S150,OOO,OOO to 500
100000 worth of coffee, rubber, fibers
and spices and other purely tropical
products which we can never hope to
grow ia the United States, and every one
Of which can be produced in the Philip
pine Islands.
Among the long string of protests to
Congress against adopting Secrtary
Taft's hobby of paaperizing our cigar
and leaf growing industries, and our
:igarmakers in oroer to fill the pockets
Of the alien Filipinos with the savings
of our own hard work is one almost pa
;hetic in tone that should make deep
on Congress. It is one of the |
AL workmen Of an Allegheny, Pa, cigar |
md stogie factory. which cries out: 1--WE |
cannot compete with labor at 40 cents !
lay-let us alone!" Truly this cry, deep |
rom the bottom Of the heart tells the |
whole story in a nutshell. That's the |
Iind of protests that should overwhelm |
Congress.
Figuressfurnished by the Netherlands
bureau of statistics give general viewi
# the Dutch East Indies tobacco trade.
This section produces the world famous
,umatra cigar wrapper, to find srbsti-
ute for which the United States depart
nent of agriculture has of recent years
nade heroic efforts. The Island Of SUI
natra boasts five tobacco growing prov
nces Of these, Deli raised in '02 1881
60 pounds, or about one-half the islands
otal output. The industry is mainly in
he hands of companies who own or have
5ases on big tracts of land. This is evi.
enced by the fact that the last crop of
,fssch there is any record showed an av-
rage yield per plantation of 351 800
ouBds. At an average production of
500 pounds per acre this would show
nat each plantation devoted over 230
cres to tobacco. The tendency is to-
ard aaore perfect consolidation of
limitations each year. 4 decade ago
mere were 50 more plantations in Suma-
"a than at present and their average to-
acco output was only 15O,7Go pounds,
ss than one-half the current yield per !
arm. The tobacco crop of Sumatra in