The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1906-04-13
NOTE BOOK SKETCHES

information reaches us CudC CO0GFdCCS
for the 1906 crop are being offered grow
ers in some sections of the state even be.
fore the seed is planted, and fully six
months in advance of the harvest. Or
dinarily little significance would be
placed on reports of this character, as
they would be viewed as evidences of g
sort of harmless lunacy, but under the
present market conditions some trading
of a nature of options might be INDUCED
in that the trade would take notice Of
The report coming to US is that contracts
covering term of three years are offer
ed favored growers, in which the buyer
agrees to assume all chances except that
of hail, the tobacco to be received in the
bundle at 10 cents per pound. Good
liberal proposition, some would say, but
we imagine there are but few dealers
who would care to contract for any
amount of acreage upon such conditions.
Six months of course is a long time to
wait for another crop to grow when there
is nothing in sight for the tobacco buy
ers to do in the meantime. Buying to-
bacco in the field is risky enough prop
osition as commercial transaction, but
to go back six months farther and deal
in futures entirely. puts the tobacco bus
mess Oh par with board of trade spec
uiations. In these days of "frenzied
finance" why is not frenzied tobacco
buying entirely proper, too?
Xxx
The N. Y. Leaf puts the question of
increasing the tobacco acreage the COM
ing season in another light: There are
two sides to every coin. High prices,
which are always sought by the seller,
usually bring him prosperity; on the
other hand, they usually bring more or
less adversely to the buyer. This is as
true in the case of tobacco as with cot
ton, silver or copper. When high prices
mean a rapidly growing market, they
speak we'll for both present and future;
when they mean stationary or decreasing
supply, they are ominous of evil. This
is year of high prices in tobacco, both
at home and abroad. The world is at
peace, business is good universally and
the demand has passed all records.
There is, on the other hand a positive
shortage in Havana leaf, and an made
Ta9rate supply of nearly every other kind
Of leaf. The resulting high prices are of
vast advantage to the farmers and to the
few dealers who happened to carry over
large stocks at low rates. The results
are known to all. Many manufacturers
are working without profit or at loss;
others, and they are numbered by the
score, have closed their factories: while
third class have raised their prices.
and unavoidablY reduced their trade.
The duty of every planter is to increase
his acreage so that the supply will be
equal to the demand.
A**
The department of agriculture has re-
Gently made report upon it's results in
tobacco breeding experiments conducted
by Profs. Shamel and Cobey, in a special
bulletin. 1t is believed that their work
will result in the placing in the hands of
interested persons the very best seed of
the various types of tobacco. Some OF
these types will be entirely new, the re-
suits of selection and breeding by Messrs.
Shamel and Cobey the past two or three
years. Other types will be such as are
already established, but the seed dis
tributed this year has all been carefully
selected with reference to securing the
best possible strain Of each type. La the
distribution of tobacco seed this season,
unless a particular variety of tobacco is
requested by the growers an attempt
will be made to send the variety of to-
bacco which experience has shown to be
most nearly adapted to the conditions
under which the tobacco is to be grown.
1t has been found by experience that an
attempt to produce tobacco on soil
not suited to the type planted will in
most cases result in failure, from the
fact that the tobacco produced is unfit
for the same grade as the parent plants
and will not meet the requirements of
an established class of tobacco, but must
sell as nondescript. In some cases,
however, new types of tobacco have
been established in this way which have
proved of sufficient Importance to create
|. a market on their own merit, and Wher-
ever it seems possible that such results
may be secured the seed of highly bred
new varieties will be sent to the particu
lar section adapted to the growth of
these types.
*.*
1t seems quite possible that an effort
will be made in the senate before ad
journing to revive the Philippine tariff
bill that was SO uncermoniously smoth
cred in committee. Senator Lodge says
he desires to put the senate on record.
Apropos of the constant assertions of
Secretary Taft and his supporters on the
Philippine tariff bill that the tobacco in
dustry on the Islands doesn't amount to
anything and need cause the trade in
the United States no fear for the future,
is an article by Hamilton Wright, print
ed in the Louisville Herald. The CORES
pondent writes that for 101 years, from
1871 to 1882, tobacco production on the
Islands was monopoly of the Spanish
opd so the