The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1907-01-25
NOTE BOOK SKETCHES

The local tobacco dealers in the county
will read with considerable surprise the
admission of Supervisor of Assessment
Starr made during quiz before the
board of supervisors last week. Mr..
Starr was being questioned regarding
the equalizing of the assessments OF
1906. One of the questions related to
assessments of factories on basis of 81
per cent. of true valuation while other
property was placed at so per cent. Mr.
Starr explained that it was necessary
here, as elsewhere, to favor the manu-
featuring Institutions; that the pro-
cedure could not be dispensed with here
simply because it was in operation else
where. In certain neighboring states
the power is given to remit taxes alto
gether and on the theory that factory
adds to the value of surrounding terri
tory the Wisconsin authorities have
found it advisable to exert every effort to
keep the industries within the confines
of the state and tempt new ones here
Tobacco warehouses, the speaker said,
ran somewhat higher than the factories
and the factories, themselves, were as
sessed at figures nearer their true valua-
tion in Rock county than in Kenosha
and in some of the other neighboring
localities. The question naturally arises
- Sc HiSorIno-
mated against? The tobacco towns have
generally looked up this business from
the standpoint of manufacturing in
dustry, and if any preference is to be
given it is entitled to the same consider
alton. 1t is matter of some Importance
to know if Mr. Starr is treating us fairly
in his official position.
~
Prof. Whitney of the Bureau of Soils
is telling great deal about his tobacco
growing experiment in Texas. About
200 acres was grown last season with an
average yield of 900 pounds to the acre.
1t costs the farmer about 9 cents per
pound, he estimates, to grow and cure
this leaf which finds ready sale at 15
cents, leaving profit of $36 per acre.
That's nothing. The farmers of Wiscon-
sin can beat that any season. A profit
of less than 800 per acre isn't counted
here. Not very many Wisconsin tobacco
growers will be attracted to Texas by
these figures, we imagine.
Xxx
The New York papers accord to Ju-
Illus Marqusee the credit of doing the
largest business in Wisconsin leaf last
year ever before done by single house.
This is the Leafs account of it:
A leaf dealer whose achievements in
the trade in the past nine years SAVIOR of
the marvellous, and whose enterprise,
foresight, sagacity and ability have been
richly rewarded in the enormous busi-
ness that has been built up through his
efforts, is julius Marqusee, of Water
street. His transactions in Wisconsin
tobacco last year were almost spectacu-
lar, and broke not only his own previous
records for quantity of Wisconsin leaf
handled, but probably stand without a
parallel ia the trade. Reduced to cold
figures, he handled during the year
$4,000 cases of tobacco, of value of four
millions of dollars And the statement
that he handled it is correct; he had
the assistance of neither partner nor
salesman.
Pretty good for man who started
nine years ago without capital Or credit
isn't it?
The following statement as to when
tobacco is ripe" issued by the depart
ment of agriculture, will be of interest
to growers The time when a plant of
tobacco is ripe and ready to be cut is a
matter of judgment and experience.
There is slight change iu the color of
the leaf. The leaf is observed to change
from a rank green to a lighter shade of
green, yellow spots appear, and the leaf
feels coarse and thick to the touch 1t
also breaks easily, especially when the
due is upon it. DIR. LoeW, in his Phys
ical Studies of Connecticut Leaf Tobac-
co, states that the ripening of the leaf is
not physiological but pathological
phenomenon. By the accumulation of
nicotine, oxidizing enzyms and acids a
state is finally reached in which the
normal deep green color of the chloro-
phyll grains gives way to yellowish
color. a ripe leaf contains per 100 square
centimeters, an average of .164 grams of
matter soluble in running water, while a
young leaf contains only .066, the former
having therefore for an equal surface
about times as much soluble organic
matter as the latter. AS to the total
weight, the ripe leaf weighs from ! 3 to
1.5-on the average of l.4-times as
much as an equal surface of a young
leaf of the same plant. 1t g especially
the nicotine and protein compounds that
increase in ripe leaf, fact of which
anyone can soon convince himself by a
comparison of the reaction caused by
phospho tungistic acid in the juices of
ripe and unripe leaves. The amount OF
water in ripe leaves averages 8 per cent.
and in young leaf So per cent; that is,
when compared iu nearly starch free
condition after being kept in darkness
two days. As to the So called ''over-ripe''
Il l1- n I<><xrx