The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1910-05-06
NOTE BOOK SKETCHES

s:.ssss.s.:.
Those growers who through neglect
or other causes beyond their ccnGrol
were unable to take down their last
seasons crop from the curing sheds
until late spring now find they are
financial losers by neglecting earlier
opportunities. The tobacco that
hung in the sheds throughout the win
ter and spring months has been found
to have lost much of it's value, being
badly broken and so dried out by con-
tinual freezing that most of the oil and
elasticity in the leaf is gone, and in fact
it7 condition so unsatisfactory that
packers contend it is hardly worth
while to add the cost of labor in pre-
pairing it for the cases. There were
probably more than 5000 cases of such
tobacco left hanging in the sheds of
this state through the winter and in
some of the northern sections there is
considerable still remaining in the
sheds. This experience goes to prove
that tobacco ought to be taken down
from the curing sheds during the fall
months if growers expect to secure full
returns from the crop. 1t seems to be
well established fact that cured leaf
will deteriorate if left too long in the
sheds before stripping: that cold, dry
ing winds and continued freezing de-
stroys the elasticity of the leaf and
makes it unfit for binder purposes. The
experience will also serve as a lesson
that growers will profit by in future
years.
The month of March was fairly active
in almost all branches Of the tobacco
manufacturing industry. Some of the
outputs are of very satisfactory volume,
and while cigars and small cigars do
not compare altogether favorably with
the output for the corresponding month
last year, there is some satisfaction to
be derived from the fact that smoking
and chewing tobacco shows nice gain,
as do cigarettes and snuff. From the
standpoint of the government the month
was a good one, the collections exceed
Ing those Of the corresponding month
last year, being, in fact, the largest of
month since October, 1907, the month
prior to the money panic of that year.
The slight falling off in the cigar pro-
duction in March is not regarded as
particularly significant. The general
| tone of the industry is healthy, and the
demand for cigars seems to be sufficient
| in all sections of the country to justify
| the opinion that the immediate future
of the cigar manufacturing industry is
| bright.
AS pointed out last week in this
place, cigar leaf is almost the only
commodity that has not only remained
| stagnant in the present avalanche OF
raise for anything and everything with
in sight, but is even far below the av-
erage value it commanded a quarter of
century ago. If the price of cigar
leaf were to go up at the rate OF all
other commodities and were it only in
sympathy with it, hardly an objection
could be taken to it. But it should be
remembered that the domestic filler
| and binder leaf is the bread and meat
| of the trade And as the finished pro-
duct has steadily risen in price without
| any consideration for the intermediary
between the manufacturer and consum-
er, that is the retailer, the advance in
| the price of raw material would and
could be only natural consequence.
| If, therefore, the market is still in a
| position to offer binder and filler stocks
| at figures as prevailed before the gen.
eral cost of living rose so tremendously
| it would seem that manufacturers would
| be only too prone and anxious to pro-
vide themselves with such stock, if for
no other reason than from the natural
assumption that tobacco farmers too
| and leaf packers will have to go up in
price in order to square themselves on
| the general advance in the cost of liv-
| ing. Considered from this point of
value alone the leaf market is bound to
make up in advance OF prices what it
may lose now through slackness Of bus
] mess. u. S. Tobacco Journal.
In commenting upon the appointment
| of Gov. Hughes to the vacancy upon
the supreme court bench, an eastern
trade journal says: The corporations
may be certain, however, that from
Justice Hughes they will receive a
| square deal. He has given irreputable
evidence of independence of thought
and his whole course as governor has
been marked with desire to be fair.
1t is to be fairly assumed that he will
J. take an attitude in those cases that will
tend to uphold the law and at the same
| time conserve the vast property inter-
ests involved. However, Gov. Hughes
will hold in the tobacco and oil cases
his opinion will carry great weight with
/ the nannle That his will be the decid-