The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1911-02-18
IRISH TOBACCO CROP
The Immense Amount of Labor Con-
nected With 1t.

uVSeVu WIN
The grading and stripping of the
Irish crop of tobacco having been now
nearly completed. we can judge more
accurately what has been the yield,
and what is the exact value of the
quality. Taking an average per acre.
it may be said that of the one hundred
and twenty acres grown this year in
Ireland, there has been about one
hundred and fifty pounds weight of
leaf to the acre, or, roughly, between
sixty and seventy tons of dried leaf,
which shows very handsome ncrcas-
cd yield on this ovec last years crop.
The last stages of curing the leaf,
viz. packing, sweating, fcrmenting.
and getting ready for transport, are
now being entered on, and these pro-
"csses are now being carried out UNI
dc" the supervision OF Mr. Keller. the
expert of the department, who during
the past fortnight has visited each of
the districts where the crop is grown,
or where the curing barns are situated.
1t is thought this year Colonel Ever
ard, who has been the great pioneer
i'm this industry. will make an effort
to secure all the Irish leaf grown, and
;.iso the leaf grown in England and
Scotland, which has been sent over
to the Irish curing barns to be manip-
ulated and cured, as there are no
curing stations in England where the
green Leaf can be manipulated. How
ever, that is a question Of price. No
doubt The other Irish tobacco manu-
lacturers who have made "I"ish cured"
and Irish grown tobacco Il leading
article i'll their trades. will also have
Il say in The matter. as tho Irish grown
ana irish cured Article has had Il
hen' ilenal sale since last seasons
lear was put on the market. Colonel
E'verard has, however, now started a
manufactory in Dublin. in which the
produce Of his own tobacco farms at
RandalstoWn and the leaf grown in
other places is now made ,,p, and we
arc glad to hear the new industry IS
most thriving one, in fact, it has
grown to- such an extent that new
premises had to be secured.
No ono who is unacuuantcd with
the business would for Il moment i'm
assilc what a great amount of labo.
is employed in this industry, and more
especially at a time of the year when
agricultural labor required is at it's
slacltest season.
The planting. maturing. and weed
ing IN the growing stages gives great
employment in tho spring and carly
summer season. but it is when the to-
btrc" leaf is being garnered in, and
IN the barns and curing stations that
III" chief source of employment is re-
Guircd.
Every single leaf has to be picked,
handled sorted. and graded separate
~. and done with a delicacy and Gaze
which is Il slow process. They have
to be tied and bundled, and in fact the
curing process is a tedious and most
careful one which needs the most con-
slant care and watchfulness on the
part of the employees.
We understand the Wexford grown
tobacco this year is considered to be
the best vet raised. and to he the fin
est of the half dozen tobacco farm lots
gown in Ireland. Tho tobacco grow
erS this year expect higher prices for
their produce. as the competition to get
the Irish grown leaf will be keen, now
that an Irish mandatory in Dublin
is started and in full swing, to use IN
the specially grown Irish weed. II is
to be hoped the efforts now being made
by Mr.. VIM. Redmond, M. p, and 9TH
ers to induce the Chancellor of the
EXchcquer to extend the bounty to
those persons who at present are grow
ing the leaf without getting the cxcep-
uollai advantages which the expert
mental growers receive, may be Sue
cessful in the coming session of par
lament. The few pence drawback al
lowed to these growers is too small
to meet tho trouble and expense of
trying the experiment on Il large scale.
They should be encouraged, now that II
is proved the quality OF the leaf grown
by those who have been experiments
ing for the last seven years hears the
best of comparisons with the foreign
lear. by such Il liberal reduction in
the duty as would enable thrm IN |
plant not two or three acres, but the
twenty aud thirty acres of tobacco
farms which would lift the industry
to be a national one. and give an Gu.
largcd amount of labor. and cause n
flow OF capital into the country which
would really benefit u large section of
the trading and agricultural popula-
ton