The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-07-27
LADY NICOTINE IN
EUROPE $50 YRS. AGO
Tobacco Was Introduced Abroad
About 1880. According to Cita-
lions I'm History of Tobacco"

New York July 25.-Tobacco was
introduced into Europe about 1850, |
according to authorities cited by F. ". |
Fairholt in his History of Tobacco"
a Spanish physician. the author adds. |
is believed to have brought SOM
plants to Spain for inspection by
Philip II. who had commissioned the
physician to visit Mexico and report
on its natural resources. Almost at
the same time the weed was intro
duced into France and Italy, chiefly
by members of the church.
Jean Nicot. lord of Villemain and
master Of the requests of the French
kings household. purchased at Lis
bon while ambassador to the Portu-
guese court, in 1859. some tobacco
seed obtained by a Flemish merchant
in Florida, and on, his return TO
France in 1851 presented some Of the
| plants to the queen, Catherine de
Medici 4
The name nicotiana, in honor Of Nj
cot, was given the weed in France.
this appelation being still preserved
by us in nicotine. the scientific name
| for the essential oil of the tobacco
| plant.
| Taken to Italy.
i The plant was introduced into Italy
| by Cardinal Prosper Santa Cruce, who
| also obtained the seed in Portugal IT
was TO the supposed sanitary virtues
of tobacco, says MIR. Fairholt, that its
| honorable Introduction to Europe was
due,
! Physicians seemed 10 attribute al
mots miraculous medicinal virtues to
the plant and rulers and cardinals
| followed their lead. Thus tobacco
was grown as a medicinal help In
| France for a long period after the
English had it in common use for
smoking.
Henry Buttes. in curious little vol
ume entitled, "Dyetz-Dye Dinner"
says tobacco was translated out of
India in the seede or roote.
1T cureth any griefs, do.our, i'm
porture, or obstruction proceeding of
colde or winde, especially in the head
or breast he adds The fume, TAX
en- in a pipe. is good against rumes,
catarrhs, hoarseness. ache in the head.
stomache. lungs. breast also in y ant
! of meate, drinke. sleepe, or rest.
Spread Far and Wide.
The name in India is piecelt, eur
named tobacco by the Spaniards OF
the lie Tobacco. BY their meanes to
! spred fare and neare, but yet wee
/ are not beholden to their tradition.
| Our English Ulisses, renowned Syr
Walter Rawleigh, A man admirably
excellent in navigation, ,of NATURES
priv COUNSEL and infinitely read Sin
the wide books of the worlde. hath
| both fare fetcht. IL and deare bought
! it; the estimate of the treasure I leave
to other. yet this all know that since
IL came in request Fume -vendulus is
/ the best Epithite for On Apothecary,
! To Sir Walter Raleigh is ascribed
3r,h aefx- in, 1r1.
smoking purposes. He certainly made
! 1t fashionable and gave it good
standing in society. But II seems to
have been introduced originally by
| Ralph Lane, who was sent by Raj
eigh as governor of Virginia return
ing to England in 1856.
The historian of this voyage.
Thomas Harriet, and Camden. who
also lived in this period, both affirm
that Lane was the original English
smoker The tobacco plant, however,
seems TO have been known in England
earlier. a
Stow in his Annals" asserts that
tobacco came into England about he
twentieth year of Queen Elizabeth
I570, aud Taylor, the water poet,
records that tobacco was first
brought into England in 1865 by Sir
John Hawkins"
The translator of Everard's Pana-
cea, in sS659, says: Capt. Richard
Greenfield and Sir Francis Drake were
the first planters of it here, not Sir
Walter Raleigh, which is the COM
mon error"
However this may be, Sir Walter
Raleigh certainly seems to have, been
the first devoted tobacco smoker In
England. and in spite of his courtier-
snip when a queen ruled ostentatious-
~, enjoyed his pipe. Aubrey notes
this anecdote;
Sir Walter Raleigh, when standing
insa stand at Sir Ro. Poynta Parke att
Acton, took a pipe of tobacco, which
made the ladies quite 1t till he had
done"
This was subsequent to the acct
dent that befell Sir Walter when .'he
took a private pipe" which caused
his servant to drench him with ale.
''as the smoke induced him to think
his master was on fire"