The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1918-04-19

seed is good one and should be more
generally followed 1t would prove
quite a serious handicap to the coming
crop If growers should fall down now
on account of poor seed and month
later the mistake could scarcely be
remedied..
~
Two of the most popular brands of
cigarette and pipe smoking tobacco,
the Bull Durham and Dukes Mixture,
have been Communicated by the gov
ernment and the entire output Of these
>brands turned over for the use Of the
army and navy of Uncle Sam. So when
the stocks in the hands of the distrib-
utors are exhausted no more of these
brands will be procurable until the war
is over. The statement has been made
by prominent tobacco man that the
privilege Of making either of these
brands would be worth more to its pos
SCISSOR than the ownership of most gold
mines. Years of work and enterprise
and thousands Of dollars spent in ad-
vertising have gone into making these
brands the money-makers they are.
Yet, when it became evident that the
requirements of the sailors and soldiers
were in question, both companies un-
hesitatingly placed their entire output
at the disposal of the government. The
needs of the nations defenders are
paramount to all other considerations.
*x*
The report published in recent is
sue of a tobacco trade paper to the ef-
feet that the government was consider
ing the advisability of placing an en-
| barge upon the impor tation of tobacco
caused a great deal Of unnecessary un-
| easiness among the manufacturers and
| leaf tobacco importers Of this country.
| Numerous inquiries were made as to
when the embargo was to go into eff
| feet. The fact of the matter is that
| the government has no present inten-
ton of embargoing the importation OF
| tobacco. 1t is considering the question
of tonnage, and is going over a list OF
all the articles and commodities that
are imported, with view to ascertain
ing which might be shut out with least
loss to this country in case the tonnage
situation demands such restriction. To
bacco is being considered along with
the rest, but each commodity is being
considered upon its own merits, anC
furthermore the amount of tonnage
available in each specific instance is
also being taken into consideration.
-
War conditions are certainly creating
peculiar results. If, in ordinary years,
| the exports of any commodity woulc
decrease by 100 per cent the value OF
that article would naturally sink also
in the same proportion. But here we
have the exports of our leaf shrinking
fully 100 per cent last year in compari'
son with the year before, that is, from
ATT million pounds to 254 millions, anc
yet commanding 100 per cent larger IN
crease in value in our domestic markei
than when its consumption was double
the current quantity. Evidently this
condition was caused by the increased
output of our domestic tobacco pro-
ducts, which increase naturally boosted
the price according to the tremendous
demand for it. On the other hand,
| while cigar leaf supplies became pro
portionately, nearly as scarce, then
| imports from our possession, Porto
Rico, increased only by four million
pounds while the imports from Cuba,
which enjoys preferential tobacco
tariff in this country, remained almost
stationary, amounting both DURING the
| calendar year 1917 and 1916 to twenty
one million pounds. = U. S. Tobacco
Journal.