Improvements relating to the Manufacture of Cigars.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd Sept., 1890-Accepted, 18th Oct., 1890
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements relating to the Manufacture of Cigars.
1, BERNHARD HEINRICH MEYER of 111 East 117th Street, in the City and State
of New York, United States of America, Cigar Manufacturer, do hereby declare the
nature of my invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
In making long filler cigar bunches, two methods are ordinarily employed. One of
them is the following: leaves or pieces of tobacco are picked up soparately by the
operative and compressed lengthwise in his hand until a sufficient number to form the
complete filler for the cigar, is grasped and likewise compressed by his hand. The
filler so formed is then enveloped in a binder, thus completing the bunch which is
ready to be covered by the wrapper. It has been found that cigars made from fillers
thus formed are very liable to have serious defects. Among them, are the burning of
the cigars up the sides, which is caused by the uneveness and hollows formed in the
bunches;
defective draft arising from the twisting of the fillers in putting on the
binders i and the presence of sand in the fillers, which is allowed to remain in
the unopened leaves from which the fillers are made.
The other of said methods is the following: the operative grasps one or more leaves
or pieces of tobacco sufficient to form a foundation for the bunch, and compresses them
lengthwise in his hand; he then lays around the foundation opened and flattened
leaves or pieces, layer by layer, breaking joints as he proceeds, until the filler of the
desired size is formed; after which he envelopes the mass by a leaf sufficiently large
to bind the whole compactly. The bunch so formed is then ready for the wrapper.
Although cigars that have been made from bunches formed by the latter method, are
not so defective as cigars containing bunches made by the former method, yet they
are liable to have bad draught on account of the foundation or centre being of com-
pressed tobacco and also for the reason that the outer leaves of the bunch are more or
less wrinkled and irregularly deposited.
My invention is intended to avoid the difficulties mentioned, and it consists in a new
and useful method of forming long filler cigar bunches, whereby an improved cigar
is produced.
In the accompanying drawing, Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4 are views illustrating successive
steps in making long filler cigar bunches according to my invention.
In carrying out my invention, I take tobacco leaves that have been opened and
flattened as above described, and upon a cigar-maker's table or board, I lay a sufficient
number of pieces, a, to form a bunch, beginning with a comparatively large piece as
a foundation, and adding thereon piece after piece placed one on top of the other, as
shown in Fig. 1. Any portion of a piece exceeding the required length of the bunch is
broken off and laid flatwise within the body of the pile where the greatest thickness
is required. In order to conform to the desired contour of the cigar, the smaller
leaves or broken pieces are placed flatwise wherever required on the pile to fill out the
necessary thickness. I next roll up the entire mass or pile of leaves or pieces in con-
volute form from the centre to the exterior, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, and transfer
the same directly to a binder, or to a wrapper, if no binder is to be used.
Cigars having bunches formed according to my invention, will burn more regularly
and freely, have more reliable draft and, consequently, give better development of the
aromatic qualities of the tobacco, than cigars with bunches made according to either
of the ordinary methods, besides being freer from sand.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is―
The herein described method of making cigar bunches consisting in first spreading

page_text: a series of leaves flat one upon another, socondly, rolling the series of leaves into a
filler of convolute form, and then placing a binder around the fillor, substantially as
set forth.
Dated this 19th day of Anost 1890
BERNHARD HEINRICH MEYER.
Haseltine, Lake & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, Agents for the Applicant.