[Tobacco revenue.] Of all the productions of the country tobacco is
the most important, so far (at least) as concerns the Government,
which have the cultivation of this plant, its manipulation, and sale,
the subjects of an extensive and strictly guarded monopoly, and derives
a very considerable portion of the public revenue therefrom. [232]
As to the objections raised against this revenue on the score of its
being opposed to justice and morality, many other sources of revenue in
the colonial budget might be condemned (such as the poll-tax, gaming
and opium licenses, the brandy trade, and the sale of indulgences);
yet none is so invidious and pernicious as the tobacco monopoly.
[Injustice of the monopoly.] Often in the course of this narrative
of my travels I have had occasion to commend the clemency of the
Spanish Government. In glaring contrast therewith, however, stands the
management of the tobacco regulations. They appropriated the fields of
the peasantry without the slightest indemnification--fields which had
been brought under cultivation for their necessary means of sustenance;
forced them, under penalty of bodily punishment, to raise, on the
confiscated property, an article which required an immense amount
of trouble and attention, and which yielded a very uncertain crop;
and they then valued the harvested leaves arbitrarily and without any
appeal, and, in the most favorable case, paid for them at a nominal
price fixed by themselves. To be paid at all, indeed, appears to have
been a favor, for it has not been done in full now for several years in
succession. Spain regularly remains indebted to the unlucky peasants
in the amount of the miserable pittance allowed, from one year's end
to another. The Government ordered the officials to exact a higher
return from the impoverished population of the tobacco districts; and
even rewarded informers who, after pointing out fields already owned,
but which were considered suitable to the cultivation of tobacco,
were installed into possession of the proclaimed lands in the place
of the original owners.
For proofs of these accusations, one need only peruse a few paragraphs
contained in the following stringent regulations, entitled "General
Instructions," [233] and, further, a few extracts from the official
dispatches of Intendant-General Agius to the Colonial Minister:-- [234]
[Résumé of regulations] Cap. 25, § 329. The compulsory system of
cultivation in Cagayan, New Vizcaya, Gapan, Igorots, and Abra to
remain in force.
§ 331. The Director-General of the Government is authorized to
extend compulsory labor to the other provinces, or to abolish it
where already introduced. These instructions may be altered wholly
or in part as occasion requires.
§ 332. Prices may be either increased or lowered.
§ 337. Claims or actions concerning the possession of tobacco
lands pending before the usual tribunal shall not prevent such
lands from being used for the purposes of tobacco cultivation, the
present proprietor being under strict obligation to continue the
cultivation either in person or by substitute. (If he omits to do so,
the magistrate or judge takes upon himself to appoint such substitute.)
§ 351. The collectors have received denuncies, i.e. information,
that land adapted to tobacco growing is lying fallow, and that it is
private property. In case such land is really suitable to the purposes
of tobacco cultivation, the owners thereof are hereby summoned to
cultivate the same with tobacco in preference to anything else. At
the expiration of a certain space of time the land in question
is to be handed over to the informer. Be it known, however, that,
notwithstanding these enactments, the possessory title is not lost to
the owner, but he is compelled to relinquish all rights and usufruct
for three years.
Cap. 27, § 357. An important duty of the collector is to insure the
greatest possible extension of the tobacco cultivation upon all
suitable lands, but in particular upon those which are specially
convenient and fertile. Lands which, although suitable for tobacco
growing, were previously planted with rice or corn, shall, as far
as practicable, be replaced by forest clearings, in order, as far as
possible, to prevent famine and to bring the interests of the natives
into harmony with those of the authorities.
§ 351. In order that the work which the tobacco cultivation requires
may not be neglected by the natives, and that they may perform the
field work necessary for their sustenance, it is ordered that every
two persons working together shall, between them cultivate eight
thousand square varas, that is, two and one-half acres of tobacco land.
§ 362. Should this arrangement fail to be carried out either through
age, sickness, or death, it shall be left to the priest of the district
to determine what quantity of work can be accomplished by the little
children, having regard to their strength and number.
§ 369. Every collector who consigns from his district 1,000 fardos
more than in former years, shall receive for the overplus a double
gratuity, but this only where the proportion of first-class leaves
has not decreased.
§ 370. The same gratuity will be bestowed when there is no diminution
in bulk, and one-third of the leaves is of first-class quality.
The following sections regulate the action of the local authorities:--
§ 379. Every governor must present annually a list, revised by the
priest of the district, of all the inhabitants in his district of both
sexes, and of those of their children who are old enough to help in
the fields.
§ 430. The officers shall forward the emigrants on to Cagayan and
Nueva Vizcaya, and will be entrusted with $5 for that purpose, which
must be repaid by each individual, as they cannot be allowed to remain
indebted in their province.
§ 436. Further it is ordered by the Buen Gobierno (good government)
that no Filipino shall be liable for a sum exceeding $5, incurred
either as a loan or a simple debt. Thus the claim of a higher sum
can not impede emigration.
§ 437. The Hacienda (Public Treasury) shall pay the passage money
and the cost of maintenance from Ilocos.
§ 438. They are to be provided with the means of procuring cattle,
tools, etc., until the first harvest (although the Indian is only
liable for $5).
§ 439. Such advances are, it is true, personal and individual; but,
in the case of death or flight of the debtor, the whole village is
to be liable for the amount due.
[Tobacco from Mexico.] Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum, L.) was introduced
into the Philippines soon after the arrival of the Spaniards by the
missionaries, who brought the seed with them from Mexico. [235] The
soil and climate being favorable to its production, and the pleasure
derived from it being speedily discovered by the natives, naturally
assisted in its rapid adoption. Next to the Cuban tobacco and a
few sorts of Turkish [236]it is admitted to be the best; and in the
colony it is asserted by competent judges that it would soon surpass
all others, if the existing regulations were abolished and free trade
established. There can be no doubt in the minds of impartial observers
that the quality and quantity of the produce might be considerably
increased by such a change; on the other hand, many of the prejudiced
officials certainly maintain the direct contrary. The real question is,
to what extent these expectations may be realized in the fulfilment of
such a measure; of course, bearing in mind that the judgment is swayed
by a strong desire for the abolition of a system which interferes at
present with their prospects of gain. But the fact is that, even now,
the native grown tobacco, notwithstanding all the defects inseparable
from an illicit trade, is equal to that produced by the [High grade
of Philippine product.] Government officials in their own factories,
and is valued at the same rate with many of the Havana brands; and
the Government cigars of the Philippines are preferred to all others
throughout Eastern Asia. Indeed, rich merchants, to whom a difference
of price is no object, as a rule take the Manila cigars before Havanas.
[Manila tobacco handicapped.] According to Agius ("Memoria," 1871), in
the European market the Manila tobacco was admitted to be without any
rival, with the sole exception of the Vuelta abajo of Cuba; and most
certainly in the Asiatic and Oceanic ports its superior quality was
undisputed, as the Havana tobacco loses its flavor on the long voyage
to these countries; but now, from year to year, it is surely losing its
reputation. If, then, the Manila cigars have not hitherto succeeded in
making themselves acceptable in Europe on account of their inferiority,
the blame is attributable simply to the system of compulsory labor,
and the chronic insolvency of the Insular Treasury, whilst the produce
of other tobacco countries has steadily progressed in quality in
consequence of free competition. The fame of the Manila cigars may
also have suffered in some slight measure from the wide-spread,
though perfectly erroneous, idea that they contained opium.
[Hampered by government restrictions.] How greatly the produce might be
increased by means of free trade is shown under other circumstances by
the example of Cuba. At the time when the Government there monopolized
the tobacco trade, the crops were only partly sufficient to cover
the home consumption; whereas, at the present time, Cuba supplies
all the markets of the world. [237] The decision of Captain-General
De la Gandara upon this question is in the highest degree worthy
of notice. In a MS. Report to the Colonial Minister, March, 1858,
concerning a measure for rendering the regulations of the tobacco
monopoly still more stringent, he says: "If the tobacco cultivation
is placed without restriction into the hands of private traders,
we shall most probably, in a few years, be in a position to command
nearly all the markets in the world." Most of the islands produce
tobacco. According to the quality of the produce, the tobacco
provinces rank in the following order: First, Cagayan and Isabela;
Second, Igorots; Third, Island of Mindanao; Fourth, Bisayas; Fifth,
Nueva Ecija.
[Origin of monopoly.] From the Government Order, dated November 20,
1625, it is evident that even at that early period the sale of betel
nut, palm spirit (toddy), tobacco, etc., was a Government monopoly: but
it does not seem to have been very strictly carried out. The tobacco
monopoly, as it stands at present, the whole trade of which from the
sowing of the seedling plants to the sale of the manufactured article
is exclusively in the hands of the Government, was first introduced by
Captain-General José Basco y Vargas. And a Government Order, under date
of January 9, 1780 (confirmed by Departmental Regulations, December
13, 1781), further enacted that the tobacco regulations should be
extended to the Philippine Islands, in like manner as in all Spanish
possessions in this and the other hemisphere (de uno y otto mundo).
[Governor Basco's innovations.] Before the administration of this
very jealous Governor, for a period of two hundred years the colony
received annual contributions from New Spain (Situado de Nueva
España). In order to relieve the Spanish Exchequer, from this charge
Basco introduced (at that time national economic ideas prevailed of
making the natural resources of a State supply its immediate wants)
a plan upon which, fifty years later, Java modelled its "Culture
System." In the Philippines, however, the conditions for this system
were less favorable. In addition to the very slight submissiveness
of the population, there were two great obstacles in the opposition
of the priests and the want of trustworthy officials. Of all the
provincial trades brought into existence by the energy of Basco, the
indigo cultivation is the only one that remains in the hands of private
individuals, the tobacco trade still being a Government monopoly. [238]
Basco first of all confined the monopoly to the provinces immediately
contiguous to the capital, in all of which the cultivation of tobacco
was forbidden under penalty of severe punishment, except by persons
duly authorized and in the service of the Government. [239] In the
other provinces the cultivation was to a certain extent permitted;
but the supply remaining after deduction of what was consumed in each
province was to be sold to the Government only.
[Speculation with public funds.] In the Bisayas the magistrates
purchased the tobacco for the Government and paid for it at the rate
previously fixed by the Government factories at Manila; and they
were allowed to employ the surplus money of the Government treasury
chest for this purpose. A worse system than this could scarcely be
devised. Officials, thinking only of their own private advantage,
suffered no competition in their provinces, employed their official
power to oppress the producer to the utmost extent, and thereby
naturally checked the production; and the Government treasury chest
consequently suffered frequent losses through bankruptcies, inasmuch
as the magistrates, who drew a salary of $600 and paid a license
of from $100 to $300 for the right of trading, in order to make
money quickly, engaged in the most hazardous speculations. In 1814
this stupid arrangement was first put an end to; and forthwith the
tobacco supplies from the Bisayas increased, through the competition
of the private dealers, who then, for the first time, had the power of
purchase; and from 1839 the planters were empowered to obtain higher
prices than those afforded by the greedy monopolizing magistrates. At
present, the following general regulations are in force, subject,
however, to continual variation in details.
[Changes bring improvement.] By a Departmental Order, September 5,
1865, the cultivation of tobacco was permitted in all the provinces,
though the produce was allowed to be sold only to the Government at
the price regulated by them. The wholesale purchases are made in Luzon
and the adjacent islands in fardos, [240] by "colleccion," that is,
direct through the finance officials, who have the management of
the plants from the sowing; but in the Bisayas by acopio; that is,
the Government officials buy up the tobacco tendered by the growers
or speculators by the cwt.
[Different usages in Bisayas and Mindanao.] In the Bisayas and in
Mindanao everybody is allowed to manufacture cigars for his own
particular use, though trade therein is strictly prohibited; and
advances to the tobacco growers are also made there; while in Luzon
and the neighboring islands the Government provides seed and seedling
plants. Here, however, no land which is adapted to the cultivation
of tobacco is allowed to be used for any other purpose of agriculture.
[Crude system of grading.] As the Financial Administration is
unable to classify the tobacco at its true value, as might be done
were free competition permitted, they have adopted the expedient of
determining the price by the size of the leaves; the care necessary
to be bestowed upon the training of the plants in order to produce
leaves of the required size being at least a guarantee of a certain
amount of proper attention and handling, even if it be productive of
no other direct good. [241]
[Burden knowingly increased.] It is well known at Madrid how the
tobacco monopoly, by oppressing the wretched population, interferes
with the prosperity of the colony; yet, to the present day, the
Government measures have been so arranged as to exact a still larger
gain from this very impolitic source of revenue.
["Killing the goose that lays the golden egg."] A Government Order of
January, 1866, directed the tobacco cultivation in the Philippines to
be extended as much as possible, in order to satisfy the requirements
of the colony, the mother country, and also the export trade;
and in the memorial already quoted, "reforms" are proposed by the
Captain-General, in the spirit of the goose with golden eggs. By
grafting new monopolies upon those already existing, he believes that
the tobacco produce can be increased from 182,102 cwt. (average of
the years 1860 to 1857) to 500,000, and even 800,000 cwt. Meantime,
with a view to obtaining increased prices, the Government resolved
to export the tobacco themselves to the usual markets for sale; and
in the year 1868 this resolution was really carried out. It was sent
to London, where it secured so favorable a market that it was at once
decreed that no tobacco in Manila should thenceforth be sold at less
than $25 per cwt. [242] This decree, however, referred only to the
first three qualities, the quantity of which decreased in a relative
measure with the increased pressure upon the population. Even in
the table annexed to the record of La Gandara this is very clearly
shown. Whilst the total produce for 1867 stood at 176,018 cwt. (not
much under the average of the years 1860 to 1857, viz., 182,102 cwt.),
the tobacco of the first class had decreased in quantity since 1862
from over 13,000 to less than 5,000 cwt.
[Gift to Spain of unusable tobacco.] The fourth, fifth, and sixth
classes, the greater part of which would before have been burnt, but
which now form no inconsiderable portion of the total crop, are in the
open markets positively unsaleable, and can be utilized only in the
form of a bonus to Spain, which annually receives, under the title of
atenciones á la peninsula, upwards of 100,000 cwt. If the colony were
not compelled to pay half the freight of these gifts, Spain would
certainly ask to be relieved of these "marks of attention." Seeing
that, according to the decision of the chief of the Government, the
greater portion of this tobacco is of such inferior quality that it
can find no purchaser at any price, it is impossible that its value
should cover either the cost of carriage or the customs duty. Moreover,
this tobacco tribute is a great burden on the colonial budget; which,
in spite of all deficits, is charged with the expenses attending the
collection of the tobacco, its packing, its cost of local transport,
and half the expense of its carriage to Europe.
[De La Gandara's proposed reforms.] Dated in March, 1871,--the
beginning of a Golden Age, if De La Gandara's plans had been carried
out and his expectations realized,--there exists an excellent
statement from the Intendant-General addressed to the Minister of
Colonies pointing out plainly to the chief of the Government the
disadvantages arising from this mode of administration, and urging the
immediate repeal of the monopoly. In the next place proof was adduced,
supported by official vouchers, that the profits derived from the
tobacco monopoly were much smaller than usual. The total average
receipts of the tobacco administration for the five years 1855 to
1869, according to official accounts, amounted to $5,367,262; for the
years 1866 to 1870, only $5,240,935. The expenses cannot be accurately
estimated, inasmuch as there are no strict accounts obtainable; if,
however, the respective expenses charged in the colonial budget are
added together, they amount to $3,717,322 of which $1,812,250 is for
purchase of raw tobacco.
[Slight real profit from monopoly.] Besides these expenses pertaining
exclusively to the tobacco administration there are still many other
different items to be taken into account; yet the cost incurred in
this branch of the service would be saved, if not altogether, at
least largely, if the State surrendered the tobacco monopoly. The
total of the disbursements must certainly, at the very lowest, be
estimated at $4,000,000; so, therefore, the State receives only a net
profit of $1,357,000; but even this is not to be reckoned on in the
future, for if the Government does not speedily cease carrying on this
trade, they will be forced into a very considerable and unavoidable
expense. To begin with, they must erect new factories and warehouses;
better machinery must be bought; wages will have to be considerably
increased; and, above all, means must be devised to pay off the
enormous sum of $1,600,000 in which the Government is indebted to the
peasants for the crops of 1869 and 1870, and to assure cash payments
for future harvests. "This is the only possible mode of preventing
the decay of the tobacco cultivation in the different provinces,
as well as relieving the misery of the wretched inhabitants."
[Suffering and law-breaking thru the monopoly.] Later Agius proved
how trifling in reality the arrears were on account of which the
Government was abandoning the future of the colony, and showed the
misfortunes, of which I shall mention, these briefly, only a few,
resulting from the monopoly. He represented that the people of the
tobacco district, who were the richest and most contented of all in the
Archipelago, found themselves plunged into the deepest distress after
the increase of the Government dues. They were, in fact, far more
cruelly treated than the slaves in Cuba, who, from self-interested
motives, are well-nourished and taken care of; whereas in this case,
the produce of compulsory labor has to be delivered to the State at an
arbitrarily determined price; and even this price is paid only when
the condition of the treasury, which is invariably in difficulties,
permits. Frequently their very means of subsistence failed them,
in consequence of their being forbidden to carry on the cultivation;
and the unfortunate people, having no other resources for the relief
of their pressing necessities, were compelled to alienate the debtor's
bond, which purchased the fruits of their enforced toil but had been
left unpaid. Thus, for an inconsiderable deficit of about $1,330,000,
the whole population of one of the richest provinces is thrown into
abject misery; a deep-rooted hatred naturally arises between the people
and their rulers; and incessant war ensues between the authorities
and their subjects. Besides which, an extremely dangerous class of
smugglers have recently arisen, who even now do not confine themselves
to mere smuggling, but who, on the very first opportunity presented by
the prevailing discontent, will band themselves together in one solid
body. The official administrators, too, are charged with gross bribery
and corruption; which, whether true or not, occasions great scandal,
and engenders increasing disrespect and distrust of the colonial
administration as well as of the Spanish people generally. [243]
[Growing opposition to the monopoly.] The preceding memorial has
been not only written, but also printed; and it seems to indicate
that gradually in Spain, and also in wider circles, people are
becoming convinced of the untenableness of the tobacco monopoly;
yet, in spite of this powerful review, it is considered doubtful by
competent judges whether it will be given up so long as there are any
apparent or appreciable returns derived therefrom. These acknowledged
evils have long been known to the Colonial Government; but, from
the frequent changes of ministers, and the increasing want of money,
the Government is compelled, so long as they are in office, to use
all possible means of obtaining profits, and to abstain from carrying
out these urgent reforms lest their own immediate downfall should be
involved therein. Let us, however, cherish the hope that increased
demand will cause a rise in the prices; a few particularly good crops,
and other propitious circumstances, would relieve at once the Insular
Treasury from its difficulties; and then the tobacco monopoly might be
cheerfully surrendered. One circumstance favorable to the economical
management of the State that would be produced by the surrender of
the tobacco monopoly would be the abolition of the numerous army of
officials which its administration requires. This might, however,
operate reversely in Spain. The number of place-hunters created
must be very welcome to the ministers in power, who thus have the
opportunity of providing their creatures with profitable places,
or of shipping off inconvenient persons to the Antipodes from the
mother-country, free of cost. The colony, be it known, has not only
to pay the salaries, but also to bear the cost of their outward and
homeward voyages. Any way, the custom is so liberally patronized that
occasionally new places have to be created in order to make room for
the newly-arrived nominees. [244]
[Wholesale rate highter than retail government.] At the time of
my visit, the royal factories could not turn out a supply of cigars
commensurate with the requirements of commerce; and this brought about
a peculiar condition of things; the wholesale dealer, who purchased
cigars in very considerable quantities at the government auctions,
paying higher than the retail rates at which he could buy them
singly in the estancia. In order, therefore, to prevent the merchants
drawing their stocks from the estancias, it was determined that only
a certain quantity should be purchased, which limit no merchant dared
exceed. A very intricate system of control, assisted by espionage,
had to be employed in seeing that no one, through different agents and
different estancias, collected more than the authorised supply; and
violation of this rule, when discovered, was punished by confiscation
of the offender's stock. Everybody was free to purchase cigars in the
estancia, but nobody was permitted to sell a chest of cigars to an
acquaintance at cost price. Several Spaniards with whom I have spoken
concerning these strange regulations maintained them to be perfectly
just, as otherwise all the cigars would be carried off by foreigners,
and they would not be able themselves in their own colony to smoke
a decent cigar.
[Money juggling.] There was, as I afterwards learnt, a still more
urgent reason for the existence of these decrees. The government
valued their own gold at sixteen dollars per ounce, while in commerce
it fetched less, and the premium on silver had, at one time, risen
to thirty-three per cent. Moreover, on account of the insufficient
quantity of copper money for minor currency, the small change
frequently gained a premium on the silver dollar, so much so that by
every purchaser not less than half a dollar was realized. In exchanging
the dollar from five to fifteen per cent discount was charged; it was
profitable, therefore, to purchase cigars in the estancias with the
gold ounce, and then to retail them in smaller quantities nominally
at the rate of the estancias. Both premiums together might in an
extreme case amount to as much as forty-three per cent. [245]
[Directions for cultivating tobacco] Not being able to give a
description of the cultivation of tobacco from personal knowledge
and experience, I refer the reader to the following short extract
from the Cartilla Agricola:--
Directions for preparing and laying out the seed beds.--A suitable
piece of land is to be enclosed quadrilaterally by boundaries,
ploughed two or three times, cleared of all weeds and roots, made
somewhat sloping, and surrounded by a shallow ditch, the bed of
which is to be divided by drains about two feet wide. The soil of
the same must be very fine, must be ground almost as fine as powder,
otherwise it will not mix freely and thoroughly with the extremely
fine tobacco seed. The seed is to be washed, and then suspended in
cloths during the day, in order to allow the water to run off; after
which it is to be mixed with a similar quantity of ashes, and strewn
carefully over the bed. The subsequent successful results depend
entirely upon the careful performance of this work. From the time
the seed first begins to sprout, the beds must be kept very clean, in
dry weather sprinkled daily, and protected from birds and animals by
brambles strewn over, and by means of light mats from storms and heavy
rains. After two months the plants will be between five and six inches
high, and generally have from four to six leaves; they must then be
replanted. This occurs, supposing the seed-beds to have been prepared
in September, about the beginning or the middle of November. A second
sowing takes place on the 15th of October, as much as a precaution
against possible failure, as for obtaining plants for the lowlands.
Concerning the land most advantageous to the tobacco and its
cultivation. Replanting of the seedlings.--Land must be chosen of
middling grain; somewhat difficult, calciferous soil is particularly
recommended, when it is richly fertilized with the remains of
decayed plants, and not less than two feet deep; and the deeper the
roots are inserted the higher will the plant grow. Of all the land
adapted to the tobacco cultivation, that in Cagayan is the best,
as from the overflowing of the large streams, which occurs every
year, it is laid under water, and annually receives a new stratum
of mud, which renders the soil particularly productive. Plantations
prepared upon such soil differ very materially from those less
favored and situated on a higher level. In the former the plants
shoot up quickly as soon as the roots strike; in the latter they
grow slowly and only reach a middling height. Again in the fertile
soil the plants produce quantities of large, strong, juicy leaves,
giving promise of a splendid harvest. In the other case the plants
remain considerably smaller and grow sparsely. Sometimes, however,
even the lowlands are flooded in January and February, and also in
March, when the tobacco has already been transplanted, and grown to
some little height. In that event everything is irreparably lost,
particularly if the flood should occur at a time when it is too late
to lay out new plantations. High-lying land also must, therefore, be
cultivated, in the hope that by very careful attention it may yield
a similar return. In October these fields must be ploughed three or
four times, and harrowed twice or thrice. On account of the floods,
the lowlands cannot be ploughed until the end of December, or the
middle of January; when the work is light and simple. The strongest
plants in the seed-beds are chosen, and set in the prepared grounds
at a distance of three feet from each other, care being taken that
the earth clinging to the roots is not shaken off.
Of the care necessary to be bestowed upon the plants.--In the east a
little screen, formed by two clods, is to be erected, with a view to
protecting the plant from the morning sun, and retaining the dew for
a longer time. The weeds to be carefully exterminated, and the wild
shoots removed. A grub which occasionally appears in great numbers is
particularly dangerous. Rain is very injurious immediately before the
ripening, when the plants are no longer in a condition to secrete the
gummy substance so essential to the tobacco, which, being soluble in
water, would be drawn off by the action of the rain. Tobacco which has
been exposed to bad weather is always deficient in juice and flavor,
and is full of white spots, a certain sign of its bad quality. The
injury is all the greater the nearer the tobacco is to its ripening
period; the leaves hanging down to the ground then decay, and must
be removed. If the subsoil is not deep enough, a carefully tended
plant will turn yellow, and nearly wither away. In wet seasons this
does not occur so generally, as the roots in insufficient depth are
enabled to find enough moisture.
Cutting and manipulation of the leaves in the drying shed.--The
topmost leaves ripen first; they are then of a dark yellow color, and
inflexible. They must be cut off as they ripen, collected into bundles,
and brought to the shed in covered carts. In wet or cloudy weather,
when the nightly dews have not been thoroughly evaporated by the sun,
they must not be cut. In the shed the leaves are to hang upon cords or
split Spanish cane, with sufficient room between them for ventilation
and drying. The dried leaves are then laid in piles, which must not
be too big, and frequently turned over. Extreme care must be taken
that they do not become overheated and ferment too strongly. This
operation, which is of the utmost importance to the quality of the
tobacco, demands great attention and skill, and must be continued
until nothing but an aromatic smell of tobacco can be noticed coming
from the leaves; but the necessary skill for this manipulation is only
to be acquired by long practice, and not from any written instructions.