CHAPTER VIII.

SNUFF, SNUFF-BOXES AND SNUFF-TAKERS.

The custom of snuff-taking is as old at least as the discovery of the

tobacco plant. The first account we have of it is given by Roman Pane,

the friar who accompanied Columbus on his second voyage of discovery

(1494), and who alludes to its use among the Indians by means of a

cane half a cubit long. Ewbank says:

"Much has been written on a revolution so unique in its

origin, unsurpassed in incidents and results, and

constituting one of the most singular episodes in human

history; but next to nothing is recorded of whence the

various processes of manufacture and uses were derived. Some

imagine the popular pabulum[56] for the nose of translantic

origin. No such thing! Columbus first beheld smokers in the

Antilles. Pizarro found chewers in Peru, but it was in the

country discovered by Cabral that the great sternutatory was

originally found. Brazilian Indians were the Fathers of

snuff, and its best fabricators. Though counted among the

least refined of aborigines, their taste in this matter was

as pure as that of the fashionable world of the East. Their

snuff has never been surpassed, nor their apparatus for

making it."

[Footnote 56: Dr. John Hill in his tract "Cautions

against the immoderate use of snuff" gives the following

definition of it. "The dried leaves of tobacco, rasped,

beaten, or otherwise reduced to powder, make what we

call snuff." This tract was published in 1761. The

author, afterwards Sir John Hill, was equally celebrated

as a physician and a writer of farces, as denoted by the

following epigram by Garrick:

"For physic and farces his equal there scarce is;

His farces are physic, his physic a farce is."]

Soon after the introduction and cultivation of tobacco in Spain and

Portugal its use in the form of snuff came in vogue and from these

notions it spread rapidly over Europe, particularly in France and

Italy. It is said to have been used first in France[57] by the wife

of Henry II., Catherine de Medici, and that it was first used at court

during the latter part of the Sixteenth Century. The Queen seemed to

give it a good standing in society and it soon became the fashion to

use the powder by placing a little on the back of the hand and

inhaling it. The use of snuff greatly increased from the fact of its

supposed medicinal properties and its curative powers in all diseases,

particularly those affecting the head, hence the wide introduction of

snuff-taking in Europe. Fairholt says of its early use:

[Footnote 57: An English writer gives a different

account--"The custom of taking snuff as a nasal

gratification does not appear to be of earlier date than

1620, though the powdered leaves of tobacco were

occasionally prescribed as a medicine long before that

time. It appears to have first become prevalent in

Spain, and from thence to have passed into Italy and

France."]

"Though thus originally recommended for adoption as a

medicine, it soon became better known as a luxury and the

gratification of a pinch was generally indulged in Spain,

Italy and France, during the early part of the Seventeenth

Century. It was the grandees of the French Court who 'set

the fashion' of snuff, with all its luxurious additions of

scents and expensive boxes. It became common in the Court of

Louis le Grand, although that monarch had a decided

antipathy to tobacco in any form."

Says an English writer "Between 1660 and 1700, the custom of

taking snuff, though it was disliked by Louis XIV., was

almost as prevalent in France as it is at the present time.

In this instance, the example of the monarch was

disregarded; _tobac en poudre_ or _tobac rape_[58] as snuff

was sometimes called found favor in the noses of the French

people; and all men of fashion prided themselves on carrying

a handsome snuff-box. Ladies also took snuff; and the belle

whose grace and propriety of demeanour were themes of

general admiration, thought it not unbecoming to take a

pinch at dinner, or to blow her pretty nose in her

embroidered _mouchoir_ with the sound of a trombone. Louis

endeavored to discourage the use of snuff and his

valets-de-chambre were obliged to renounce it when they were

appointed to their office. One of these gentlemen, the Duc

d'Harcourt, was supposed to have died of apoplexy in

consequence of having, in order to please the king, totally

discontinued the habit which he had before indulged to

excess."

[Footnote 58: Grated tobacco.]

Other grandees were less accommodating: thus we are told that

Marechal d'Huxelles used to cover his cravat and dress with it. The

Royal Physician, Monsieur Fagon, is reported to have devoted his best

energies to a public oration of a very violent kind against snuff,

which unfortunately failed to convince his auditory, as the excited

lecturer in his most enthusiastic moments refreshed his nose with a

pinch.

[Illustration: A tobacco grater.]

Although disliked by the most polished prince of Europe, the use of

snuff increased and soon spread outside the limits of the court of

France and in a short time became a favorite mode of using tobacco as

it continues to be with many at this day.[59] The snuff-boxes of this

period were very elegant and were decorated with elaborate paintings

or set with gems. It was the custom to carry both a snuff-box and a

tobacco grater, which was often as expensive and elegant as the

snuff-box itself. Many of them were richly carved and ornamented in

the most superb manner. Others bore the titles and arms of the owner

and it was considered as part of a courtier's outfit to sport a

magnificent box and grater. The French mode of manufacturing snuff was

to saturate the leaves in water, then dry them and color according to

the shade desired. The perfume was then added and the snuff was

prepared for use. The kind of tobacco used was "Tobac de Virginie."

Spanish snuff was perfumed in the same manner with the additional use

of orange-flower water. Carver gives the mode of manufacturing snuff

in America (1779).

[Footnote 59: The Rev. S. Wesley speaking of the abuses

of tobacco, intimates that the human ear, will not long,

remain exempted from its affliction.

"To such a height with some is fashion grown

They feed they very nostrils with a spoon.

One, and but one degree is wanting yet,

To make their senseless luxury complete;

Some choice regale, useless as snuff and dear,

To feed the mazy windings of the ear."]

"Being possessed of a tobacco wheel, which is a very simple

machine, they spin the leaves, after they are properly

cured, into a twist of any size they think fit; and having

folded it into rolls of about twenty pounds weight each,

they lay it by for use. In this state it will keep for

several years, and be continually improving, as it every

hour grows milder. When they have occasion to use it, they

take off such a length as they think necessary, which, if

designed for smoking, they cut into small pieces, for

chewing into larger, as choice directs; if they intend to

make snuff of it they take a quantity from the roll, and

laying it in a room where a fire is kept, in a day or two it

will become dry, and being rubbed on a grater will produce a

genuine snuff. Those in more improved regions who like their

snuff scented, apply to it such odoriferous waters as they

can procure, or think most pleasing."

Dutch snuff was only partially ground, and was therefore coarse and

harsh in its effects when inhaled into the nostrils. The Irish,

according to Everards, used large quantities of snuff "to purge their

brains." Snuff-taking became general in England[60] at the

commencement of the Seventeenth Century, and scented snuffs were used

in preference to the plain. Frequent mention is made in the plays of

this time of its use and varieties. In Congreve's "Love for Love," one

of the characters presents a young lady with a box of snuff, on

receipt of which she says, "Look you here what Mr. Tattle has given

me! Look you here, cousin, here's a snuff-box; nay, there's snuff

in't: here, will you have any? Oh, good! how sweet it is!"

[Footnote 60: "The custom of taking snuff was probably

brought into England by some of the followers of Charles

II., about the time of the Restoration. During his

reign, and that of his brother, it does not appear to

have gained much ground: but towards the end of the

Seventeenth Century it had become quite the "rage" with

beaux, who at that period, as well as in the reign of

Queen Anne, sometimes carried their snuff in the hollow

ivory heads of their canes."--_A Paper of Tobacco._]

Portuguese snuff seemed to be in favor and was delicately perfumed. It

was made from the fibres of the leaves, and was considered among many

to be the finest kind of the "pungent dust." Some varieties of snuff

were named after the scents employed in flavoring them. In France many

kinds became popular from the fact of their use at court, and by the

courtiers throughout the kingdom. Pope notes the use of the snuff-box

by the fops and courtiers of his time in this manner:--

"Sir Plume of amber snuff-box justly vain,

And the nice conduct of a clouded cane;

With earnest eyes, and round, unthinking face,

He first the snuff-box open'd, then the case."

The mode of "tapping the box" before opening was characteristic of the

beaux and fops of this period, and is commented on in a poem on

snuff:--

"The lawyer so grave, when he opens his case,

In obscurity finds it is hid,

Till the bright glass of knowledge illumines his face,

As he gives the three taps on the lid."

Spain, Portugal, and France early in the Seventeenth Century became

noted as the producers of the finest kinds of snuff. In Spain and

Portugal it was the favorite mode of using tobacco, and rare kinds

were compounded and sold at enormous prices. Its use in France by the

fair sex is thus commented on by a French writer:--

[Illustration: Demi-journées.]

"Everything in France depends upon _la mode_; and it has

pleased _la mode_ to patronize this disgusting custom, and

carry about with them small boxes which they term

_demi-journées_."

The most expensive materials were employed in the manufacture of

snuff-boxes, such as agate, mosaics, and all kinds of rare wood, while

many were of gold, studded with diamonds. Some kinds were made of

China mounted in metal, and were very fanciful. In "Pandora's Box," a

"Satyr against Snuff," 1719, may be found the following description of

the snuff-boxes then in vogue:

"For females fair, and formal fops to please,

The mines are robb'd of ore, of shells the seas,

With all that mother-earth and beast afford

To man, unworthy now, tho' once their lord:

Which wrought into a box, with all the show

Of art the greatest artist can bestow;

Charming in shape, with polished rays of light,

A joint so fine it shuns the sharpest sight;

Must still be graced with all the radiant gems

And precious stones that e'er arrived in Thames.

Within the lid the painter plays his part,

And with his pencil proves his matchless art;

There drawn to life some spark or mistress dwells,

Like hermits chaste and constant to their cells."

Some of the more highly perfumed snuffs sold for thirty shillings a

pound, while the cheaper kinds, such as English Rappee and John's

Lane, could be bought for two or three shillings per pound. There are

at least two hundred kinds of snuff well known in commerce. The Scotch

and Irish snuffs are for the most part made from the midribs; the

Strasburgh, French, Spanish, and Russian snuffs from the soft parts of

the leaves. An English writer gives the following account of some of

the well-known snuffs and the method of manufacturing:--

"For the famous fancy snuff known as Maroco, the recipe is

to take forty parts of French or St. Omer tobacco, with

twenty parts of fermented Virginia stalks in powder; the

whole to be ground and sifted. To this powder must be added

two pounds and a half of rose leaves in fine powder; and the

whole must be moistened with salt and water and thoroughly

incorporated. After that it must be 'worked up' with cream

and salts of tartar, and packed in lead to preserve its

delicate aroma. The celebrated 'gros grain Paris snuff' is

composed of equal parts of Amersfoort and James River

tobacco, and the scent is imported by a 'sauce,' among the

ingredients of which are salt, soda, tamarinds, red wine,

syrup, cognac, and cream of tartar."

The mode of manufacture of snuff now is far different than that

employed in the Seventeenth Century. Then the leaves were simply dried

and made fine by rubbing them together in the hands, or ground in some

rude mill; still later the tobacco was washed or cleansed in water,

dried, and then ground. Now, however, the tobacco undergoes quite a

process, and must be kept packed several months before it is ground

into snuff. One of the most celebrated manufacturers of snuff was

James Gillespie, of Edinburgh, who compounded the famous variety

bearing his name. The following account of him we take from "The

Tobacco Plant:"--

[Illustration: James Gillespie.]

"In the High Street of Edinburgh, a little east from the

place where formerly stood the Cross,--

"'Dun-Edin's Cross, a pillar'd stone,

Rose on a turret octagon,'

was situated the shop of James Gillespie, the celebrated

snuff manufacturer. The shop is still occupied by a

tobacconist, whose sign is the head of a typical negro, and

in one of the windows is exhibited the effigy of a

Highlander, who is evidently a competent judge of

'sneeshin.' Not much is known regarding the personal history

of James Gillespie, but it is understood that he was born

shortly after the Jacobite rebellion of 1715, at Roslin, a

picturesque village about six miles from Edinburgh. He

became a tobacconist in Edinburgh, along with his brother

John, and by the exercise of steady industry and frugality,

he was enabled to purchase Spylaw, a small estate in the

parish of Colinton, about four miles from Edinburgh, where

he erected a snuff-mill on the banks of the Water of Leith,

a small stream which flows through the finely-wooded grounds

of Spylaw. The younger brother, John, attended to the shop,

while the subject of our notice resided at Spylaw, where he

superintended the snuff-mill. Mr. Gillespie was able to

continue his industrious habits through a long life, and

having made some successful speculations in tobacco during

the war of American Independence, when the 'weed' advanced

considerably in price, he was enabled to increase his Spylaw

estate from time to time by making additional purchases of

property in the parish.

"Mr. Gillespie remained through life a bachelor. His

establishment at Spylaw was of the simplest description. It

is said that he invariably sat at the same table with his

servants, indulging in familiar conversation, and entering

with much spirit into their amusements. Newspapers were not

so widely circulated at that period as they are now, and on

the return of any of his domestics from the city, which one

of them daily visited, he listened with great attention to

the 'news, and enjoyed with much zest the narration of any

jocular incident that had occurred. Mr. Gillespie had a

_penchant_ for animals, and their wants were carefully

attended to. His poultry, equally with his horses, could

have testified to the judicious attention which he bestowed

upon them. A story is told of the familiarity between the

laird and his riding horse, which was well-fed and full of

spirit.

"The animal frequently indulged in a little restive

curvetting with its master, especially when the latter was

about to get into the saddle. 'Come, come,' he would say, on

such occasions, addressing the animal in his usual quiet

way, 'hae dune, noo, for ye'll no like if I come across your

lugs (ears) wi' the stick.'

"Even in his old age Mr. Gillespie regularly superintended

the operations in the mill, which was situated in the rear

of his house. On these occasions he was wrapped in an old

blanket ingrained with snuff. Though he kept a carriage he

very seldom used it, until shortly before his death, when

increasing infirmities caused him occasionally to take a

drive. It was of this carriage, plain and neat in its

design, with nothing on its panel but the initials 'J. G.'

that the witty Henry Erskine proposed the couplet--

'Who would have thought it

That noses had bought it?'

as an appropriate motto. In those days snuff was much more

extensively used than at present, and Mr. Gillespie was in

the habit of gratuitously filling the 'mulls' of many of the

Edinburgh characters of the last century. Colinton appears

to have been a great snuff-making centre. About thirty years

ago there were five snuff mills in operation in the parish,

the produce of which was sold in Edinburgh. Even now a

considerable quantity of snuff is made in the district,

chiefly by grinders to the trade."

Murray, alluding to the popularity of the custom in England during

the reign of the House of Brunswick, says:--

[Illustration: Fops taking snuff. (_From an old print_).]

"The reigns of the four Georges may be entitled the snuffing

period of English history. The practice became an appanage

of fashion before 1714, as it has continued after 1830, to

be the comfort of priests, literary men, highlanders,

tailors, factory hands, and old people of both sexes. George

IV. was a nasute judge of snuffs, and so enamoured of the

delectation, that in each of his palaces he kept a jar

chamber, containing a choice assortment of tobacco powder,

presided over by a critical superintendent. His favorite

stimulant in the morning was violet Strasburgh, the same

which had previously helped Queen Charlotte to 'kill the

day'--after dinner Carrotte--named from his _penchant_ for

it. King's Carrotte, Martinique, Etrenne, Old Paris, Bureau,

Cologne, Bordeaux, Havre, Princeza, Rouen, and Rappee, were

placed on the table, in as many rich and curious boxes."

Sterne, in his "Sentimental Journey," gives a pleasing description of

snuff-taking with the poor monk. He writes:

"The good old monk was within six paces of us, as the idea

of him crossed my mind; and was advancing towards us a

little out of the line, as if uncertain whether he should

break in upon us or no. He stoop'd, however, as soon as he

came up to us with a world of frankness; and having a horn

snuff-box in his hand, he presented it open to me.

"'You shall taste mine,' said I, pulling out my box (which

was a small tortoise one), and putting it into his hand.

"''Tis most excellent,' said the monk.

"'Then do me the favor,' I replied 'to accept of the box and

all, and when you take a pinch out of it, sometimes

recollect it was the peace-offering of a man who once used

you unkindly, but not from his heart.'

"The poor monk blushed as red as scarlet, 'Mon Dieu?' said

he, pressing his hands together, 'you never used me

unkindly.'

"'I should think,' said the lady, 'he is not likely.'

I blushed in my turn; but from what motives, I leave to the

few who feel to analyze. 'Excuse me, madam,' replied I, 'I

treated him most unkindly, and from no provocations.'

"''Tis impossible,' said the lady.

"'My God!' cried the monk, with a warmth of asseveration

which seemed not to belong to him, 'the fault was in me, and

in the indiscretion of my zeal.'

"The lady opposed it, and I joined with her in maintaining

it was impossible, that a spirit so regulated as his could

give offence to any. I knew not that contention could be

rendered so sweet and pleasurable a thing to the nerves as I

then felt it. We remained silent, without any sensation of

that foolish pain which takes place when, in a circle, you

look for ten minutes in one another's faces without saying a

word.

[Illustration: Horn snuff-boxes.]

"Whilst this lasted, the monk rubb'd his horn box upon the

sleeve of his tunic; and as soon as it had acquired a little

air of brightness by the friction, he made a low bow and

said, 'twas too late to say whether it was the weakness or

goodness of our tempers which had involved us in this

contest, but be it as it would, he begg'd we would exchange

boxes. In saying this, he presented this to me with one, as

he took mine from me in the other; and having kissed it,

with a stream of good nature in his eyes, he put it into his

bosom, and took his leave. I guard this box as I would the

instrumental parts of my religion, to help my mind on to

something better: in truth I seldom go abroad without it;

and oft and many a time have I called up by it the

courteous spirit of its owner, to regulate my own in the

jostlings of the world; they had found full employment for

his, as I learnt from his story, till about the forty-fifth

year of his age, when upon some military services

ill-requited, and meeting at the same time with a

disappointment in the tenderest of passions, he abandoned

the sword and the sex together, and took sanctuary, not so

much in his convent as in himself. I feel a damp upon my

spirits, as I am going to add, that in my last return

through Calais, upon inquiring after Father Lorenzo, I heard

he had been dead near three months, and was buried, not in

his convent, but according to his desire, in a little

cemetery belonging to it about two leagues off. I had a

strong desire to see where they had laid him, when, upon

pulling out his little horn box, as I sat by his grave, and

plucking a nettle or two at the head of it, which had no

business to grow there, they all struck together so forcibly

upon my affections that I burst into a flood of tears--but I

am as weak as a woman; I beg the world not to smile, but

pity me."

Many pleasing effusions have been written promoted doubtless by a

sneeze among which the following on "A pinch of Snuff" from "The

Sportsman Magazine," exhibits the custom and the benefits ascribed to

its indulgence.

"With mind or body sore distrest,

Or with repeated cares opprest,

What sets the aching heart at rest?

A pinch of snuff!

"Or should some sharp and gnawing pain

Creep round the noddle of the brain,

What puts all things to rights again?

A pinch of snuff!

"When speech and tongue together fail,

What helps old ladies in their tale,

And adds fresh canvass to their sail?

A pinch of snuff!

"Or when some drowsy parson prays,

And still more drowsy people gaze,

What opes their eyelids with amaze?

A pinch of snuff!

"A comfort which they can't forsake,

What is it some would rather take,

Than good roast beef, or rich plum cake?

A pinch of snuff!

"Should two old gossips chance to sit,

And sip their slop, and talk of it,

What gives a sharpness to their wit?

A pinch of snuff!

"What introduces Whig or Tory,

And reconciles them in their story,

When each is boasting in his glory?

A pinch of snuff!

"What warms without a conflagration

Excites without intoxication,

And rouses without irritation?

A pinch of snuff!

"When friendship fades, and fortune's spent,

And hope seems gone the way they went,

One cheering ray of joy is sent--

A pinch of snuff!

"Then let us sing in praise of snuff!

And call it not such 'horrid stuff,'

At which some frown, and others puff,

And seem to flinch.

"But when a friend presents a box,

Avoid the scruples and the shocks

Of him who laughs and he who mocks,

And take a pinch!"

From "Pandora's Box" from which we have already quoted, we extract the

following in which the use of snuff is deprecated by the author:

--"now, 'tis by every sort

And sex adored, from Billingsgate to court.

But ask a dame 'how oysters sell?' if nice,

She begs a pinch before she sets a price.

Go thence to 'Change, inquire the price of Stocks;

Before they ope their lips they open first the box.

Next pay a visit to the Temple, where

The lawyers live, who gold to Heaven prefer;

You'll find them stupify'd to that degree,

They'll take a pinch before they'll take their fee.

Then make a step and view the splendid court,

Where all the gay, the great, the good resort;

E'en they, whose pregnant skulls, though large and thick,

Can scarce secure their native sense and wit,

Are feeding of their hungry souls with pure

Ambrosial snuff. * * * *

But to conclude: the gaudy court resign,

T' observe, for once, a place much more divine,

When the same folly's acted by the good,

And is the sole devotion of the lewd;

The church, more sacred once, is what we mean,

Where now they flock to see and to be seen;

The box is used, the book laid by, as dead,

With snuff, not Scripture, there the soul is fed;

For where to heaven the hands by one of those,

Are lifted, twenty have them at the nose;

And while some pray, to be from sudden death

Deliver'd, others snuff to stop their breath."

Paolo Mantegazza, one of the most brilliant and witty of Italian

writers on tobacco, says of its use and "some of the delights that may

be imagined through the sense of smell:"--

"Human civilization has not yet learned to found on the

sense of smell aught but the moderate enjoyment derived from

snuffing, which, confined within the narrow circle of a few

sensations, renders us incapable of entering into the most

delicate pleasures of that sense.

"Snuff procures us the rapture of a tactile irritation, of a

slight perfume; but, above all, it furnishes the charm of an

intermittent occupation which soothes us by interrupting,

from time to time, our labor. At other times it renders

idleness less insupportable to us, by breaking it into the

infinite intervals which pass from one pinch of snuff to

another. Sometimes our snuff-box arouses us from torpor and

drowsiness; sometimes, it occupies our hands when in society

we do not know where to put them or what to do with them.

Finally, snuff and snuffing are things which we can love,

because they are always with us; and we can season them with

a little vanity if we possess a snuff-box of silver or of

gold, which we open continually before those who humbly

content themselves with snuff-boxes of bone or of wood. We

gladly concede the pleasures of snuffing to men of all

conditions, and to ladies who, having passed a certain age,

or who, being deformed, have no longer any sex; but we

solemnly and resolutely refuse the snuff-box to young and

beautiful women, who ought to preserve their delicate and

pretty noses for the odors of the mignonette and the rose."

With royalty snuff has been a prime favorite. Charles III. of Spain

had a great predilection for rappee snuff, but only indulged his

inclination by stealth, and particularly while shooting, when he

imagined himself to be unnoticed. Frederick the Great and Napoleon[61]

both loved and used large quantities of the "pungent dust." Of the

former the following anecdote is related:--

[Footnote 61: Napoleon, having been unable to undergo

the ordeal of a first pipe, stigmatized it us a habit

only fit to amuse sluggards. What he renounced in

smoking, however, he compensated in snuff.]

"The cynical temper of Frederick the Great is well known.

Once when his sister, the Duchess of Brunswick, was at

Potsdam, Frederick made to the brave Count Schwerin the

present of a gold snuff-box. On the lid inside was painted

the head of an ass. Next day, when dining with the king,

Schwerin, with some ostentation, put his snuff-box on the

table. Wishing to turn the joke against Schwerin, the king

called attention to the snuff-box. The Duchess took it up

and opened it. Immediately she exclaimed, 'What a striking

likeness! In truth, brother, this is one of the best

portraits I have ever seen of you.' Frederick, embarrassed,

thought his sister was carrying the jest too far. She passed

the box to her neighbor, who uttered similar expressions to

her own. The box made the round of the table, and every one

was fervently eloquent about the marvelous resemblance. The

king was puzzled what to make of all this. When the box at

last reached his hands, he saw, to his great surprise, that

his portrait was really there. Count Schwerin had simply,

with exceeding dispatch, employed an artist to remove the

ass's head, and to paint the king's head instead. Frederick

could not help laughing at the Count's clever trick, which

was really the best rebuke of his own bad taste and want of

proper and respectful feeling."

"As Frederick William I., of Prussia, was eminently the

Smoking King, so his son Frederick the Great was eminently

the Snuffing King. Perhaps smoking harmonizes best with

action; and it might, without much stretch of fancy, be

shown that as the Prussian monarchy was founded on tobacco

smoke, it flourished on snuff. Possibly, if Napoleon the

Great, who like Frederick the Great, was an excessive

snuffer, had smoked as well as snuffed, he might have

preserved his empire from overthrow, seeing that smoking

steadies and snuffing impels. The influences of smoking and

snuffing on politics and war are ascertainable. What the

effect of chewing is on political and military affairs, it

is not so easy to discover. We recommend the subject for

meditation to the profoundest metaphysicians. How many of

the American politicians and generals have been chewers as

well as snuffers and smokers? Is there to be some mysterious

affinity between chewing and the revolutions, especially the

social revolutions of the future? May not apocalyptic

interpreters be able to show that chewing is the symbol of

anarchy and annihilation?"

[Illustration: Scotch snuff-mills.]

When first used in Europe snuff was made ready for use by the

takers--each person being provided with a box or "mill," as they were

termed, to reduce the leaves to powder.

In connection with this, the following may not be irrelevent:--

The following anecdote of Huerta the celebrated Spanish guitarist, is

taken from one of M. Ella's programmes:--

"In the year 1826 the famous Huerta, who astonished the

English by his performances on the guitar, was anxious to be

introduced to the leader of the Italian Opera Band--a

warm-hearted and sensitive Neapolitan--Spagnoletti. The

latter had a great contempt for guitars, concertinas, and

other fancy instruments not used in the orchestra. He was

fond of snuff, had a capacious nose, and, when irritated,

would ejaculate '_Mon Dieu!_' On my presenting the vain

Spaniard to Spagnoletti, the latter inquired, 'Vat you

play?' Huerta--'De guitar-r-r, sare.' Spagnoletti--'De

guitar! humph!' (takes a pinch of snuff.) Huerta--'Yeas,

sare, de guitar-r-r, and ven I play my _adagio_, de tears

shall run down both side your pig nose.' 'Vell den,' (taking

snuff,) said Spagnoletti, 'I vill not hear your _adagio_.'"

The anecdote related of Count de Tesse, a celebrated courtier of

France, is one of the best of its kind:--

"Count de Tesse, Marshal of France, was an eminent man

during the reign of Louis XIV. Though he was a brave soldier

and by no means an incompetent general, yet he was more

remarkable as a skillful diplomatist and a pliant and

prosperous courtier. During the War of Succession in Spain,

he besieged Barcelona with a considerable army, in the

spring of 1705. Terrible was the assault, and terrible was

the resistance. At the end of six weeks the arrival of the

British fleet, and reinforcements thrown into the place,

forced Marshal Tesse to retire. Besides immense losses in

dead and wounded, he had to abandon two hundred and twenty

cannon and all his supplies. Incessantly fighting for

fifteen days in his retreat towards the Pyrenees, he lost

three thousand more of his men. It ought to be said, in

vindication of Tesse, that he undertook the siege by express

and urgent command of the French King, and contrary to his

own judgment; for in writing to a friend, he said: 'If a

Consistory were held to decide the infallibility of the

King, as Consistories have been held to decide the

infallibility of the Pope, I should by my vote declare His

Majesty infallible. His orders have confounded all human

science.'

"Soon after the siege of Barcelona, a lady at a fashionable

party took out her snuff-box and offered a pinch to any one

who wished it. Marshal Tesse approached to take a pinch; but

suddenly the lady drew her snuff-box back, saying, 'For you,

Marshal, the snuff is too strong--it is Barcelona.'"

In Scotland the dry kinds of snuff are in favor and are esteemed as

highly as the moister snuffs. Robert Leighton gives the following pen

picture of the snuff-loving Scotchman; it is entitled "The Snuffie

Auld Man:"--

"By the cosie fire-side, or the sun-ends o' gavels,

The snuffie auld bodie is sure to be seen.

Tap, tappin' his snuff-box, he snifters and sneevils,

And smachers the snuff frae his mou' to his een.

'Since tobacco cam' in, and the snuffin' began,

There hasna been seen sic a snuffie auld man.

"His haurins are dozen'd, his een sair bedizzened.

And red round the lids as the gills o' a fish;

His face is a' bladdit, his sark-breest a' smaddit.

As snuffie a picture as ony could wish.

He makes a mere merter o' a' thing he does,

Wi' snuff frae his fingers an' drops frae his nose.

"And wow but his nose is a troublesome member--

Day and nicht, there's nae end to its snuffie desire:

It's wide as the chimlie, it's red as an ember,

And has to be fed like a dry-whinnie fire.

It's a troublesome member, and gi'es him nae peace,

Even sleepin', or eatin', or sayin' the grace.

"The kirk is disturbed wi' his hauckin' and sneezin'

The dominie stoppit when leadin' the psalm;

The minister, deav'd out o' logic and reason,

Pours gall in the lugs that are gapi' for balm.

The auld folks look surly, the young chaps jocose,

While the bodie himsel' is bambazed wi' his nose.

"He scrimps the auld wife baith in garnal and caddy

He snuffs what wad keep her in comfort and ease;

Rapee, Lundyfitt, Prince's Mixture, and Toddy,

She looks upon them as the worst o' her faes.

And we'll see an end o' her kooshian nar

While the auld carle's nose is upheld like a Czar."

Sharp has written some verses founded upon the following singular

anecdote in Dean Ramsay's "Reminiscences of Scottish Life and

Character:"

"The inveterate snuff-taker, like the dram-drinker, felt

severely the being deprived of his accustomed stimulant, as

in the following instance: A severe snow-storm in the

Highlands, which lasted for several weeks, having stopped

all communication betwixt neighboring hamlets, the

snuff-boxes were soon reduced to their last pinch. Borrowing

and begging from all the neighbors within reach were first

resorted to, but when these failed all were alike reduced to

the longing which unwillingly abstinent snuff-takers alone

know. The minister of the parish was amongst the unhappy

number; the craving was so intense that study was out of the

question, and he became quite restless. As a last resort,

the beadle was dispatched through the snow, to a neighboring

glen, in the hope of getting a supply; but he came back as

unsuccessful as he went. 'What's to be done, John? was the

minister's pathetic inquiry. John shook his head, as much as

to say that he could not tell, but immediately thereafter

started up, as if a new idea occurred to him. He came back

in a few minutes, crying, 'Hae!' The minister, too eager to

be scrutinizing, took a long deep pinch, and then said,

'Whour did you get it?' 'I soupit (swept) the poupit,' was

John's expressive reply. The minister's accumulated

superfluous Sabbath snuff now came into good use."

[Illustration: Sweeping from the Pulpit.]

"Near the Highlands,

Where the dry lands

Are divided into islands,

And distinguish'd from the mainland

As the Western Hebrides.

"Stormy weather,

Those who stay there,

Oftentimes for weeks together

Keep asunder from their neighbors,

Hemm'd about by angry seas.

"For, storm-batter'd,

Boats are shattered,

And their precious cargoes scatter'd

In the boist'rous Sound of Jura,

Or thy passage, Colonsay;

"While the seamen,

Like true freemen,

Battle bravely with the Demon

Of the storm, who strives to keep them

From their harbor in the bay.

"For this reason

One bad season,

(If to say so be not treason,)

In an island town the people

Were reduced to great distress.

"Though on mainland

They would fain land,

They were storm-bound in their ain land,

Where each luxury was little,

And grew beautifully less.

"But whose sorrow,

That sad morrow,

When no man could beg or borrow

From a friend's repository,

Equall'd theirs who craved for snuff.

"But, most sadden'd,

Nearly madden'd

For the lack of that which gladden'd

His proboscis, was the parson,

Hight the Rev'rend Neil Macduff.

"If a snuffer,

Though no puffer,

You may guess what pangs he'd suffer

In his journey through a snow-drift,

Visiting a neighboring town.

"From his rushing

For some sneishing;

But his choring and his fishing

Could procure no Toddy's Mixture,

Moist Rappee, or Kendal Brown.

"In his trouble--

Now made double,

Since his last hope proved a bubble--

To his aid came Beadle Johnnie,

In his parish right-hand man.

"With a packet,

Saying, Tak' it,

It's as clean as I can mak' it,

If ye'd save yer snuff on Sabbath

A toom box ye needna scan.

"Being lusty

(Though 'twas musty)

To his nose the snuff so dusty

Put the minister, too much in want,

The gift to scrutinize.

"An idea

He could see a

Blessing in this panacea;

So he took such hearty pinches as brought

Tears into his eyes.

"Then to Johnnie,

His old cronie,

Cried--'I fear'd I'd ne'er get ony.'

'Well, I'll tell ye,' said the beadle,

'Whaur I got the stock of snuff.'

"'In the poupit

Low I stoopit,

An' the snuff and stour I soupit,

Then I brocht ye here a handfu',

For ye need it sair enough.'"

The old Scottish snuff-mill, which consisted of a small box-like

receptacle into which fitted a conical-shaped projection with a short,

strong handle was a more substantial affair than the rasp used by the

French and English snuff-takers. (See page 232). Both, answered the

purpose for which they were designed, the leaves of tobacco being

"toasted before the fire," and then ground in the mill as it was

called. The more modern snuff-mill is similar in shape, but is used to

hold the snuff after being ground, rather than for reducing the leaves

to a powder.

Boswell gives the following poem on snuff, in his "Shrubs of

Parnassus:"

"Oh Snuff! our fashionable end and aim!

Strasburg, Rappee, Dutch, Scotch, what'eer thy name,

Powder celestial! quintessence divine!

New joys entrance my soul while thou art mine.

Who takes--who takes thee not! where'er I range,

I smell thy sweets from Pall Mall to the 'Change.

By thee assisted, ladies kill the day,

And breathe their scandal freely o'er their tea;

Nor less they prize thy virtues when in bed,

One pinch of thee revives the vapor'd head,

Removes the spleen, removes the qualmish fit,

And gives a brisker turn to female wit,

Warms in the nose, refreshes like the breeze,

Glows in the herd and tickles in the sneeze.

Without it, Tinsel, what would be thy lot!

What, but to strut neglected and forgot!

What boots it for thee to have dipt thy hand

In odors wafted from Arabian land?

Ah! what avails thy scented solitaire,

Thy careless swing and pertly tripping air,

The crimson wash that glows upon thy face,

Thy modish hat, and coat that flames with lace!

In vain thy dress, in vain thy trimmings shine,

If the Parisian snuff-box be not thine.

Come to my nose, then, Snuff, nor come alone,

Bring taste with thee, for taste is all thy own."

There seems to be as great a variety of design in snuff-boxes as among

pipes and tobacco-stoppers. The Indians of both North and South

America have their mills for grinding or pulverizing the leaves. In

the East a great variety of snuff-boxes may be seen; they are made of

wood and ivory, while many of them have a spoon attached to the box,

which they use in taking the dust from the box to the back of the

hand, whence it is taken by the forefinger and conveyed to the nose.

In Europe we find greater variety of design in snuff-boxes than in the

East. In Europe they are made of the most costly materials, and

studded with the rarest gems.

In the East they are made of ivory, wood, bamboo, and other materials.

Of late years boxes made of wood from Abbotsford or some other noted

place have been used for the manufacture of snuff-boxes. Formerly when

snuff-taking was in more general use by kings and courtiers than

now--a magnificent snuff-box was considered by royalty as one of the

most valuable and pleasing of "memorials." Many of these testimonials

of friendship and regard were of gold and silver, and set with

diamonds of the finest water.

Among the anecdotes of celebrated snuff-takers, the following from

White's "Life of Swedenborg," will be new to many:

"Swedenborg took snuff profusely and carelessly, strewing it

over his papers and the carpet. His manuscripts bear its

traces to this day. His carpet set those sneezing who shook

it. One Sunday he desired to have it taken up and beaten.

Shearsmith objected, 'Better wait till to-morrow,' 'Dat be

good! dat be good!' was his answer."

We copy the following article on the manufacture of snuff from a

well-known English journal, "Cope's Tobacco Plant:"--

"Although snuff is still extensively consumed in this

country (Great Britain), the mode of its manufacture is very

little known to those who use it; and there are very few

persons of even the most inquisitive turn of mind who can

say they have ever penetrated into the mysterious precincts

of a snuff-mill. Even those who have been privileged, and

have had the courage to inspect the interior of such an

establishment, have come away with very vague notions of

what they saw. The hollow whirr of the revolving pestles,

the hazy atmosphere closely resembling a London fog in

November, a phenomenon which is produced by the innumerable

particles of tobacco floating about, and causing the gas to

flicker and sparkle in a mysterious way, and producing a

lively irritation of the mucous membrane, all combine in

placing the visitor in a state of amusing bewilderment, and

he is compelled to make a speedy exit, having only had just

a running peep at the interesting process of snuff-making.

It is therefore our duty to give a description of a process

which will be new to a large number of people, and will help

to clear up some of the obscure theories that a great many

more entertain of it.

"Those persons who have travelled on the Continent, and who

have noticed on tobacconists' counters a small machine,

somewhat like a coffee-mill, which a man works with one

hand, while he holds a hard-pressed plug of tobacco about a

pound weight against the revolving grater, and produces

snuff while the snuff-taker waits for it, may imagine that

snuff in England is produced on a somewhat similar small

scale. But this, like many kindred theories, is quite a

mistake. In this country there exist large snuff-mills

worked by steam power, and in Scotland there is one

water-mill which is driven by a water-power of the strength

of thirty horses. The grinding of snuff is at present

carried on much as it was one hundred years ago. The

apparatus, although effective, is very primitive, and would

lead one to suppose that mechanical ingenuity had wholly

neglected to trouble itself about improving that branch of

machinery.

[Illustration: Snuff-mill a century ago.]

"All kinds of snuff are made from tobacco leaves, or tobacco

stalks, either separate or mixed. This in the first instance

goes through a kind of fermentation, and, like the basis of

soup at the modern hotels, forms, as it were, the stock from

which all the varieties in flavor and appearance are

produced by special treatment and flavoring. Of course the

strength and pungency of the snuff will depend a good deal

upon the richness of the tobacco originally put aside for

it. About one thousand pounds of tobacco would form an

ordinary batch of snuff. The duty on this would amount to

about £150, and this has to be paid before the tobacco is

removed from the bonded warehouse. Having got his heap of

material ready, the snuff-maker moistens it, then places it

in a warm room and covers it over with warm cloths--coddles

it, as it were, to make it comfortable, so that the cold air

cannot get to it--and the heap is then left for three or

four weeks, as the case may be, to ferment.

"In France, where, under the Imperial _régime_, snuff-making

was a Government monopoly, the tobacco was allowed to

ferment for twelve or eighteen months; and in the principal

factory (that at Strasburg) might have been seen scores of

huge bins, as large as porter vats, all piled up with

tobacco in various stages of fermentation. The tobacco,

after being fermented, if intended for that light, powdery,

brown-looking snuff called S. P., is dried a little; or if

for Prince's Mixture, Macobau, or any other kind of Rappee,

is at once thrown into what is called the mull. The mull is

a kind of large iron mortar weighing about half a ton and

lined with wood; and there is a heavy pestle which travels

round it, forming, as it were, a large pestle and mortar.

These mulls are placed in rows and shut up in separate cupboards, to

keep in the dust. The snuff-maker wanders from one to the other, and

feeds them as they require.

"When the grinding of the snuff is completed it is then

ready for flavouring, and in this consists the great art and

secret of the trade. Receipts for peculiar flavors are

handed down from father to son as most valuable heir-looms,

and these receipts are in fact a valuable property in many

instances, for so delicate is the nose of your snuff-taker

that he can detect the slightest variation in the

preparation of his favorite snuff. It is related of one old

snuff-maker in London, who had acquired a handsome fortune

and retired from business, that he made it a consideration

with his successors that he should be allowed, so long as he

lived, to attend one day in the week at the business and

flavor all the snuff. Most people will also be familiar with

some one of the numerous versions of the origin of the once

famous Lundy Foote Snuff, better known as 'Irish

Blackguard.'

"The excise are very rigid in their laws for regulating the

manufacture of snuff; and with the exception of a little

common salt, which is added to make the tobacco keep, and

alkalies for bringing out the flavor, nothing is allowed to

be used but a few essential oils. And here we must digress

for a moment to correct a popular error, viz., that snuff

contains ground glass, put there for titillating purposes.

What appears to be ground glass is only the little crystals

or small particles of alkali that have not been dissolved.

So that fastidious snuff-takers may dismiss this bugbear at

once and forever.

"The essential oils referred to form a very expensive item

to the manufacture of snuff. The ladies would be much

surprised to see a dusty snuff-maker drain off five pounds'

worth of pure unadulterated otto-of-roses into a tin can,

and as they (the ladies) would suppose, throw it away on a

heap of what would appear to them rubbishy dust in one

corner of the snuff-room. Of course the ladies would

consider the proper place for it to be on the cambric

handkerchief, but this idea would be about the last to occur

to your matter-of-fact snuff-maker.

[Illustration: Perfuming snuff.]

"In addition to otto-of-roses, the scent-room contains great

jars of essence of lemon, French geranium, verbena, oil of

pimento, bergamotte, etc., all of which are used in the

various flavoring combinations. There would most likely also

be a few hundred-weight of fine Tonquin beans, and one of

these beans is generally presented to any visitor who drops

in, as souvenir to carry away in his waistcoat pocket. Snuff

is very extensively used in the mills and factories of

Lancashire. Those who toil long in heated and noisy mills

seem to require, and doubtless do require, tobacco in some

shape or other to keep them from flagging; and as chewing is

not polite, and smoking in a mill not allowed, the only

resource left to the operative is his snuff. A singular

feature connected with this is, we believe, the fact that

spinners in very few instances use snuff-boxes, they prefer

having their supply of snuff screwed up in a piece of paper.

One retail shop-keeper in a busy spinning town in Lancashire

assured us that he retailed over four hundred weight of

snuff a week in pennyworths.

"It is impossible to state the exact quantity of snuff used

in this country; but, as far as we can arrive at it from

statistics at hand, we should say it cannot be less than

five hundred tons per annum. This seems an enormous

quantity, considering the comparatively small number of

persons who now use snuff; but the great bulk of snuff seems

to be consumed by particular communities, such as the

Lancashire operatives, and the consumption of it is

therefore not generally observable; and further it should be

remembered that those who do take snuff, individually use

large quantities."

Snuff-manufacturing has in some cases been attended with considerable

affluence. One instance is the London manufacturer already mentioned,

whose profits accumulated to the extent of nearly a quarter of a

million; another is the Lundy Foote business, and the third a Scotch

manufacturer (Gillespie), who by the way, practised a bit of

benevolence, in the shape of building an hospital, in return for the

good things fortune had sent him. Of course an hospital, like many

other things, may have a doubtful origin, as witness the famous Guy's,

which stands as a lasting monument to the wonderful profits that used

to be made out of the iniquitous advance note system. But we do not by

any means wish to make comparisons which must be odious and although

the profits of snuff-manufacturing are for a variety of

reasons--amongst others the decreased consumption of the manufactured

article--not nearly as large as they were fifty years ago; yet we are

sure that the fortunes accumulated by some of the old snuff-makers

were the result of honest, upright industry.

Of European tobacco used in the manufacture of snuff that of Holland

and France (St. Omer) is considered to be equal to any grown in

Europe. Of the varieties grown in America, Virginia leaf is used quite

extensively for some grades of snuff and "good stout rich snuff leaf"

commands excellent prices and meets with a ready sale.

A writer gives the following account of the love the Terra Del

Fuegians have for tobacco.

"This morning we were up early, a large party going ashore

for various scientific purposes, and the others taking the

ship out in the channel to do a little dredging; both

parties were very successful, and added much to our

collection. As we on the shore were about ready to come off,

we were visited by a party of Fuegians, five men, four

women, and nine children, with three dogs. They came in an

English-built boat, stolen or lost from some English ship.

The men and dogs landed and came towards us with a great

frankness of manner. They could talk neither English nor

Spanish, except the few words, boat, fire, tobac, galleto,

arco. But they understood the imperial manner of one of our

officers, who said quietly but firmly, 'keep back those

dogs,' and immediately drove back the barking curs with

sticks and stones. They warmed themselves at our fire, and

seemed disposed to be very civil and friendly. We gave them

our remaining biscuit, and what little tobacco there was in

our party to spare. One of them accepted a pinch of snuff

and pretended to sneeze, crying 'Hatchee!' with mock

solemnity.

[Illustration: Fuegian snuff-takers.]

An old man sat down on a stone and sang to us a low, sweet

recitation, or chant, in wild key, or mode, ending on a

rising melody with each stanza.

They followed us to the ship, and we gave them some calico

and beads, and tobacco, and also bought bows and arrows, and

a sea-urchin, paying them in tobacco. They clung to the ship

as we got under way, men and women, crying, 'Tobacco!' and

frantic to catch any fragment of the precious weed thrown to

them. But at length they let go, and we left the bay with

the cry of tobacco ringing in our ears."

Having spoken of most of the modes of using snuff in both the Old and

New World, we come now to a description of using snuff at the South,

known as "dipping," and by some as "rubbing," both terms used to

denote the same manner of use. The description of it as given by A. L.

Adams is as follows:--

"In the South, and more especially in Virginia, where

tobacco has been cultivated for more than two hundred and

fifty years, and where a few pounds of it was the

legitimate price for a wife, it is not surprising that it

should be more highly prized and come into more general use

than in any other section of our country. On the banks of

the James River it was first successfully cultivated by the

English colony, and this simple fact alone must forever

throw a charm around it, which will foster the pride of the

Virginian who has any respect for his ancestry, and hold him

under sacred obligations to use, cherish, and defend the

plant and its use--all of which he regards as no less a

pleasure than a duty. Here too its many virtues were first

discovered, and its soothing effects first felt and

appreciated.

"To the old Virginian it is indeed a cherished weed,

charming all manner of diseases, comforting in sorrow,

soothing the ills of life, and preserving to a good old age

and in a happy frame of mind all who use it. He believes in

its superior virtues, and ascribes to it more good qualities

than to any other known plant. He always carries it about

with him, and if perchance he gets out he is truly

miserable. He not only loves but worships it as a cure all.

His wife and daughters know its virtues full well, and use

it with equal grace and relish, believing it gives a lustre

to the eye and a freshness to the cheek rarely surpassed.

Among the variety of ways in which it is used none attracted

my attention so much as the novel manner of snuff-taking in

various parts of Virginia, West Virginia, the Carolinas and

Georgia.

"In some localities the practice is unknown, while in many

others it is very common. I first discovered young ladies

putting snuff into their mouths as if eating it, when my

curiosity was excited to an alarming extent, but on being

invited to 'dip' with them I soon learned that they were not

eating, but 'rubbing and chewing' it, as they called it, and

in such a lively manner as to soon convince me that they

appreciated it. I found the habit to be quite common even

among the young of both sexes--all indulging in it as if it

afforded real satisfaction to the appetite for tobacco in

some form.

"The young ladies however seemed the more attached to the

'rubbing process,' as it has been appropriately styled, and

defended it with equal logic and grace whenever it was

assailed. The young gentlemen when in the society of the

young ladies generally join them in this unique use of

snuff, as they are always sure to be invited and urged if

they decline, and to merit their favor of course they must

appear social. I believe, in credit to their taste,

however, that they really prefer a good cigar, and think it

more in keeping with their ideas of manhood and neatness. I

have seen young girls of ten 'rubbing and chewing,' as if

they appreciated it as much as mother Eve did the apple in

the garden of paradise.

"I have also seen old ladies with trembling limbs and few

teeth 'rubbing and chewing,' as if it made them feel young

again. I have frequently been ushered unexpectedly into the

presence of young ladies, and found them puffing their

cigarettes in a manner that convinced me that they knew how

to smoke. There is nothing that will more surely and quickly

bring a stranger into the fellowship and good graces of the

ladies than to join them in their pet habit of

snuff-rubbing. It seems to form a bond of friendship which

they regard as sacred as the vows of wedlock.

"The older matrons 'rub' less and smoke more, which is in

accordance with nature and philosophy: The older we grow the

more we smoke. They find solid pleasure in sitting by the

open grate after tea with fifteen inches of pipe's tail

between their teeth, and slowly but gracefully puffing the

perfumes of the exhilarating weed into the room, and

watching with childish pleasure the hazy curling wreaths of

smoke as they gently float around, changing in form and

color until they finally disappear up the chimney, affording

rich themes for meditation and profitable study, and perhaps

suggestive of earlier days when grandmother, an innocent,

blooming maid, was exchanged for the weed, the seed of which

produced the plant she is now burning. Everywhere I marked

only pleasant and soothing effects from the use of tobacco.

"The planter is never more indifferent to the ills of life

and in sympathy with good feeling and pleasure, than when he

sits down after dinner in his vine-thatched portico and

lights his pipe, passing to his guests pipes, cigars, and

tobacco in various forms, leaving them to choose their

favorite mode of using it. Sambo is never more contented

than when he burns the weed in a cob pipe, and draws the

delicious smoke through an elder sprig or mullen stem. But

the maid is happiest of all when with her lover she sits

face to face, and they 'dip' together from the same magic

plant--tobacco.

"In every walk of life throughout the sunny South tobacco in

some form may be found, and its effects are always the same,

whether drawn from the pocket of the beggar or taken with

gloved fingers from the golden tobacco-box of the planter.

For snuff the ladies have very nice round boxes with lids

which, they always carry with them full of black snuff

highly but pleasantly flavored. They also carry little

brushes or sticks about three inches long with pliable ends;

these they wet in the mouth, then dip into the snuff-box,

and then place it in the mouth outside of the gums and rub

earnestly for two or three minutes. 'Will you dip with me?'

is the usual way of putting the invitation, when the box is

drawn from the pocket and rapped slightly on the cover,

sometimes by all present, who thus signify their readiness

to 'dip,' then it is repassed open to all, and the 'dipping

and rubbing' begins in earnest.

[Illustration: Snuff-dipping.]

"The only advantage I ever discovered in this unnatural way

of snuffing is in avoiding all unpleasant sneezing which

snuffing is sure to produce, although it is claimed that it

whitens and preserves the teeth and sweetens the mouth, and

produces a beneficial effect on the lungs, all of which is

true or not, just as you choose to believe. 'Will you dip

and rub with me?' said one of the prettiest belles of

Winchester, and in another city in another state the

daughter of an ex-governor, handing me a silver-tipped brush

and opening a rose-wood snuff-box richly inlaid with gold,

politely asked me to 'dip' with her, expressing the belief

that friendship would always follow. I have frequently been

asked by ladies when travelling through the country and

stopping at farm-houses, if I used tobacco--as a hint to

offer them some, and it was a pleasure to comply, and

receive the thankful smile of an appreciative heart."

[Illustration: Snuffers.]

In other parts of the country the habit of snuff-taking is confined

principally to old ladies, who use any kind, either black or yellow,

and who prefer themselves the cheaper kinds. But few varieties are

used, and there seems to be but little taste manifested in the

selection of the "dust." Foreign varieties are used only to a limited

extent, being chiefly confined to those of transatlantic birth and

tastes. The custom of chewing and smoking seems to be more popular

with the male sex than snuff-taking, and one rarely finds a man

addicted to the latter habit, unless it be one somewhat advanced in

years.

Stewart in his admirable paper on snuff gives much useful information

in regard to the universal custom of using it as well as its origin

and distinguished uses of the great sternutatory.

"The luckless fate of inventors and originators has become

proverbial, but the ingenious individual whose nostrils

rejoiced in the first pinch of snuff stood in no need of the

niggardly praise of contemporaries or the lavish gratitude

of posterity. That first 'pinch' was its own priceless

reward, far above present appreciation or future fame. What

matters it, that his great name has not been reverently

handed down to us: that posterity seeks in vain his honored

tomb, on which to hang her grateful votive wreath; that

zealous antiquaries have raised up innumerable pretenders to

his unclaimed honors, and striven to rob him of his fame?

Enough for that lucky inventor, wherever he may rest, that

he enjoyed in his lifetime the reward for which ordinary

benefactors of their kind are fain to look to the future.

"It is perfectly vain to attempt now to penetrate into the

mystery which envelopes the name and nation of the first

snuff-taker: long before rough, noble-hearted Drake cured

his dyspepsia by the use of tobacco, or Raleigh transplanted

some roots of that precious weed into English soil, there

were European noses which had rejoiced at its pulverized

leaves. Conjecture, lost in the mazy distance, gladly lays

hold of something substantial in the shape of snuff's first

royal patron. This was Catherine de Medicis, who, receiving

some seeds of the tobacco plant from a Dutch colony,

cherished them, and elevated the dried and pounded leaves

into a royal medicine, with the proud title of 'Herbe à la

Reine.' For in the beginning men took snuff, not as an

everyday luxury, but as a medicament. Like tea--which a

hundred years later was advertised as a cure for every

ill--the new sneezing powder was hailed a universal

specific; and so pleasant in its operation, that mankind,

acting upon the wholesome aphorism that prevention is much

better than cure, and eagerly anticipated the disease it was

supposed to remedy."

"The use of 'the pungent grains of titillating dust'

received a somewhat heavy and discouraging blow from an

unexpected quarter. That ubiquitous power which hurled

anathemas alike at the heresies of Luther and the length of

clerical wigs, discountenanced its use, and at length fairly

lost its temper in the contest with snuff. Whether from a

prescience of the beneficial influence it was destined to

exert upon mankind, or from a suspicion of its power of

sharpening intellects, it is difficult to say; but Popes

Urban VIII., and Innocent waged quite a miniature crusade

against snuff, anathematizing those who should use it in

any church, and positively threatening with excommunication

all impious persons who should provoke a profane sneeze

within the sacred precincts of St. Peter's pile; Louis XIV.,

that good son of the Church, filially complied with the

paternal injunction, but his courtiers were less yielding;

and the ante-chamber of Versailles frequently resounded with

the effects of the pleasant stimulant.

"All persecution has a distinct tendency to establish the

object of its hate, and so it was with the subject of our

article--it only required to be loved; and I do not doubt

that, had circumstances required them, snuff would have

found its martyrs. Its use was not general in England until

Charles II. introduced it, upon his return from exile, with

other important fashions. It had been known and used before,

as had the periwig, but it was not until his reign that it

became common. When the Stuarts relieved the country of

their presence for the second and last time, it had become

firmly established; and, by the days of good Queen Anne, was

such a necessary of life, that there were in the metropolis

alone no less than seven thousand shops where the

snuff-boxes of the Londoners could be replenished.

"At that time, indeed, gallants were as proud of their

jewelled boxes of amber, porcelain, ebony and agate as they

were of their flowing wigs and clouded canes, the handles of

which were not unfrequently constructed to hold the

cherished dust. We are told by courtly Dick Steel, that a

handsome snuff-box was as much an essential of 'the fine

gentleman' as his gilt chariot, diamond ring, and brocade

sword-knot. We know them to have been manufactured of the

costliest material, heavy with gold and brilliant with

jewels, as they needed to be when their masters carried wigs

'high on the shoulder in a basket borne,' worth forty or

fifty guineas, and wore enough Flanders lace upon their

persons to have stocked a milliner's stall in New England.

"Unfortunately, but very naturally, this extravagance

rendered snuff a butt for the wits (who all took it, by the

way), to shoot at. Steele, whose weakness for dress and show

were proverbial, levelled many of his blunt shafts at its

use; and Pope, who himself tells us 'of his wig all powder

and all snuff his band,' let fly one of his keener arrows at

the beaux, whose wit lay in their snuff-boxes and tweezer

cases. As the men laid by, in the Georgian era, much of the

magnificence of their attire, so their snuff-boxes became

plainer and decidedly uglier. Rushing into an opposite

extreme, the most outrageous receptacles for the precious

dust were devised. Boxes in the shape of bibles, boots,

shoes, toads, and coffins outraged public taste. The

strangest materials were used in their construction; the

public taste leaning towards relics possessing historical

interest. Thus the mulberry tree planted by Shakespeare, the

hull of the Royal George, in which 'brave Kempenfelt went

down, with twice four hundred men,' and the deck of the

Victory, on which Nelson died 'for England, home, and

beauty,' have alone been supposed to supply material for

snuff-boxes to an extent which, if known, must considerably

weaken the faith of their possessors in their genuineness.

[Illustration: Fancy snuff-boxes.]

"Nor has snuff itself been less liable to the rule of

fashion than the boxes that held it. We will give a few

familiar instances. In the naval engagement of Viga, in

1703, when a large Spanish fleet was taken or destroyed, a

great quantity of musty snuff was made prize of, and

patriotism ran high enough to cause the 'town' for some

length of time to resist all that was not manufactured to

imitate the flavor from which it took its well-known name of

'musty.' Nearer to our own time, a large tobacco warehouse

having been destroyed by fire, in Dublin, a poor man

purchased some of the scorched or damaged stock, and

manufacturing it into coarse snuff, sold it to the poorer

class of snuff-takers. Forthwith capricious fashion adopted

it, endowing it with fabulous qualities, and Lundy Foot's

Irish Black-guard (so it was termed) filled the most

fashionable boxes.

"Again, during the Peninsular campaigns, in which the light

division of the British army bore so memorable a part, the

mixture used by and called after its gallant leader, General

Sir. Amos Norcott, had a more extensive sale than any other.

When Napoleon was at Elba, and folks began to tire of

legitimacy, as they soon did, it became fashionable to use

snuff scented with the spirit of violet, and significantly

to allude to the perfume. Garrick, when he was manager of

Drury Lane Theatre, brought a mixture into fashion by using

or alluding to it in one of his most famous parts. The

tobacconist whom he thus favored was his under-treasurer,

Hardham, whom no writer about snuff should omit to notice.

He was a great favorite with Garrick, whom in his turn he

almost revered. One of Hardham's most important duties was

to number the house from a hole in the curtain above the

stage; and it is amusing to fancy the little tobacconist,

snuff-box in hand, calmly watching the pit fill, or from his

elevated position admiring the histrionic talents of his

gifted patron. His shop in Fleet street is also memorable.

It was the general resort of theatrical men and tyros, who

sought to reach the manager through his subordinates, and

his little back parlor witnessed the _début_ of many who

afterwards gained applause from larger, though not more

exacting audiences.

"Her Majesty Queen Charlotte has bequeathed her name to a

once favorite mixture, and George the Fourth has some slight

chance of being remembered by the famous 'Prince's Mixture,'

which was so popular when it was the fashion to admire and

imitate that gifted individual. It would be a grateful but

almost an impossible task to enumerate the kings, soldiers,

lawyers, poets and actors who had sought from and found in

the snuff-box comfort and inspiration. Prominent among the

rulers of the earth who have acknowledged the pleasing

influence of snuff is Frederick the Great. His snuff-box was

the pocket of the long waistcoats of that period, in which

he kept large quantities loose--a dirty habit, which

Napoleon, who was a great plagiarist, adopted. It would be

easy to draw out a famous list of literary names attached to

snuff, beginning with Dryden, who was particular enough to

manufacture his own mixture, and selfish enough to preserve

the secret of its excellence, with a view, probably, of

enhancing the value of the pinch from his box, for which the

beaux and wits at Will's intrigued.

"In the pulpit, at the bar, and on the stage, snuff has been

equally valuable in adding to the persuasive eloquence and

talent of its patrons. By the female portion of human-kind

it was at one time pretty generally taken, nor was it

uncommon for young and even pretty women to offer and accept

a pinch in public. After the gentle sex had to a great

extent given up the habit, some strong minded females were

to be found who retained it. Mrs. Siddons, when she came off

the stage after dying hard, as Desdemona, or harrowing the

hearts of her audience by her representation of Jane Shore,

could composedly ask those around for a pinch of the

precious restorative. When we consider the beneficial

influence which snuff has exerted over mankind generally, we

cannot help regretting that its virtues were not sooner

known.

"For we put forth the proposition seriously, that its effect

upon the world has been to render it more humane and

even-tempered, and that had the western hemisphere

discovered the tobacco plant earlier, historians would have

had more pleasant events to chronicle. For instance, it is

not impossible--nay, most probable--that the fate of Rome,

discussed by the Triumvirate over their snuff-boxes, would

have been different. Is it likely that, under the humanizing

influence of mutual pinches, Antony would have asked for, or

Augustus resigned, the head of Cicero to his bloodthirsty

colleague; or that the other details of the conscription

which deluged the streets of Rome with the blood of her best

citizens, would have been agreed to? Again, can any one

imagine Charles the Ninth and his evil counsellors plotting

the massacre of St. Bartholomew over pinches of the soothing

dust? Is it probable that the High Court of Justiciary would

have entitled its royal martyr to a special service in the

Book of Common Prayer, if its deliberation had been inspired

by the kindly snuff which since that time has so often

softened the rigor of the law? My hypothesis may seem an

absurd one, but history supports it.

"When Charles the Second introduced snuff into general use,

men's hands had scarcely adapted themselves to more

peaceable occupations than cutting their neighbors' throats,

and the ashes of a long and bitter civil war needed little

fanning to break into a blaze again; and yet, for forty

years of misgovernment the nation kept its temper. How can

this forbearance be accounted for? Was it that circumstances

no longer called for as stern and as effectual remedies as

before? No. Was the second Charles one whit more desirable

than the first of that ilk? Was Clarendon more liked than

Stafford? Was Russell's head of less consequence than

Prynne's ears? No. Again, wrongs as grievous as those which

Hampden had died in resisting were to be avenged, but in a

milder, better fashion; for mankind had in the meantime

learned to take snuff. Much of the haste and irritation

which had previously led to blows discharged itself in a

good-natured sneeze. Snuff made men forbearing, even jocular

over their wrongs. Who can doubt that the revolution which

ended in placing William of Orange on his father-in-law's

throne owed its bloodless character not a little to the

influence of snuff. We read of difficulties in its course,

which, fifty years previously, would inevitably have led to

bloodshed, being easily, almost humorously surmounted. The

plagued nation effected a revolution over its snuff-boxes in

the happiest conceivable manner.

"Having ventured so far I am inclined to put forward a yet

higher claim which snuff has upon our gratitude, and to hint

that the great deeds of great men who were snuff-takers may

be traced by a chain of reasoning--slight, yet

conclusive--to this dearly prized luxury. The hackneyed

saying that time is money, or money's worth, has more truth

in it than most of the fallacies which are supposed to

regulate our conduct. The most important events of our lives

often hinge on moments. A moment to stifle passion, to

summon reflection, to plunge into the past and bring up a

buried memory, to consider results, is often of the utmost

consequence, and this valued moment the pinch of snuff

insures, when, without it, delay would be simply

embarrassment. The pinch of snuff, taken at the right

instant, secures an important reprieve, during which the

unpleasant question may be evaded, the hasty reply

reconsidered, or an angry _repartee_ thought better of,

while the same time gained serves to improve the

diplomatist's _equivoque_, to point the orator's satire, and

polish the wit's _mot_. In a word, its use on important

occasions affords, to every one who needs them, better means

of acting upon Talleyrand's mischievous yet clever

aphorism--that language is useful rather to conceal than to

express our thoughts. Moreover, the action necessary in

conveying the tempting graces to their destination has not

unfrequently been found useful. It employs the hasty hand

that may itch to take illegal vengeance for fancied insults;

it serves to hide the angry twitching mouth and passionately

expanding nostrils, to give a natural expression to changes

of the countenance which would otherwise indicate emotion,

and to parry attention till reason has been summoned to

supplant passion.

"It is denied (in a rather irritating way sometimes) that

the subject of our article has any beneficial influence upon

the intellects of its patrons. We are not about to claim for

it any such exalted qualities, but we may be allowed to

mention a fact or so which entitles it to some respect

medicinally. As we have before stated, in its early days it

was considered to possess powerful healing qualities, and

even now is found of use in cases of headache and weak

sight. It was also supposed valuable in cases of heaviness

and obtuseness of intellect. Is it, therefore unreasonable

to presume that it may have had some share in gaining for

our brethren beyond the Tweed that shrewdness of national

character which has become proverbial?

[Illustration: Curing a headache.]

"The specimens which came in the reign of James I.,

southward, did not command much respect or admiration from

our countrymen; indeed they were the bulls at which every

satirist hurled his shafts, and blunt must have been that

one which did not pierce some potent folly of language or

manner. The town rang with anecdotes of their rags, beggary,

and quarrels; ballad-singers made merry at their expense,

and the stage resounded with uncomplimentary allusions.

Indeed, in one of the most popular plays of that period, the

king himself was not spared, and the actors (Ben Jonson

among them) had very nearly lost their ears for their

boldness. Nor was it at least for a hundred and fifty years

after this period that the Scotch became noted for that

enterprise and talent which now distinguish them.

"We do not deny that the union may have developed their

traits, but it is clear that within that time snuff had

become a national stimulant. To the observer of men and

manners there is something very characteristic in the

various fashions in which the pinch of snuff is taken. 'The

exercise of the snuff-box,' as it was once termed, was an

acknowledged science, but few were the great proficients who

could mutely express their feelings by its aid. We have not

space to run through all its exercise, but we may mention

the 'pinch military,' which Frederick, and after him,

Napoleon practiced inhaling snuff copiously, and with much

waste, as though it were human life they were throwing away;

the 'pinch malicious,' of which Pope was perfect master; the

'pinch dictatorial,' which burly Jonson established; the

'pinch sublimely contemptuous,' such as Reynolds took when

some travelling virtuoso hinted at excellence away from

Leicester-square, and ruffled his complacent vanity; and,

above all, the 'pinch polite,' which Talleyrand understood

so well.

"From snuff to sneezing is but a step, which we purpose

taking before we bring this cursory article to a close. The

act of sneezing appears to have been variously regarded at

various stages of the world's history, but from the earliest

times of which we have any authentic record, it has been the

customs of those around to give vent to a short benediction

immediately upon its commission. The Robbins considering

themselves bound to find a reason for this universal custom,

and being hard pressed, gave the somewhat incomprehensible

explanation that, previous to Jacob, man sneezed but once in

his lifetime, and then immediately before death; so that

those around, warned of his imminent journey, hastened to

wish it a good termination. How it was that Jacob instituted

a new order of things we are not told, but as a proof of the

truth of their assertion they give the fact that in all

nations of the earth a similar custom will be found

existing.

"Strangely enough this assertion was corroborated by the

first colonists of America, who found the habit to be in

common use amongst the aboriginal tribes. The Greeks and

Romans certainly had a similar habit, but far from attaching

any ill-omen to the sneeze they regarded it as of good

augury. Thus Catullus assures us that when Cupid upon a

memorable occasion sneezed, all:

'The little loves that waited by

Bowed and blessed the augury.

And in the 'Life of Themistocles,' Plutarch informs his

readers that sneezing by the General on the eve of a battle

was regarded as a certain sign of conquest. Strangely enough

we find that in comparatively modern times, the custom of

giving expression to good wishes when a friend sneezed was

attributed to the fearful plague which periodically swept

over Europe. Sneezing was one of its first and most

dangerous symptoms, and those who were by, as they gathered

their robes about them and fled from their doomed

fellow-creature, would ejaculate a quick 'God bless you,'

hurriedly invoking from a more merciful quarter the aid they

feared to give. Violent sneezing was not only among the

first, but was one of the last fatal signs of that fearful

scourge, and was often too rapidly followed by death to give

time for more than a short benediction. Anyhow, the custom

still exists and one of the most pleasant reminiscences

attached to the first pinch of snuff is the chorus of hearty

good wishes of sympathizing friends which follows upon the

inevitable sneeze."

[Illustration: Highlanders.]

The variety of taste in snuff is accounted for by the proverb, "So

many men to so many noses." Highland gentlemen of every degree are

mostly fond of Gillespie; while operatives from the Lowlands generally

prefer plain Scotch. When two Highlanders meet, they usually exchange

a pinch of snuff, mutually _preeing_ the contents of their _mulls_,

while their _colleys_, (dogs) after a fashion of their own, take a

reciprocal _sniff_ of each other. Cuba is the favorite of the

gentlemen of the stock exchange; the tradesman's box usually contains

rappee; high dried Irish is grateful to those who love to feel the

taste of snuff in their throat. Sea-faring men seldom take snuff: a

sailor with a snuff-box is as rarely to be met with as a sailor

without a knife.

The history of the rise and progress of snuff-taking abounds in

incidents and anecdotes, among the most curious of all that relate to

the various modes of using the weed. Though once the most popular and

fashionable manner of using tobacco it now falls far behind the other

and more common and more popular forms of indulging in the herb. In

France and Spain the introduction of tobacco ushered in this form of

using it, and to inhale a few grains of the pungent dust was the

delight of polished and favored courtiers who regardless of the forms

royalty patronized and gave sanction to the custom. Thus its use in a

short time became popular all over Europe and gave unlimited scope for

the satirist and dramatist to ridicule the habit. In spite, however,

of frown and ridicule this ancient custom though not now as popular or

as fashionable, still claims many sincere votaries and doubtless will

as long as the plant is cultivated or used in any form.