26 INTRODUCTION. 



continuation of the work already published as " Studies in 

 Indian Tobaccos, No. 2, The Types of Nicotiana tabacum, L.'" 

 In that paper an account was given of the work done with regard 

 to the study of varietal characters and the isolation of pure 

 forms. The stability of the type was discussed and it was showii 

 that there is no foundation for the belief, often expressed, 

 that the uniformity of type in any particular kind is easily 

 disturbed by its introduction into a new locality. If cross- 

 pollination be prevented, varieties or types of N. tabacum 

 remain as constant as those of other species of plants. This 

 result has recently been confirmed in America by Hasselbring. * 

 The methods of pollination were also studied and fifty-one pure 

 types were isolated. These types have since been maintained in 

 pure culture in the Botanical Area at Pusa and have bred true 

 to type from year to year. They form the material with which 

 the investigations, now to be described, have been carried out. 

 With regard to the improvement of the variety, the 

 immediate problem at Pusa is the production of a good cigarette 

 tobacco. The chief requirements in a cigarette tobacco for 

 growth in Bihar are : — 



1. General robustness and rapidity of growth, both in the 

 seedling and later stages of the plant. 



2. A plant of medium height with many leaves and short 

 internodes. 



.3. Fairly broad leaves with small veins, so that the cigarette 

 paper may not be damaged in the process of manufacture, 



4. Yellow colour in the cured leaf. 



5. Good texture in the cured product. 



6. Good flavour. 



The characters in which the local tobaccos are most 

 deficient are those of texture and flavour. Several kinds have 

 been found possessing a fair colour. 



* Howard & Howard, Memoirs of the Department of Agriculture in, India (Bot. 

 Ser., Vol. Ill, No. 2, 1910. 



♦ Hasselbring, Botanical Gazette, Vol. LIU, No. 2, 1912. 



