TOBACCO BARNS AND SHEDS. 197 



many, though Mr. Snow stoutly maintains their validity. 

 Figs. 44 and 45 will give a good idea of the structure. 

 In the Snow barn the leaves only are cured after having 

 been stripped green from the growing stalk. The 

 leaves are brought to the barn in baskets, and strung on 

 the points, Fig. 48, about the width of a finger apart. 

 As the sticks are filled, they are put on a movable rack, 

 shown in Fig. 45, which, by a simple device, is lifted to 

 its proper place in the building. 



Captain Snow claims for his process of housing 

 tobacco the following advantages : 1. The planter can 

 begin to house his crop from two 

 to four weeks earlier, as the bot- 

 tom leaves, which ripen first, can 

 be taken off and cured as soon as 

 they are ripe. 2. As the lower 

 leaves are pulled off, those left on 

 the stalk ripen more rapidly, 

 which enables the planter to get 

 in his crop earlier in the season. 

 3. The tobacco can be stored in ' 

 a much smaller space, and with 



. - f -, , , , FIG. 52. END VIEW OF 



no risk of losing color or mold- FRAME OF FIG. 49. 

 ing when bulked down. 4. Tobacco can be cured with 

 a more uniform color. 5. Less fuel will be required, 

 and the risk of setting fire to the barn will be greatly 

 lessened. 



A hillside, with a slope of two and one-half inches 

 to the foot, should be selected for the site of the barn. 

 The most convenient size for the barn is 16x20 feet, and 

 an excavation should be in the hillside of these dimen- 

 sions. The upper side of the excavation will be some 

 four feet above the surface. A trench is then dug 

 around the four sides of the excavation on the inside, 

 one foot wide and deep. The trench should be filled 

 with coarse gravel, which acts as a drain, and also as the 



