NICOTINE QUALITIES. 29 



are broken off with difficulty, frequently detaching the leaf 

 with them. The growth of the suckers, however, determines 

 the quality as well as the maturity of the plants. 



Weak, spindling plants rarely produce large, vigorous 

 shoots, the leaves of such suckers are generally small and of 

 a yellowish color. When the plants are fully ripe and ready 

 to harvest the suckers will be found to be growing vigorously 

 around the root of the plant. This is doubtless the best 

 evidence of its maturity, more reliable by far than any other 

 as it denotes the ripening of the entire plant. Suckering 

 the plants hastens the ripening of the leaves, and gives a 

 lighter shade of color, no matter on what soil the plants are 

 grown. Having treated at some length of the various parts 

 of the tobacco plant stalk, leaves, flowers, capsules and 

 suckers we come now to its nicotine properties. The 

 tobacco plant, as is well known, produces a virulent poison 

 known as Nicotine. This property, however, as well as 

 others as violent is found in many articles of food, includ- 

 ing the potato together with its stalk and leaves ; the effects 

 of which may be experienced by chewing a small quantity 

 of the latter. The New Edinburgh Encyclopedia says : 



" The peculiar effect produced by using tobacco bears some 

 resemblance to intoxication and is excited by an essential 

 oil which in its pure state is so powerful as to destroy life 

 even in very minute quantity." 



Chemistry has taught us that nicotine is only one among 

 many principles which are contained in the plant. It is 

 supposed by many but not substantiated by chemical 

 research that nicotine is not the flavoring agent which gives 

 tobacco its essential and peculiar varieties of odor. Such 

 are most probably given by the essential oils, which vary in 

 amount in different, species of the plant. 



An English writer says : 



" Nicotine is disagreeable to the habitual smoker^ as is 

 proved by the increased demand for clean pipes or which by 

 some mechanical contrivance get rid of the nicotine." 



The late Dr. Blotin tested by numerous experiments the 

 effects of nicotine on the various parts of the organization of 



