262 INCIDENTS. 



may have been profitable. But why the practice is still 

 adhered to by the manufacturers is hard to imagine, for the 

 boxes now used, being made of imported cedar, must be very 

 costly, and must materially increase the price of cigars. 

 Only those of the very poorest quality are packed in white 

 wooden boxes. 



" Some people seem to smoke not because they like it, but 

 only to be in the fashion. Some days ago the writer of this 

 article happened to be in a cigar-store, when two well-dressed 

 young men came in and asked for some ten cent cigars. The 

 clerk handed out the box, and after a critical inspection the 

 purchaser asked : " Are these medium ?' < Yes, sir,' said the 

 clerk. i Then I'll take a dollar's worth.' After they had 

 gone the writer asked the clerk what they meant by ' medium.' 

 He said he didn't exactly know, but supposed they wanted 

 to know whether the cigars were between strong and mild. 

 1 1 told them they were,' said he, 4 because I thought they 

 would buy if I said so, but they are all alike.' And in this 

 connection it is very singular that although the Island of 

 Cuba is so near to the United States and so many cigars are 

 imported into this city, so little is known about the different 

 sizes and brands of cigars, excepting, of course, by those in 

 the business. It is a common thing here to see a man ask in 

 a cigar store for a Flor del Fumar, a Figaro, or an Espanola. 

 By this he means a cigar of a certain size, and does not seem 

 to know that these are not the names which designate the 



CIGAR-HOLDERS. 



size, but are the names of the manufactories. In Havana, 

 were a man to ask for a Flor del Fumar, the dealer would 

 ask him what size he wanted. 



