etc. These are distributed to either special 

 houses or departments. The tobacco leaf when 

 first received is usually dry and brittle. The 

 bundles are carefully opened up and the leaves 

 loosened and spread out on large trucks where 

 they are sprayed with water. When the leaf 

 has soaked the water and is pliable it undergoes 

 a sorting which is done by selecting leaves from 

 different cases or even bundles of leaves and in 

 a general way arranging them so that each 

 truckfull represents a blend of the different 

 kinds of leaf which are suitable for the purpose 

 in view. These sorted packages are then rough- 

 ly fastened together and after being again 

 sprinkled thoroughly are sent to the "sweating" 

 room to undergo fermentation which may last 

 several weeks. The temperature of this room 

 must be carefully regulated and is usually kept 

 at about 90 F. 



The selection and blending of the different 

 kinds of leaf is most important. It requires 

 accurate and expert knowledge in choosing 

 leaves and kinds possessing different strengths 

 and other qualities and in combining them in 

 such proportions that the final effect of the 

 blend gives just what is required. 



It is particularly in this expert treatment of 

 the leaf before manufacture that the greatest 

 advance has been made in the tobacco industry. 



78 



