period when a major concentration of tobacco factories 

 was taking place in St. Louis. ) That yield was but a small 

 part of the state's contribution to the Treasury Depart- 

 ment since the tobacco excise was established in 1862. 



Missourians never had prohibitory laws against to- 

 bacco. While concerted attacks were being made against 

 the cigarette, notably in the 1890's and early 1920's, state 

 legislators realized that cigarette smoking could not be 

 legislated out of existence or smokers frightened into 

 abstinence. The experience of sister states with prohibi- 

 tory or restrictive laws against the cigarette had proved 

 this. All such legislation, some of it of brief existence, 

 turned out to be a futile invasion of privacy. Cigarette 

 users gave convincing evidence that their right to smoke 

 was not one which free people are willing to relinquish. 



Jea,f grown by early settlers 



sells in New York 



The modem story of tobacco in Missouri goes back to 

 the first white settlers in the territory, French-Canadians 

 from villages across the Mississippi. They were chiefly 

 snuff-takers, though there were some pipe smokers 

 among them. Not for them the rank, tough tobacco 

 native to the area. For a while they obtained twist, and 

 roll tobacco called "carottes," from the scenes of their 

 emigration. Soon they were growing their own leaf and 

 curing it. 



Before the Louisiana Purchase there were many thou- 

 sand American log-cabin pioneers in Missouri territory. 

 After 1804 more Americans began to drift to the rich, 

 fertile land, many coming from the crowded eastern sea- 



