230 TOBACCO. 



" Cuba's annual tobacco crop may be estimated as between 

 300,000 and 400,000 tercios of 125 lb. each. About 

 30,000 persons are employed in its cultivation, and its 

 value when harvested may be fixed (according to year's 

 quality) at between 8,000,000 and 12,000,000 dol. of 4s. 



" I cannot estimate the number of persons engaged in 

 working plantation (Vegueros) and other cigars for home 

 consumption, nor the quantity thus consumed ; but the 

 higher class of operatives emploj^ed in cigar-making for 

 export number about 20,000, and turu out at present pro- 

 bably 200,000,000 cigars annually. 



" The export trade has fallen off considerably of late 

 years. In the five years, 1870 to 1874, about 350,000,000 

 cigars were annually shipped to foreign ports, whereas in 

 the period between 1879 and 1884 the annual average 

 export was only 200,000,000. 



" Probably larger quantities have been exported in each 

 period owing to under valuations to escape export duty ; 

 but relative bulk proportions between the two export 

 periods will hardly be affected by this." 



The exports from Havana in 1884 were 11,767,200 lb. 

 to the United States, 613,000 to Spain, 252,600 to France, 

 37,500 to Mexico and South America, 70,000 to Belgium, 

 and 500 to the Mediterranean. 



