﻿182 
  History 
  of 
  Durham. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  sometimes 
  necessary 
  in 
  very 
  small 
  crops 
  to 
  sell 
  loose, 
  

   because 
  the 
  quantity 
  of 
  each 
  j^rade 
  is 
  not 
  sufficient 
  to 
  fill 
  a 
  

   cask 
  ; 
  but 
  to 
  [)ack 
  in 
  casks 
  or 
  boxes 
  before 
  taking 
  to 
  market 
  

   avoids 
  risks 
  in 
  handling. 
  Sometimes, 
  though 
  rarely, 
  it 
  is 
  

   put 
  up 
  by 
  farmers 
  in 
  casks 
  or 
  boxes, 
  being 
  usually 
  packed 
  

   by 
  mere 
  hand 
  pressure. 
  

  

  The 
  period 
  for 
  stripping, 
  assorting, 
  packing, 
  and 
  market- 
  

   ing 
  is 
  generally 
  from 
  October 
  to 
  August, 
  and 
  the 
  unstripped 
  

   crop 
  of 
  one 
  year 
  may 
  be 
  on 
  hand 
  until 
  the 
  next. 
  May 
  is 
  

   probably 
  the 
  season 
  most 
  favored. 
  The 
  spring 
  sweat 
  comes 
  

   in 
  May 
  if 
  bulked 
  or 
  packed 
  ; 
  if 
  not, 
  it 
  will 
  come 
  later, 
  after 
  

   which 
  it 
  is 
  bulked 
  down 
  and 
  packed. 
  This 
  sweat 
  sweetens 
  

   the 
  tobacco, 
  if 
  its 
  condition 
  is 
  dry 
  ; 
  if 
  too 
  moist, 
  it 
  is 
  injured 
  

   in 
  flavor 
  and 
  in 
  color, 
  and 
  has 
  the 
  effect 
  to 
  redden 
  a 
  bright 
  

   tobacco 
  and 
  brighten 
  a 
  dark 
  leaf. 
  If 
  the 
  tobacco 
  is 
  very 
  

   moist 
  and 
  the 
  sweat 
  excessive, 
  "funking" 
  to 
  some 
  extent 
  

   occurs, 
  the 
  injury 
  being 
  estimated 
  at 
  about 
  5 
  per 
  cent., 
  

   which 
  can 
  only 
  be 
  avoided 
  by 
  bulking 
  in 
  good 
  order. 
  Nat- 
  

   ural 
  seasons 
  are 
  used 
  for 
  stripping 
  and 
  packing. 
  Some 
  ex- 
  

   periments 
  have 
  been 
  made 
  with 
  steam 
  or 
  warm 
  air, 
  but 
  not 
  

   enough 
  as 
  yet 
  to 
  determine 
  their 
  value. 
  

  

  ASSORTING 
  TOBACCO. 
  

  

  When 
  the 
  tobacco 
  is 
  kept 
  bulked 
  down 
  on 
  the 
  stalk 
  until 
  

   the 
  stripping 
  season 
  it 
  is 
  necessary 
  to 
  hang 
  up 
  as 
  much 
  as 
  

   can 
  be 
  stripped 
  in 
  a 
  day 
  to 
  " 
  order 
  " 
  for 
  stripping, 
  that 
  is, 
  to 
  

   absorb 
  humidity 
  enough 
  to 
  handle 
  without 
  breakage; 
  but, 
  

   to 
  avoid 
  the 
  danger 
  of 
  a 
  possible 
  change 
  of 
  color, 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  

   allowed 
  to 
  become 
  too 
  soft. 
  An 
  assorter 
  then 
  strips 
  off 
  from 
  

   each 
  plant 
  one 
  or 
  two 
  leaves, 
  to 
  be 
  tied 
  by 
  a 
  boy 
  as 
  lugs 
  or 
  

   common 
  smokers, 
  and 
  from 
  one 
  to 
  three 
  of 
  the 
  next 
  leaves 
  

   for 
  smooth 
  lugs 
  or 
  fancy 
  smokers. 
  These 
  are 
  tied 
  into 
  hands 
  

   of 
  eight 
  or 
  ten 
  leaves 
  by 
  the 
  assorter. 
  The 
  remainder 
  of 
  

   the 
  leaves 
  is 
  then 
  cast 
  together 
  in 
  a 
  pile, 
  to 
  be 
  assorted 
  into 
  

   the 
  various 
  higher 
  grades 
  of 
  leaf 
  and 
  tips. 
  All 
  the 
  leaves 
  of 
  

   each 
  grade 
  must 
  be 
  uniform, 
  and 
  every 
  bruised, 
  worm-eaten, 
  

   ' 
  or 
  injured 
  leaf 
  excluded 
  from 
  the 
  best 
  grades. 
  So 
  particu- 
  

   lar 
  are 
  the 
  best 
  planters, 
  that 
  the 
  assorting-houses 
  are 
  con- 
  

   structed 
  with 
  a 
  window 
  to 
  the 
  north, 
  that 
  a 
  uniform 
  light 
  

   may 
  fall 
  upon 
  the 
  leaf 
  all 
  day, 
  increase 
  or 
  decrease 
  in 
  the 
  

   intensity 
  of 
  the 
  light 
  making 
  it 
  very 
  difficult 
  to 
  keep 
  up 
  the 
  

   narrow 
  line 
  between 
  the 
  finer 
  grades. 
  

  

  