160 TOBACCO. 



a cigar for consolation. But I pity far more the 

 woman who has any share in driving him to this. 

 Better that she and her daughters should live in an 

 Irish shealing and wear tow-cloth all the days of 

 their life than thus to be a drag upon their best 

 friend, ruthlessly turning the sweet sentiment of 

 life into bitterness and gall. 



FEMALE DEVOTEES. 



Can any picture be more revolting than that of 

 the miserable, snuff-dipping women of the south ? 

 Their life is not life, — hardly existence, — but 

 one continuous stupor — faculties, feelings, con- 

 science, everything dead, except the single sense 

 of snuff — snuff. 



But this dipping is not confined to the poor 

 whites. In other classes, circles of young ladies 

 and married ladies meet expressly to practise it. 

 Each snuff-dipper carries her bottle or box, and 

 also a swab, by which she conveys the filthy stuff 

 to her mouth, afterwards, perhaps, passing it to 

 her neighbor. 



The ladies prepare this swab by taking a little 

 stick of green wood about an eighth of an inch in 

 diameter, and chewing one end of it till the fibres 

 are separated, giving it the appearance of a small 

 broom. Saturating this with saliva, they dip it in 

 their box of snuff, and then place it as far back in 

 the mouth as possible, leaving the other end 

 sticking out. Many walk along the streets with 

 the dip in their mouth. 



