No. 502] SHORTER ARTICLES AND CORRESPONDENCE 683 



popular filling consisted of the leaves of the sweet-fern (Myrica 

 asplenifolia) . The leaves were selected when green and fragrant, 

 carefully dried in the sun or in the oven, until brittle, then thor- 

 oughly pulverized by rubbing between the bands, and finally 

 sifted through a coarse sieve. This was then packed tight in 

 cigarette shells, and sweet-fern cigarettes recpiired some skill. 

 The making of high-grade cigarettes of this kind was one of my 

 specialties, and one summer I drove a thriving trade in them, 

 disposing of ;i considerable number at the remunerative price of 

 ten for one cent. The lower leaves of the common mullein (Ver- 

 bascum Thapsus) were gathered chiefly as they were found dried 

 on the plant, roughly pulverized and smoked in a clay pipe. 

 They were supposed to closely resemble real tobacco and were the 

 preparatory stage to genuine smoking. Often some small boy 

 was inveigled into smoking fine-cut tobacco of the " Durham" 

 or "Lone Jack" type under the impression that he was simply 

 indulging in a pipe of mullein. The resulting sickness, as a rule, 

 undeceived him and he realized too late that he had been made 

 the victim of a joke more practical than pleasant. 



For the long-cut tobacco, we found a fair substitute, at least in 

 appearance, in the brown and dried ends of corn silk, but it was 

 never so very popular with us. I have found on questioning, that 

 these same substitutes were known to the generation preceding 

 mine and that they are equally well known to the generations 

 coming on to fill our places. I have also learned of other sub- 

 stitutes not known to us as well as a widespread knowledge of 

 some of those mentioned. 



I find that there is a widespread use of tea and ground coffee 

 for pipe smoking, and some use even of ground cinnamon. , The 

 older youth often take to cubebs, following the officinal use of 

 the same. A use seems also to be made of the porous internodes 

 of the grape-vine, as we used rattan, and even of tightly rolled 

 tubes of cinnamon stick. I have also been told that some boys 

 roll paper about the sticks of "punk" used to touch off fire 

 crackers on the Fourth of July, and light and smoke them. 



Inquiring of the boys in California, I find that they use corn 

 silk and various leaves for pipe smoking. The leaves of maple, 

 grape, fig, rose and willow are commonly employed. Perhaps 

 the most popular of all are the leaves of the worm- wood (Arte- 

 misia heterophylla) which is common on most hillsides and gives 

 a pleasing aromatic smoke. In many places, the old fallen leaves 



