~ x + s * a'5* ad ~~ 
| ; : ADH 
232 [ASSEMBLY 
‘‘T am sorry to have to reply that I find nothing tangible in the 
tobacco Jeaves which arrived in good condition. Last year I 
spent some time over *‘ pole burn,” but found nothing but bacteria in 
the leaves. ‘The trouble has many characters of a bacterial fermenta- 
tion, but I know too little about it to even have an opinion on the 
subject. 
WM. TRELEASE.” 
We may safely assume, therefore, that very little is known as to the 
cause or the nature of pole burn. Our observations indicate, however, 
that there is little danger of injury to tobacco from this cause so long 
as the leaves remain green, as we failed to find a leaf affected with 
pole burn that was not first considerably advanced toward curing. 
We close our remarks upon tobacco by presenting an abridged trans- 
lation of an excellent article on tobacco by M. Th. Schloesing, con- 
tributed to the Dictionnaire de Chimie of Ad. Wurtz, Paris, 1878: 
4 
['T'ranslation. | 
The products of tobacco culture are eminently variable, being de- 
pendent upon the climate, the conditions of soil, the fertilizer used, 
the variety grown and the habits of the planter. The relation between 
the conditions and the products offer matter for interesting study in 
agricultural chemistry. 
+ VARIETIES, 
The physical characters of tobacco, 2. ¢., the form, size and texture 
of the leaves acquired in one locality, after long culture, transmit 
themselves with persistence through generations under another climate, 
Thus, the Havana tobacco, where sheltered from hybridization, has 
not undergone visible alteration during five years of field cultivation 
in Boulogne-on Seine, and what is more remarkable, all foreign varie- 
ties imported into Boulogne have preserved the same percentage of 
nicotine that they possessed in their original countries. 
The aroma, however, is not transmissible as is the percentage of 
nicotine, The Virginia, Kentucky and Havana varieties cultivated at 
Boulogne do not at all retain the flavor so characteristic of the parent 
plants. 
/ 
THE STRENGTH OF 'T'OBACCO. 
This is in direct relation to the, proportion of nicotine, and this, we 
‘know not why, is in relation to the thickness of the leaf. ‘Tobaccos 
having thin leaf contain from one to three per cent of nicotine, and 
as high as ten per cent has been noted in those having thick leaf. 
The planter can regulate in a measure the thickness of the leaf by 
cultivation. ‘Thus, in increasing the thickness of planting and in 
leaving on each plant a larger number of leaves, he obliges his field to 
nourish a larger number of leaves at the expense of their thickness. 
It is necessary, however to practice this'method in moderation. If 
more than 22,000 to 24,000 plants are grown to the acre, or if more 
than ten or twelve leaves are permitted to remain on the stalk, the to- 
bacco becomes too light to endure manipulation. | 
Manures have little influence on the strength of tobacco, Their 
action shows chiefly on the weight of the crop. The leaves are small 
or large but their percentage of nicotine continues about constant. 
