540  Cultivation  of  Tobacco  in  Kentucky,    { A"iil™%££zrm' 
cured,  the  stems  and  leaves  being  free  from  sap,  they  will  become 
pliant  during  the  first  mild  damp  spell  of  weather,  and  may  then  be 
stripped  off  the  stalks.  The  tobacco  is  first  taken  off  the  sticks  and 
put  in  piles;  then  the  leaves  are  stripped  off  the  stalks,  tied  and  put  into 
bundles  of  one  or  two  pounds.  The  bundles  are  formed  by  wrapping 
a  leaf  around  the  upper  part  of  the  handful  of  leaves  for  about  three 
inches,  and  tucking  the  end  in  the  middle  of  the  hand  to  confine  it.  If 
the  crop  will  permit,  there  should  be  four,  or  at  least  three,  grades  or 
qualities,  viz.:  1st  leaf,  2d  lugs,  and  3d  trash;  the  three  grades  indicat- 
ing the  quality.  The  plant  or  stalk  is  then  taken  by  a  man  called  a 
''stripper,"  who  removes  all  the  defective  leaves  near  the  bottom  of 
the  stalk,  which  constitute  the  poorest  grade  or  trash.  The  plant  is 
then  passed  to  another  stripper,  who  removes  the  next  inferior  grade  or 
lugs;  the  leaf  is  then  removed  by  a  third  stripper. 
Stripping  cannot  be  done  in  dry  or  harsh  weather;  but  if  the  planter 
desires  he  may,  when  a  favorable  season  presents  itself,  take  the 
tobacco  down  and  pack  it  on  the  floor,  or  "bulk"  it,  as  it  is  called. 
This  keeps  it  in  a  suitable  condition  to  strip  during  ordinary  dry  weather. 
The  weather  should  not  be  too  damp  when  tobacco  is  bulked,  or  it 
will  generate  heat  ;  the  leaves  remaining  on  the  stalks  acquire  a  bad 
odor,  change  color,  and  if  left  too  long  will  rot. 
After  the  farmer  finishes  the  process  of  stripping  he  again  bulks  the 
tobacco  down  lightly  in  a  dry  place  under  cover,  watching  it  all  the 
time  to  see  that  it  does  not  get  too  damp.  This  about  finishes  the  far- 
mer's labors,  who  only  has  now  to  wait  for  a  favorable  season,  a  wet 
spell,  when  he  can  transport  his  crop  to  the  tobacco  merchant,  who 
makes  a  business  of  rehandling  and  prizing  the  tobacco.  The  factories 
built  for  this  purpose  are  immense,  handling  thousands  of  pounds  per 
year,  and  employing  from  25  to  150  assistants.  In  the  factory  it  under- 
goes a  process  of  bulking  and  thorough  overhauling,  and  is  assorted 
into  grades  that  are  suitable  for  smoking,  chewing  and  snuffing,  as  well 
as  grades  for  foreign  and  home  consumption;  by  far  the  largest  por- 
tion of  tobacco  raised  in  Kentucky  reaching  foreign  markets.  A  great 
quantity  of  the  tobacco  is  stemmed,  u  e.,  the  mid  rib  is  removed  from 
each  leaf.  The  stems  are  generally  sold  to  the  snuff  makers.  The 
prizing  and  packing  processes  consist  in  having  a  hogshead  about  forty 
inches  across  the  head,  and  sixty  inches  long,  which  is  placed  under  a 
powerful  screw.     A  man  gets  in  and  lays  the  tobacco  in  a  circle, 
