Tobacco Culture (1909)

• 53%
• 1909
• Documentary

The island of Sumatra is famous for its tobacco, as all lovers of the weed know. Its preparation, its growth and the various stages through which the fragrant leaves must pass, before they are ready for the smoker, form the interesting theme of this beautiful colored picture. The first scene shows the young plants growing close together, and the transplanting as they increase in size. The soil is poor for anything but tobacco, and one wonders how a good crop may be obtained in such poor land. We are shown, successively, the natives picking the largest leaves the inspection of the picking, and the natives carrying bundles of green tobacco to the tallying room. Here the leaves are again inspected and sorted, and put in great piles to be cured. The temperature in these piles runs up very high, and is watched with great care by inspectors, who record the degree of heat taken with thermometers fastened on long bamboo poles. After the curing process, the leaves are given to other operators, who take these weighed quantities and after washing them proceed to roll them into cigars. The various stages of the cigar making are shown: how the filler is shaped and how the wrapper is put on. The final scene shows the operators leaving the factory, and judging from the number of them who are smoking, the cigars they make are good.