_Whose rare, good gifts have endeared him to all lovers of the English
tongue, this volume, historically and practically treating of one of
the greatest of plants, as well as the rarest of luxuries, is
respectfully dedicated by_

The Author.

PREFACE.

Ever since the discovery of tobacco it has been the favorite theme of
many writers, who have endeavored to shed new light on the origin and
early history of this singular plant. Upwards of three hundred volumes
have been written, embracing works in nearly all of the languages of
Europe, concerning the herb and the various methods of using it. Most
writers have confined themselves to the commercial history of the
plant; while others have written upon its medicinal properties and the
various modes of preparing it for use. For this volume the Author only
claims that it is at least a more comprehensive treatise on the
varieties and cultivation of the plant than any work now extant. A
full account of its cultivation is given, not only in America, but
also in nearly all of the great tobacco-producing countries of the
world. The history of the plant has been carefully and faithfully
compiled from the earliest authorities, that portion which relates to
its early culture in Virginia being drawn from hitherto unpublished
sources. Materials for such a work have not been found lacking.
European authors abound with allusions to tobacco; more especially is
it true of English writers, who have celebrated its virtues in poetry
and song. All along the highways and by-paths of our literature we
encounter much that pertains to this "queen of plants." Considered in
what light it may, tobacco must be regarded as the most astonishing of
the productions of nature, since it has, in the short period of nearly
four centuries, dominated not one particular nation, but the whole
world, both Christian and Pagan. Ushered into the Old World from the
New by the great colonizers--Spain, England, and France--it attracted
at once the attention of the authors of the period as a fit subject
for their marvel-loving pens. It has been the aim of the writer to
give as much as possible of the existing material to be had concerning
the early persecution waged against it, whether by Church or State.
These accounts, while they invest with additional interest its early
use and introduction, serve as well to show its triumph over all its
foes and its vast importan