as a great poet, has immortalized
his love of the cigar in the following graceful lines:--

"Sublime Tobacco! which from east to west,
Cheers the tars labors, and the Turkman's rest--
Which on the Moslem's ottoman divides
His hours, and rivals opium and his brides;
Magnificent in Stamboul, but less grand,
Though not less loved in Wapping or the Strand;
Divine in hookhas, glorious in a pipe,
When tipped with amber, mellow, rich, and ripe,
Like other charms, wooing the caress
More dazzingly when dawning in full dress.
Yet thy true lovers more admire by far
Thy naked beauties--Give me a Cigar!"

Having given a general description of the cigar and its mode of
manufacture, we come now to a more particular account of the various
kinds known as the best and of world-wide reputation. Standing at the
head of the various kinds of cigars, either of the Old or New World,
are those known to all smokers as:

HAVANA CIGARS.

[Illustration: Havanas.]

These are, by common consent, the finest in the world. They possess
every quality desirable in a cigar, and seemingly to its greatest
extent. Grown in the richest portion of the tropical world, the leaf
has a rich, oily appearance, and, when made into cigars, possesses a
flavor as rich as it is rare. Unlike most tobaccos suitable for
cigars, every taste can be met in the Havana cigars, its many
varieties of flavor and strength suiting it alike to both sexes, and
to the making of the delicate cigarette or the largest Cabanas. These
cigars are made up of all the various colors and parts of the leaf,
and also of all sizes common to the trade. In shape they are usually
round, though sometimes pressed (flat), and in color are (according to
our description) light and dark brown, light and dark red, straw
colored and dark straw colored, and some other shades or strengths. It
is necessary to have all the various shades of color in order to meet
the demand for the various flavors desired. Without doubt a greater
variety of flavors can be found among Havana cigars than in any other
kind, owing to the many shades of color, which determines the strength
and flavor of the cigar. The Havana cigar is made of a leaf tobacco
well known for its good burning qualities, when properly cured and
sweated,--burning with a clear, steady light, leaving a fine white or
pearl-colored ash, according to the color chosen. These cigars rarely
"char" in burning; certainly not, if made