Nicotiana Part 7

His gaze was on the muddy ground, And mis'ry in his eye; Sudden he sprang with eager bound, On something glitt'ring nigh: A sovereign's aid, 'tis very plain, Thank heaven, I ask no more; Soon shall I see thy like again, Thou last one of my store.

ANECDOTES.

_The Precious Pipe._--Napoleon greatly patronized the habit of smoking in the French army, so that it soon became actually indispensable for the continuance of that _gaite du coeur_, for which his troops were remarkable, even in the moments of severest peril. Under the cheering influence of the pipe, they surmounted all difficulties; and, under its consoling power, bore fatigue, and hunger, and thirst with a fort.i.tude and philosophy, remarkable in the annals of military record. During the latter end of their march to Moscow, and after the burning of the Russian capital, they endured severe privations from the loss of their favourite herb, the stock of which was all expended: nor was this all; they suffered exceedingly through want of food and the inclemency of the weather, with many other evils, the smoking of tobacco had hitherto consoled them for.

Such was the general state of the army, when a private of the _Garde Imperiale_, being out with a detachment on a foraging party, chanced to stray from the rest, and, in the skirt of a wood, came upon a little low deserted hut. Overjoyed in the hopes that he might find something to relieve his necessities, he stove in the door with the b.u.t.t end of his musquet, and instantly commenced a scrutiny, to see if anything had been left behind by those who had evidently lately quitted it. The few articles of comfort it had formerly contained seemed, however, all to have been carried away in the flight of its late inmates, and he was about abandoning his search, when he perceived something stuffed up between the rafters of the ceiling. Thrusting it with his bayonet, a dark bundle fell at his feet: his joy may be better imagined than expressed, when, on untying the rag that bound it, he found a quant.i.ty of coa.r.s.e tobacco.

After filling his pouch with it, and stowing the rest of the (to him) invaluable treasure about his person, he pulled forth a short clay pipe, whose late empty bowl he had so often contemplated with melancholy regret, and, having struck a light, filled it with his darling herb, and commenced smoking immediately. "Never," said the soldier, who himself narrated the tale to us in Paris, "since the campaign began, when we started with the certainty, almost, of returning with plunder to enrich the rest of our lives, did I feel half the pleasurable emotions I did, the hour I spent, sitting in the darkened room of that hut, whiffing the grateful fumes from my short pipe. Indulging in visions that for a long time had been a stranger to me, the much-boasted pleasures of the opium eaters, were nothing in comparison to mine.--I seemed in heaven, sir."

After having regained the camp, it soon became a subject of remark and discussion, how Faucin (the soldier's name) got his tobacco to smoke, and looked so cheerful, when his comrades would have given all they were worth for the same luxury. Knowing his extreme danger if it should be discovered he had any quant.i.ty of tobacco in his possession, he took every opportunity, when questioned, as he often was closely on the subject, to state that it was only a trifling remnant he had preserved. Under this pretence, he refused the numerous applications that were made him for portions, however small. At length, as his short pipe was still perceived week after week, emitting its savoury steam, on their toilsome march homewards, it was generally suspected, and he was openly told, he had plenty of tobacco in his knapsack, and he was threatened, in case of his refusal to divide a share. Firmly believing he should be robbed, if not murdered, by some of his comrades, who watched him with selfish eyes for the sake of the tobacco he carried, he was obliged by prudence to confess the secret to two corporals and a serjeant, and divide a quant.i.ty among them. While their line of march was daily and nightly strewed with the dead and dying, and many a gallant fellow breathed his last on the cold beds of snow, they were wonderfully sustained by the tobacco, that kept up their spirits throughout the scene of famine and desolation, and he reached France with the few wretched remnants of the fine troops, who had quitted it with the eagle's flight, amid the shouts of _vive Napoleon_.

_An old Quiddist._--A late messenger in a certain public law-office had rendered himself remarkable for the very excellent economy he pursued in the consumption of tobacco. In term time he had always plenty to do, and picked up a sufficient sum to supply the deficiency of business in the short vacations, which enabled him to obtain as much s.h.a.g as he could well chew at those times, but he never lost sight of the 'rainy day.' He frequently got drunk but never forgot the miseries of the 'LONG VACATION,'

and accordingly acted upon the following plan, which, for its genius, has never been equalled in the annals of chawing:--He would begin, for instance, the first day of Michaelmas term, which succeeds the long vacation, with a NEW QUID, which he would keep only about half the usual time in his mouth, and extract only a portion of its nectarine sweets.

This quid, instead of casting it at his feet, he would then transfer to a certain snug little shelf in the office, with the most reverential caution, and obtain another. This practice he would repeat five or six times in the course of the same day, and every day during the times before mentioned, and what was the result? When the long vacation commenced, and he had nothing to do, he had collected the amazing quant.i.ty of between 14 and 1500 quids!!! These he worked upon, _de novo_, during the long recess, and 'rich and rare' indeed was the collection; it was the poor messenger's only comfort.

_Dr. Aldrich._--His excessive love for smoking was well known to his a.s.sociates; but a young student of his college, finding some difficulty to bring a fellow collegian to the belief of it, laid him a wager that the Dean Aldrich was smoking at that time (about ten o'clock in the morning).

Away went the latter to the deanery; when, being admitted to the dean in his study, he related the occasion of his visit. The dean, instead of being disconcerted, replied in perfect good humour, "You see, sir, your friend has lost his wager, for I am not now smoking, but only filling my pipe!"

_Chinese Arrogance._--As a precursor to the following, it will only be proper to relate, that in China the use of smoking and snuff-taking is general, although buildings are not thought requisite for curing tobacco, as in the West Indies, there being little apprehension of rain to injure the leaves when plucked. Thus the Chinese grow tobacco enough for their own consumption, and will not allow any to be imported, so as to discourage their own cultivation. This prohibition, which has long existed in that country, was some years ago notified to Mr. Wilkodes, the American consul, then at Canton, in the following manner:

"May he be promoted to great powers! We acquaint you that the foreign opium, the dirt which is used for smoking, is prohibited by command. It is not permitted that it shall come to Canton. We beg you, good brother, to inform the honoured president of your country of the circ.u.mstance, and to make it known, that the dirt used for smoking is an article prohibited in the celestial empire."--_Paunkbyquia Mowqua, &c. Kai Hing, 22nd year, 5th Month, 22nd day, Canton, May 22nd, 1818._

_Sir Isaac Newton._--This ill.u.s.trious individual was remarkable for smoking and temporary fits of mental abstraction from all around him; frequently being seized with them in the midst of company. Upon one occasion, it is related of him, that a young lady presenting her hand for something across the table, he seized her finger, and, quite unconsciously, commenced applying it as a tobacco-stopper, until awoke to a sense of his enormity by the screams of the fair one.

_Extraordinary Match._--Some years ago, in a public room at Langdon Hills, in Ess.e.x, the conversation chancing to turn on smoking, a farmer of the name of _Williams_ boasting of the great quant.i.ty of tobacco he could consume at a sitting, challenged the room to produce his equal. Mr.

_Bowtell_, the proprietor of the great boot-shop, Skinner-street, and remarkable for smoking "pipes beyond computation," travelling his round at that time, chanced to be present, and immediately agreed to enter the lists with him for five pounds a-side. A canister of the strongest s.h.a.g tobacco was placed by the side of each at eight o'clock in the evening, when they began the match. Smoking very fast, by the time the clock had struck twelve, they had each finished sixteen pipes, when the farmer, through the dense atmosphere, was observed to turn pale. He still continued, however, dauntlessly on, but, at the end of the eighteenth pipe, fell stupefied off his chair, when the victory was adjudged to his opponent, who, calling for an extra gla.s.s of grog, actually finished his twentieth pipe before he retired for the night!

DIVANS.

Nor ball, nor concert, nor theatre can boast, With all their frippery and senseless fun; Nor broiling taverns, when they shine the most, By hot unruly spirits overrun;-- In dance, or song, or drunken laugh, and toast, With elegance and comfort, cheaply won,-- To cheer the spirits and to refine the man: Hail! books and mocha,--cigars and the divan!

It is with feelings of pleasure we have remarked of late years the change that has gradually taken place in regard to places of public nightly amus.e.m.e.nt. Formerly, the metropolis had no other allurements than were comprised in the theatre or the tavern,--the former of these being but too frequently a precursor to the latter; and that latter, in its turn, among young men in general, to scenes of a worse, and, in the end, more fatal description. As a preventative in a great degree to the above incentives to dissipation, must we welcome the appearance of divans amongst us, forming, as they do, in their quiet and elegant seclusion, a pleasing and intellectual contrast to their more boisterous contemporaries. Divan, or more properly speaking, _Diwan_, by some writers is said to be of eastern origin, and the plural of _diw_, a devil. The appellation, says a Persian lexicographer, was first bestowed by a sovereign of Persia, who, on observing his crafty counsellors in high conclave, exclaimed, _Inan diwan end_--"these men are devils." _Mutato nomine de te fabula narratur_, may be pertinently applied, in this instance, to the councils of more sovereigns than those of Ispahan. Another derivation, and a more probable one, perhaps, is the Turkish word for sopha,--a luxury abundantly supplied in every divan in Turkey. In that country it is a chamber of council held by the Grand Seignior, his pashas, or other high tributaries, in which all the councillors a.s.sembled smoke their chibouques during the debate in all the sedate pomp of eastern magnificence. The interiors of these divans are represented by travellers as superbly grand, falling little short of the far-famed description of their harems. Coffee, it must be remarked, is the common beverage used by the Turks whilst smoking, and is commonly handed round with little or no milk or sugar, in small china cups. Taken thus, perhaps, nothing harmonizes with smoking so well on the palate; as the Rev. Dr. Walsh says, in his Travels in Turkey, speaking of tobacco, and in whose judicious remarks we cannot but concur, "I do not wonder at the general use of this most indispensable of Turkish luxuries; it is always the companion of coffee (mocha), and there is something so exceedingly congenial in the properties of both, that nature seems to have intended them for inseparable a.s.sociates. We do not know how to use tobacco in this country, but defile and deteriorate it with malt liquor. When used with coffee, and after the Turkish fashion, it is singularly grateful to the taste, and refreshing to the spirits; counteracting the effects of fatigue and cold, and appeasing the cravings of hunger, as I have experienced."

The popularity of divans in England may be best known by the rapid increase of their numbers since their first adoption here.

At the present period there are no less than six popular divans (independent of several obscure ones) in London.

These are,--

The Oriental Divan, Regent-street.

The Private Subscription Divan, Pall Mall.

The Royal City Divan, St. Paul's Churchyard.

The Royal Divan, King-street, Covent Garden.

The Royal Divan, Strand.

The Divan, Charing Cross.

The whole of these divans are fitted up in a style of Asiatic splendour and comfort, that produces to the uncultivated eye a very novel and pleasing effect; while, upon a closer examination, the other senses are no less delighted.

The Journals of every nation in Europe are a general attraction to linguists and foreigners, while the cream of our own ever fertile press leaves the English reader nothing to wish for in the way of literature.

Indeed, no means of entertainment are found wanting at these delightful _soirees_; chess invites the player, pictures the eye, and occasional music the ear; while lounging on a sopha with a cigar in the mouth, the gazer might almost fancy himself in the land of the crescent.

The divans in Regent-street and Pall Mall, are considered the most oriental of any in town, though the saloon in the Strand is perhaps the largest.

A refinement that peculiarly distinguishes the divan in King-street, is an admirably laid-out garden; at night lit by numerous parti-coloured lamps; in the day during the summer-time it forms a pleasing attraction to all lovers of the cooling shade.

Of the Royal City Divan, of whose elegant interior our frontispiece engraving presents so correct a view, we can only say that its allurements are peculiarly attractive. In the first place, the saloon has an advantage in being situated--unlike all the other divans--on the first-floor, and is fitted up in a very superior manner. It likewise possesses, from the extent and s.p.a.ciousness of the premises, the additional advantage of private refreshment rooms, to which parties of friends can retire from the busy hum of the grand saloon, and enjoy the pleasures of a convivial gla.s.s.

Altogether, we cannot help observing, ere we conclude, that great merit is due to the several proprietors of the divans for the tasteful and expensive way in which they have furnished their different saloons; while, from the extreme moderation of their charges, they cannot but have strong claims to the patronage of a discerning public.

MEMS. FOR SMOKERS.

Cigars.--The best and most approved cigars consumed among our n.o.bility and gentry, are those brought from the Havanah in the West Indies. The Woodville, so called from the name of the importer, are held in the greatest estimation. In form, these should gradually decline from the middle to long and tapering ends. Color, a clear raw sienna brown, variegated with bright brown yellow spots. In flavour they should be light and spicy, draw free, leaving a firm white ash. An excellence too, that should distinguish these cigars from the common kind, independent of their taste, should be the length of time they are capable of retaining their light without being drawn.

The strong flavoured Cuba, by smokers of long standing, when indeed a pipe has not altogether superseded the cigar, are in the greatest request.

These vary in color from black to brown, according to the strength or age of the leaf; and like the Woodville, are also distinguished when properly seasoned, and kept by mildew spots, though of a darker hue.

The tobacco of the Cubas growth is very frequently made up into cheroots, a form some prefer to the cigar, and are sold under the denomination of Manilla.

Without entering into a description of the numerous kinds of cigars vended in the United Kingdom, we can only remark, as a fact well authenticated, that the greater and more common part, sold from eight to thirteen shillings the hundred; are prepared from the cabbage-leaf, soaked in a strong solution of tobacco-water. Cigars, so composed, are generally pa.s.sed off under the names of _Hambro'_, _Maryland_, and _Virginia_. The same deceptions may be said to exist, in respect to the small cheroots, whether scented or not: they are, with comparatively trifling exceptions, nearly all of British make.

The reason is obvious, why these deceits are practised: in a former part of this little work, we stated the duty on the imported raw leaf of tobacco to be three shillings per lb., while on the _manufactured_, it is just thrice that amount: at once a reason why a good price must needs be given for the genuine foreign article.

A great saving is effected in purchasing cigars by the weight or box as imported, while from a respectable shop you may be always sure of their being made abroad, as they are sent under seal in boxes from the West Indies.

_Tobaccos._--An idea prevails among young smokers, that tobacco, independent of its fancied vulgarity, is always much stronger than cigars; an error that is very common. Like cigars, indeed, it is of various growth and quality, and like them, may be had weak, or strong. The smoker, if he desires it, can have tobacco as weak as the mildest Havanahs. The only difference in their manufacture is, the leaf is cut into shreds to form the one, and wrapt up to form the other. The Persian, Turkish, and Maryland tobacco, are the mildest. The s.h.a.g and twists, the strongest; the latter of which, as its name implies, is manufactured uncut; its excellence may always be told by a shining cut and an agreeable smell.

Besides these, we have tobaccos under an infinite number of appellations, with all the variations in their nature, incident to climate, growth, age, and method of being prepared for use.

The tobacco held in the greatest esteem in the East, is the Persian. The Turks, notwithstanding their own excellent growth of the plant, give very high prices to possess it; especially that which comes from, _Shiraz_.

This is accounted the best. The moslems are also much in the habit of smoking a composition of opium and rose leaves with their tobacco through scented waters. A similar practice is common in India among the higher cla.s.s; the same materials are made into a thick consistency and rolled into b.a.l.l.s, which they term _Jugeny_. To the unpractised palate, the smoking of this composition has a strangely exhilarating and intoxicating effect.

A singular habit also prevails in the island of Ceylon. Some of the natives wrap the leaf of a strong tobacco they call _Kapada_ into a lengthened form, and then covering it with the leaf of the _Wattakan_ tree, light one end of it, and smoke by the other, till the whole is consumed.

Besides the tobacco of the West Indies, Persia and Turkey, considerable quant.i.ties are cultivated in the Levant, the coasts of Greece, the Archipelago, the island of Malta, and Italy.