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| Tobacco is a strain from the nightshade genus, a deadly plant |
Our huge tobacco industry began with the Native Americans introducing the plant in the 1500s to be used in religious
ceremonies and medicine.
Soon plantation owners from England, most of them in terrible fiscal shape, scurried off to escape their spendthrift reputation. They changed from reckless money spenders to being prominent wealthy businessmen, growing fields of tobacco.
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| Sir Walter Raleigh introduced the first Virginia Tobacco into England. This painting shows him and his pipe. It was thought then that tobacco was medicinally sound. |
One of the first successful planters was John Rolfe,
husband of Pocahontas, who made his fortune in exporting tobacco to England—40,000
pounds (18,000 kg).
Virginia colony and The Carolinas saw tobacco as a "cash crop" which led to importing of the first black slaves in 1619 to work the fields.
Virginia colony and The Carolinas saw tobacco as a "cash crop" which led to importing of the first black slaves in 1619 to work the fields.
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| The earliest image of a man smoking a pipe, from Tabaco by Anthony Chute. |
It is almost impossible to calculate the boom in tobacco production from this
increased man power. Or to calculate the
effects that tobacco has unleashed. It has been identified as powerfully addicting and a tragic carcinogenic.
Over one billion
(1,000,000,000) deaths have been attributed to tobacco use.
This information was gathered from Wikipedia--worthwhile read.
The underlined italicized words are provided by Delores, a delightful blogger.
The underlined italicized words are provided by Delores, a delightful blogger.
People sure love sucking back crap that isn't good for them.
ReplyDeleteStill amazes me. Now there is the "Vape"---steam with a slight amount of something.
DeleteSad but true.
ReplyDeleteWhat upsets me the most about tobacco is that there are many many medicinal uses under research. Instead, the commercial attractions and financial gains outweigh this.
ReplyDeleteAh yes. And the worst part is when they figured out it was bad for you, they doubled down and kept selling it.
ReplyDeleteSo evil. The Marlboro Man (hot) developed cancer. then he toured to school talking about tobacco before he died.
DeleteNice little piece of history. Pure tobacco straight from the bush isn't carcinogenic though, that comes from all the additives used, one of them being rocket fuel.....
ReplyDeleteNo, they throw in some additives to make tobacco taste better, including formaldehyde.
DeleteHi Susan,
ReplyDeleteThis may well be a darned good argument for electronic cigarettes. Sir Walter Raleigh has some explaining to do. Oh wait, he aint here.
Gary
I wonder how he died...
DeleteMy ex-father-in-law rolled his own cigarettes and smoked at least one Prince Albert tin a day until his death at over 90 years of age. I have been been dipping snuff for almost 44 years. Now, I will not argue that it is not a disgusting habit, but in regards to overly exaggerated health concerns, the only teeth left in my head (after extreme stress from my chronic fatigue syndrome caused the others to fall out) are the ones that have been in direct contact with the tobacco all of these years! On the other hand, my dad died from lung cancer 14 years after he quit smoking. Be assured that tobacco use (as with many other things, like food consumption) affects everyone differently, and what may be certainly deadly to one is of little consequence to another.
ReplyDeleteI understand...but my mother died from COPD caused by smoking for decades. My uncle died when he was in his 40s from lung cancer. True, tobacco use affects people differently. But, in my family, it is for the bad.
DeleteRiver is right. Micheo Kushi, the health guru of macrobiotics smokes his own tobacco. He says the carcinogens are in the papers and the method they use to cure the tobacco. He's around my age. But I'm also aware that the smoke burns off the villi in your lungs. I used to know that Pocahonatas was married to some English dude but I had forgotten. Thanks for the reminder. A good story using "the" words.
ReplyDeleteConfused here, but that is common. The lungs are sensitive enough, without throwing in something like that several times a day.
Delete