_Primera_, and the third _Segunda_. Others mark all
their cigars as of the first class, and indicate the classes
by the color of the labels, and in this way none but the
wholesale purchaser knows the secret. Sixth, the last, is
the mark denoting the number of cigars in the box. This is
stenciled on the side in Arabic numerals.

"A theory has obtained that cigars made in Havana, by reason
of some inexplicable climatic influence, are better than
those made in New York, even should they be made of tobacco
from the same plantation. This may be so, but it is doubtful
whether this was ever fairly tested, or, indeed, whether it
was ever tested at all. The truth is that all the best
tobacco grown in the island of Cuba is bought up by the
heavy manufacturers in Havana. The crops of the best
plantations are contracted for in advance, and the
old-established firms buy from the same _vegos_ year after
year. Hence it is why their cigars are so uniform in
quality. All Cuban tobacco is not good, by any means. The
tobacco from the Vuelta de Arriba is not so good as that
from the Vuelta de Abajo, and yet there is but little
difference in their geographical position. And in the Vuelta
de Abajo, a short distance makes a difference in the quality
of the tobacco. Some _vegos_ are celebrated for their good
crops, while others, perhaps not a hundred yards away, do
not produce good crops at all. There are many poor cigars
made in Cuba, as all who have ever been there know, and all
over the island the Havana cigar is deemed the best. In
Havana, and, indeed, in all parts of the island, green or
freshly-made cigars are preferred, and the most esteemed
cigar-cases are made of carefully prepared bladders, in
which the cigars are rolled to prevent the evaporation of
the moisture.

"When a Cuban gentleman gives a cigar to a friend, he does
not, as we do, open his case, and offer it to him to choose
from but he examines its contents carefully and critically,
selects the one he thinks the best and offers it. And there
is a great deal more in the choice of a cigar, by selecting
it on account of its outside appearance, than one not
accustomed to it would suppose. A wrapper which has that
which the Cubans call _calidad_ makes the cigar much
stronger tha