“2nd. The ever-increasing crops of the article, thus also increasing the supply of the particular sorts especially suitable for the American market. “The recent animation in this trade has undoubtedly furthermore been stimulated by the removal of the 10 per cent. discriminating duty, formerly payable thereon, being a product of the East Indies, exported from the west of the Cape of Good Hope. “This will be clearly evident when I state that many shipments, aggregating large quantities of this tobacco, purchased or ordered for months last past, were purposely delayed until late in December, so as not to arrive until after the law abolishing the discriminating duty had gone into effect. “This unlooked-for introduction and now so considerable export of this staple into the United States has begun to be viewed with great disfavour by cultivators or growers of ‘seed-leaf’ tobacco in the United States. “They apprehend, as I am informed, that the imports of Sumatra tobacco into our country will increase still further in the near future, and seem to consider this would prove greatly detrimental to their interests. “I am hardly in position or prepared to express an opinion as to how well grounded or justified their fears really are, and, moreover, am inclined to believe that the interested parties are the better judges of this matter, but so far as I can possibly make myself serviceable by giving information which may assist them in reaching correct conclusions on the subject I deem it my duty to do, and do cheerfully. “Such information may possibly also be of some value to Congress in its present consideration of our tariff when the article of ‘leaf-tobacco’ is reached. “Thus I would report that up to the present the production of the article has increased from year to year without any intermission from the beginning of its cultivation in Sumatra in 1865, when it amounted to only 189 bales. “In this connection I would respectfully refer and call attention to my report on ‘The tobacco trade of the Netherlands in 1881,’ dated March 7, 1882, and printed in the volume of monthly consular commercial reports No. 18, of April last, as it contains a statement showing the crops of Sumatra tobacco each year from 1865 to 1880, inclusive, and the average prices realized from its sale. “The crop of 1881 is represented to have footed up 82,356 bales, valued (approximately) at 5,791,880 dol., being an increase over the crop of the previous year (1880) of 17,433 bales as to quantity, and of 1,260,000 dol. as to the approximate value thereof. “From the foregoing it will be seen that about one-ninth of the whole crop of 1881 has been exported to the United States.