_West Indies._—The Spanish possessions in the West Indies are well known for their tobacco. The best is produced on the _vuelta abajo_, or low-lying districts of Cuba, near Havana, which are yearly flooded during the autumn, just before the tobacco is transplanted. To this fact, and the peculiar suitability of the seasons, the excellence of this particular product is attributed. The exports from Havana in 1878 were:—93,603 bales tobacco, 75,212,268 cigars, 203,581 bundles cigarettes, to the United States; 6169 bales tobacco, 66,795,330 cigars, 5,034,774 bundles cigarettes, to England; 32,582 bales tobacco, 9,541,498 cigars, 133,008 bundles cigarettes, to Spain; 582 bales tobacco, 3,861,700 cigars, 8206 bundles cigarettes, to N. Europe; 5671 bales tobacco, 18,327,025 cigars, 797,513 bundles cigarettes, to France; 41 bales tobacco, 900,850 cigars, 5,709,442 bundles cigarettes, to other countries. The totals for 1878 were 7,078,904 _kilo._ of tobacco, 182,356 thousand cigars, and 12,816,903 packets of cigarettes; in 1879, 6,371,014 _kilo._ of tobacco, 145,885 thousand cigars, and 14,098,693 packets of cigarettes. The tobacco exports in 1879 from St. Jago de Cuba were 9653 bales to Bremen, 4015 to the United States (chiefly for Bremen), and 1809 coastwise, total 15,477, against 10,249 in 1878. In the island of Puerto Rico, the tobacco-plant thrives well, and the quality, especially in the Rio de la Plata district, is very good. In 1878, the island exported 8 _quintals_ (of 101½ lb.) to the United States, 32,109 to Spain, 4198 to Germany, and 18,123 to other countries.