in, and wholesale-purchase of, tobacco was, in future, to be administered by a
Board appointed by the Government, the Board being empowered to lease out the
exclusive right of importing tobacco and of erecting tobacco-factories everywhere
in the country, with the exception of Estland and Livland, in consideration of
an annual payment for the first 5 years of 120 000 copper “daler" and for the
following 5-yearly periods of 170 000 copper “daler” (a “riksdaler” specie, corresponding
to about 4 kronor of the present coinage, was, at the time in question,
equal to 6 copper “daler”). At first the leasing of the monopoly seems
to have acted satisfactorily, and the income received by the State appears
to have been of some importance, but the Estate of Burghers complained at
several Riksdags of the inconveniences caused to their body by the monopoly,
and after the lease had been renewed in 1672 for the reduced sum of 100 000
copper “daler”, the monopoly was entirely withdrawn in 1685 and the trade in
tobacco made perfectly free. The income received by the State from tobacco
has, since that timé, chiefly consisted of the duties paid.
The usual method of consuming tobacco in the 17th century was by smoking
in pipes, or by chewing.
In conformity with the endeavours made during the “Period of Liberty” to
promote commercial industries, it was decided in 1748 that tobacco-plantations
should be established near all towns, excepting those in the far north of the
country; these plantations were placed under controllers, who had to see that
a prescribed amount of Swedish tobacco was employed in every tobacco-fac-
tory. At an earlier date, for the purpose of preventing smuggling, of which
complaints had often been made, it was prescribed that all' tobacco, both native
and foreign, should pay stamp-duty, and in 1748 the existing restrictions concerning
the import of tobacco in the leaf were removed, and instead there was
imposed, in addition to the ordinary duty, a “consumption-excise”, or tax, which
had to be paid by every man and woman that wished to use tobacco; this
latter payment amounted to not more than one silver “daler” for “noblemen,
clergymen, persons of quality, and the burghers in the large cities, for smoking-
tobacco”; a smaller stun was demanded from those using snuff; soldiers and
mariners in the service of the Crown were exempt from this payment. As a
peculiarity it may be mentioned that Gustavus III, 1785— 1786, had proposals
drawn up for a State-monopoly of tobacco, which, however, in consequence
of the opposition offered by the Riksdag and of the unfortunate experiences
with regard to the Crown-distilleries, did not lead to the creation of the proposed
monopoly but merely occasioned the State some considerable expense.
Erom the beginning of the 19 th century, the legislative measures concerning
tobacco become fewer and merely concerned the_amount of duty to be paid.
During the last few years, proposals have been worked out, partly for a manu-
facturing-duty, and partly for a State-monopoly of the goods manufactured from
tobacco; this proposal, has been accepted by the Riksdag of 1914 which resolved
to form a State-monopoly for tobacco and, in this connection, to control the cultivation
of the tobacco-plant in Sweden. The monopoly can be made over by the
State to some other body or individual; the cost-price of the manufactured article
shall also include the duty to be paid in the following proportion of the price:
for cigars and c ig a r-cigarettes............................. 15 %
» cigarettes.-............................................................... . . 20 »
» cut t o b a c c o ...........................................................................1 0 »
» spun-, pressed- and roll-tobaeco...............................10 »
» snuff . ......................... 1 5 »
The monopoly w#l come into force during 1915, on a day to be determined
by the Government.
The import-duty, according to a resolution adopted by the Riksdag of 1914,
amounts to the following sums per kilogram:
unmanufactured tobacco : sta lk 2 kr.
» » leaf . . 2 à 3 »
manufactured » cigars and cigaroigarettes . . 7 »
» » cigarettes 5 »
» * c u t .......................................... ... • 3’60 »
» » other kinds . . . . . . • • 2’bo »
The tobacco factories in earlier times were chiefly situated in Stockholm (where
the oldest establishment seems to have been founded in 1660), Norrkoping, Gavie,
and Kristianstad, but they have gradually spread to other towns and even to
country districts. Of the 102 tobacco-factories in Sweden existing in 191 ,
41 were in Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmo, the value of the manufactured
tobacco turned out by them amounted to a total of more than 67 / of the
tobacco-manüfactures of the country,’ 23 028 000 kr. Of the 102 factories,^ 82
were situated in the towns, and 20 in the country districts, chiefly in Skane.
The cultivation of tobacco, on; a scale, worth mentioning, began about 1750,
and in this industry, as in so many others, it was the great Jonas Alstromer
that led the way. About 1770, the tobacco-harvest was estimated at 7 000 quintals,
or almost as much as in our own times, for during the last 25 years the
harvests show the following average figures:
Annually Quintals Annually Quintals Annually Quintals
1886-90 . . . 10 405 1 8 9 6 -0 0 . . . 7 745 1 9 0 6 -1 0 . . . 9 894
1891—95 . . . 10 837 1901—05 . . . 10 450 1911 . 7 064
The area devoted to the growth of tobacco varies very much. For example,
during the years 1897— 1902, it varied between 365 hectares in 1902 and 482
hectares in 1901. At the present time, more than half of all the tobacco grown
in Sweden is obtained from Kristianstad Lan, where the tract of country round
Ahus comprises by far the largest area devoted to this plant, although it is
divided into a very large number of small plots. Formerly, much tobacco was
grown in and around a number of towns, Stockholm especially. The average
crop per hectare amounted in 1902 to 16 quintals of air-dried, unsweated tobacco;
T able 77. Survey of the Tolacco-industry in Sweden.
Annually Factories
Production. In Quintals Total production Imports. Quintals
Cigars
Packet
tobacco
Boll and
cake
tobacco
Snuff Quintals
Value.
Thousands
of kronor
Leaf
tobacco
Manufac.
tobacco
1871—75 . 103 4 698 4159 8737 28423 46 017 8872 31915 562
1876-80 . 107 5 512 4 825 9 327 32191 51855 10778 35125 1242
1881—85 . .105 4 229 4 780 10007 32 812 51828 10 831 32 784 1022
1886—90 92 2 916 2 780 11868 35 084 52 648 10 316 34 206 1071
1891—95 . 91 5011 3 797 10791 39 331 58 930 11994 34029 1064
1896—00 . 96 6 940 4058 8 821 45 847 65666 15 045 36 604 1737
1901-05 . 113 8 677 3 924 8105 52418 73124 17 202 40361 2 381
1906—10 . 108 10879 3 593 6 344 59 811 80 626 21136 41108 3 713
1910. . . 107 11695 3 855 5 907 62 211 83668 22 325 42811 4 569
1911 . . . 108 11127 3 627 5 679 61291 81724 22 218 45 605 4804
1 1912 . . . 102 11186 3 380 5 569 62 939 82 844 23 028 44 966 5 574