As a lad Carl Sandburg cleaned the secord floor real estate office of Callender and Rodine on Main Street. He was expected to sweep the floor and clean the brass spittoons. There was a cuspidor on the floor next to the roll-top desk of each of the men.

 

Some mornings the containers were full to the brim. There were cigar butts and tobacco cuds floating in the evil-smelling liquid. Carl dumped the contents down the drain in a utility closet and rinsed the containers twice with cold water.

 

Sometimes Carl fantasized about getting together with other spittoon cleaners to discuss methods of cleaning and polishing the metal or to compare ways of carrying an over-full cuspidor. He took pride in his work and intended to provide good service to his employers.

 

Chewing tobacco had become common during the Civil War when the government purchased it for the soldiers. It was considered a stimulant for someone who was deprived of sleep. The custom spread among other men after the war. There were a few old women who also “chewed.” The saliva containing juices from the tobacco weren't swallowed. The juice had to be expectorated and the chewers were often careless about where and when they spat. Women in their long dresses frequently complained about the dirty, slippery sidewalks on Main Street.

 

By the late nineteenth century spittoons were a common feature of pubs, hotels, stores, banks, railway carriages and other public places. Porters on long-distance trains spent a good deal of time cleaning and shining the spittoons. The containers were most often made of brass. High-class hotels often had spittoons made of china or cut glass. Some carried a crest or initials on the side.

 

The containers were usually made with a flat base which had a weight in it to minimize tipping. A high and wide lip was included to catch the stuff coming from poorly aiming spitters. At the time, cuspidors were considered an advance in public manners and sanitation. The issue of public spitting became so intense that many villages and towns passed ordinances to prohibit it.

 

After the influenza epidemic in 1918 the use of chewing tobacco became less common. The incidence of tuberculosis made the public more conscious of the germs associated with saliva. At least one state legislature kept spittoons on the floor of its chamber until the 1970s. Chewing gum and smoking cigarettes became the habit of choice for some people. They were considered more hygienic.