I admit I like the lazy way of just pulling out the tin, jar or pouch and tucking the pre-rubbed tobacco in a pipe,
but the preparation of plug gives a little more ritual and involvement, and builds anticipation, and tempts me
to mix tobaccos. I think in previous centuries, plug and rope tobacco provided a way to keep tobacco fresh longer
under difficult circumstances, like aboard ship. Had I been smoking a pipe aboard the minesweeper, I think a plug
would have survived all that salt air and fluctuations in humidity better than regular pre-rubbed blends. However,
some of the old smoking paraphernalia from whaling days, for example, indicates that some sailors used pre-rubbed
tobacco kept in cloth bags. Any excuse for a break and a smoke, to break the endless routine of work was probably
welcome.