Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1883-05-03
Cigarette Laws.

There is no diversity of opinion
among persons of mature years as to
deleterious effects of the tobacco habit
upon the young. Elderly gentlemen
often maintain that to those who have
reached or passed the most vigorous
luxury the weary. tranquiliz-
ing irritated nerves, promoting the di-
gestive processes and arresting the I'M
due waste of vital force. But these
same persons are convinced that the
fumes and juices which soothe and sus-
tain the adult will stupefy the growing
boy, blunt all his faculties, unstring
his nerves, debiltate his muscles, set
his heart a-flutter, disorganize his diges.
tive functions, and demoralize his entire
mental and physical economy 1t is
only fair to say that the boy holds
totally different theory. He is quite
positive that the surreptitious or defiant
cigarette makes man of him at once.
His conversation grows larger snd
louder, and he considers himself more
important member of society as soon as
he can smoke without exciting revolt
in his stomach. He doesn't know
much about his heart or liver, but so
far as he is aware those organs behave
with propriety. AT all events he can
not understand why saturation with
nicotine should be beneficial to the ''old
men" and fatal to him.
The late Legislature of New-Jersey
not being composed of boys, took the
adult view of the question. Their be-
lief was so energetic that it found ex.
preston in an act entitled IAN act pro-
hibiting the sale of cigarettes or tobac-
co in any of its forms to minors" The
act has been approved by Governor
Ludlow and now every person who sells
the narcotic in any form to n boy or girl
under sixteen years of age is liable
to a penalty of twenty dollars for each
and every offence. The New Jersey
theory, as legally formulated, now is
that infants have no natural light to
either rum or tobacco until they reach
the age of sixteen. At this period of
life the right to consume snuff and navy
plug is recognized, while the young man
does not reach the full height of his
privilege as legal absorber of APPLE
jack until the age OF twenty-one is at
taihcu' lhe young saVaSeS are more
sternly dealt with by the aboriginal
smokers on this continent. No Indian
ever knew the luxury of the manly pipe
until he had come To the ripe age of
twenty-five, and it is to be hoped that
the New Jersey Legislature at its next
session will amend the law SO as to for
bid the selling of tobacco to any minor.
Itremalns to be seen whether there
is enough stern virtue behind this law
to insure its enforcement But i'm any
event the statute stands as an evidence
that the representatives of the people
of New Jersey consider cigarette-smok-
ing by the young an evil of serious mag
nitude. 1t will invite public attention
to what all competent physicians pro-
nounce pernicious practice-and to
what appears to be growing danger
to the health and stamina of the next
generation. Some cautious observers
hold that the quality of American man.
hood in the years TO come is involved to
considerable extent in the treatment
of this problem. II the Anti Cigarette
act acccmplishes anything toward the
rescue of the coming Jcrseyman from
the temptation to narcotism, it will be
worth more than all the rest of the ses-
sion's legislation.