Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1888-02-11
A MILLION A WEEK AND GROWING.
Extent Of the Cigarette Trade in Wash.
ingtOn.
THE AVERAGE CAPACITY OF A CIGARETTE PTENp-
THE TASTE FOR CIGARETTES MECHANICALLY
FERENT BRANDS -HAND-AADE CIGARETTES THE
MOST PoPULAR-rs THE PAPER INJURIOUS?

THE TASTE FOR CIGARETTES MECHANICALLY
FERENT BRANDS HANDMADE CIGARETTES THE
MOST PoPULAR-rs THE PAPER INJURIOUS?
"Forty cigarettes day? Any number OF men
In Washington smoke that many" said an avenue
tooacconist, discussing an item In The STAR which
TOLD OF Louisville man who had been made an
idiot by the excessive consumption OF the seduc-
tive Little paper-wrapped rolls OF the weed "Did
you notice that pale young fellow nearly all cRa-
rette smokers are pale) who was in here few
minutes ago? Well he bought two papers OF Gig
arctic tobacco and three big and two small pack.
ages OF cigarettes Each paper OF tobacco will
make hundred cigarettes as they are usually
rolled, and the packages contained eighty already
mad up. Now that supply Will last him less than
a week; about four days Is his average, think.
lie IS one OF the worst cigarette f1ends know Of
lie Is never without one In his mouth and he GER
tainly smokes fifty a day at low estimate"
"But doesn't the row the papers and the doctors
make every little while about cigarette smoking
and the frequent deaths attributed to it. hurt the
trader" l BE STAR man inquired.
MORE CIGARETTES SOLD THAN EVER BEFORE
@NOt bit. More cigarettes are sold TODAY than
ever before, and the business Is growing all the
while Grown men who a few years ago would
feel Inundated II anyone offered them a cipar.,,e
now smoke nothing else. As a consequence the
cigar trade has been badly aT rcted, for a man who
once acquires taste for cigarettes doesn't care
tas for tobacco In any other FORM and IL he was a
chewer, gives IL up. so that all other branches OF
the tobacco trade, as Well as cigars, suffer as
ofit is, there is no money In cigaret es. as there
used 10 be nve years ago, when they sold for 20
Sns SSg a ns make tn
make that II you allow for bad debts, expense OF
delivery, and so forth"
WASHINGTON SMOKES MILLION A WEEK.
els there large trade in them in Washington"
asked the reporter.
"Washington consumes about a million CIGAR
cites a week." the dealer answered as he resumed
his seat after waiting a customer. ssThis ISN'T
a wild guess, but Is based on figures I happen To
know regarding the sales OF brand OF cigarettes
that has the call on the market Just now I can
give the names OF firms here that take regularly
every week over 400 600 OF this one brand One firm
alone takes 100000 a week. or another brand
made by the me manufacturers this firm taEes
10000 week. We handle $4,000 OF the most
p pular brand every ten days ourselves one
the photograph and picture feature OF it, You
would 0e surprised at the number OF people who
are making collections Of these pictures, or have
cigarettes mainly to get the pictures"
CIGARETTES At TWO DOLLARS A THOUSAND
''What are the cheapest cigarettes In the mar.
ket?" inquired the reporter.
'"The cheapest are sold by the jobbers at 60
thousand. The best American cigarettes are
worth bout double that The cheap ones are made
oy machinery. while all the good brands are hand.
made. good cigarette cannot be made By q ma.
chine. One big New York nrm tried machines
and seriously hurt It's business. It has now gone
back to the old way"
"Are many Of the fancy priced foreign cigarettes
sold here?" asked the interviewer.
"NO, there is scarcely any demand for them in
Washington, nor for high-prfced smoking material
OF any Kind, for that matter. In fact, l don't
think many foreign Gig ,rettes are sold In TINS
country at all now. 1t used to be the fashion for
the very select young men to smoke the fancy
Havana, Turkish and Russian cigarettes, but the
american brands seem TO be good enough for
most OF them now.
CIGARETTE PAPER.
II think good deal OF the talk about the great
righteousness of cigarettes is bosh," the dealer
said, after pause. ''If you smoke cigars or to-.
bacco In any form to excess it is bound TO hurt
you. II used to be said that the paper on cigar.
cites did the main damage. See here" and he
tore leaf from book O, cigarette papers, Lit H.
ana as II burned up close to his fingers threw the
blazing remnant on the counter. moment later
an traceoof the paper had disappeared, not par
ticie Oh ashes or otner residue remaining "NoW
mat paper Is so thin and VI such fine quality" he
continued, There can tie no especial harm In IT,
IN paper used on the best brands OF cigarettes ia
as good as that and some OF 1t even better"