The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1902-07-26
THE CIOARET TE HABIT

Tho fight against the cigarette for
bovs which has been taken up by the
1ocaI authorities OF Edinburgh. has
been growing in force during the last
few years. says the st. James Gazette
There IS little doubt that one Of these
days something will have to be done
at Westminster, such as Is now oelhe
done bv educational authorities and en-
Movers Of labor in smaller ways all
ovsr England. The Plymouth school /
hoard las lately circuIaTized the pa
rents Of the children under its care,
calling their attention to the growth OF
cigarette smoking among boys; and at
Leeds the school board has sought the
assistance Of eminent medical authori-
/ ties in its efforts TO put down the per
picious habit. The school management
committee OF the Liverpool school
board has declared in 4 special report
on the subject that cigarette smok-
,ng affects the system generally, and
arrests the physical development, and
the chairman Of the Glasgow school
board asserts that the boy who smokes
! is mot mentally or physically able to
study
From schooImasters and school
boards everywhere comes the same
/ testimony. In nine cases out OF ten,
says the headmaster Of the Ports
/ mouth grammar school, the unsatis-
] factory boy IS a smoker Mentally and
/ morally. according 10 their teachers.
J boys suffer from the cigarette habit
| The boy S7to smokes at school Is not
only d worse student in consequence.
: Tot too often becomes a sneak "Ju-
vsniIe sr!oking.'' says the chairman of
+ the school board Of West Ham. leads
4 TO IoaEug and deterioration generally
/ II ny opinion. both mental and moral"
Mere and more the habit is telling in
! the workshop If we are 10 believe the
| test Imony Of those who should know
/ best 4 newspaper advertisement the
other day for sharp. obliging, in
/ telIigent lad warned all boy smokers
/ that they need not apply. and such ad-
! refreshments are by no means rare.
! There is sound economics IN them. Sir
/ James Reckitt declared the other day
/ that he would certainly not choose
/ smoking boy to DO any work for him
! Il he could get a non smoker to do IT,
and Sir Thomas Upton has set him
! self strongly against the practice as
an employer. The experience Of Sir
! Christopher Furnace has been that
/ juvenile smoking not only causes de
/ terioration OF physique, but tends to
/ develop Iounging habits. with the re-
suit that the Juvenile smokers work
/ Is less conscientiousIy done. and he is
/ lacking in sprightliness and alertness-"
/ The doctor, it goes without saying,
/ is the strongest enemy Of Juvenile
/ smoking Probably the action Of the
/ local authorities IN Edinburgh owes
/ something 10 the influence of Sir Henry
LittIeiohn. the city's medical officer,
who is one Of the Oldest public officials
/ in Scotland. Sir Henry issued not long
/ ago a statement Of the evils OF jul
/ veniIa smoking which startled a good
many people Il is not quite clear what.
/ II anything. can be done to check the
/ growth of habit which is seriously
affecting the rising generation. There
are ParIiaments which have thought It
/ well to prohibit the sale OF cigarettes
to boys and 10 punish boy smokers with
a heavy hand but such a course seems
out Of the question at present in Eng
/ Iaad Years ago the minister Of public
/ instruction in France issued a circular
! 10 all directors Of colleges and schools
/ forbidding smoking because 1t checked
/ the development OF mind and body The
remedy may not be perfect. but 1t is
/ better, at any rate. than inaction. and
! il does not seem too soon for NJ P-'s to
/ begin 10 think about the peril of the
/ cigarette.