The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-05-21
INDIANA'S CIGARETTE WAR.
ALL SORTS or RULINGS AS TO
NEW LAWS MEANING.
Smokers Arrested In Some Gues, in Others
Only 0ealers--Tobacoe Dealers OFFER.
ing FREQ Papers-Ono Lawyer BE-
q comes Q Martyr to tho Test Case.


ing FREQ PApors-Ono Lawyer BE-
q comes . Martyr to the Test Case.
INDIANAPOLIS, May 2o.-No other law
enacted In Indiana has been the subjsot
OF as many varying constructions a. has
the anti-cigarstte law OF the recent ses-
have held that 1t applies only to dealers
and have discharged Rnokers when ar
rested; come have held that 1t applies to
individuals il they are found With cigarettes
or cigarette paper in their possession, and
some have held that even smoking Is a
violation and have fined persons guilty Of
the ofIsnse. Others still have held that
while the law does not apply to tho In
dividual smoker he cannot legally give a
cigarette to another, and conviction has
been had for this cause.
Yet the law is one of the sho rtest on the
statute books. 1t provides that 1T shall
be unlawful for any person, by himself,
clerk servant. employee or agent. di-
reotly or indirectly, upon any pretense or
by any device. to manufacture, SELL ex-
change, barter, dispose Of or give away, or
keep for sale. any cigarettes, cigar ate
paper or cigarette wrappers. or any paper
made or prepared for the purpose OF being
filed with tobacco for smoking; or keep
or own, or be in any way concerned, en-
gagged or employed In owning or keeping
any cigarettes, cigarette paper or wrap
pers, and any perso MS for violation Of the
and upon conviction shall for the first Of
Tense, pay O fine Of not less than SIS nor
more than $50 and costs Of prosecution,
and stand committed to the county jail
until such costs are paid; and for the second
and each subsequent offense he shall pay
$500 and the costs Of prosecution and be i'm.
prisoned In the county Jail not to exceed
Six months; provided that the provisions
hereof shall not apply to the sales Of job
bers doing an Interstate business with
customers outside Of the State"
all large dealers boxed up their cigarettes
Of the State those who had but small
stocks on hand distributed them gratui-
tously among their patrons, and In few
towns the left over stocks were publicly
burned.
On the morning after the law went into
force a travelling man lighted cigarette In
a hotel at Logansport and an officer placed
him under arrest. The smoker had come
in on late train, knew nothing about the
Indiana law, but had to pay the penalty
fined.
About the same time an arrest for smok-
ing was made In this city, but the offender
was discharged on the ground that the
law did not apply to his case. A few days
Liter young man came can o. nan soan
he lighted a cigarette and walked up the
street, smoking The police refused to ar
rest him because the local Judge had held
that the Law. did not apply to smokers;
Further up the street the stranger asked
house. He hehted another cigarette as he
received the Information. and gave one to
the person he had stopped. He was nabbed
for giving away a cigarette.
A youth on the South Side was seen
smoking q cigarette and was asked by an
ofiioer where he got it. He pointed to a
searched. Cigarette paper and tobacco
were found in his pockets, and he was ar
rested for having 4makinge" in his posses
sion. While, therefore In this city men are
a friend cigarette, nor can they have the
But despite this fact hundreds Of In
dianians get all the cigarette paper they
want, and get it, too, without expense.
When the law went into effect advertise
State directing cigarette smokers to write to
the office Of the American Tobacco Company
and they would receive cigarette papers
free Of charge. Hundreds did 30, OF course,
and there is not city in the State in which
cigarette smoking is not indulged in to a
greater or less extent, either openly. as
here, or secretly as in other cities. Cases
involving all phases Of the law are now
pending In the courts. For instance, WV.
lowery, a young attorney OF this city,
went into the court house few days ago
when he knew that the Grand Jury was
investigating cigarette cases. He stood
in the hall and acoosted the jurors az he
smoked a cigarette. and thus invited an
indictment He was accommodated, OF
course. and the case will go to the Supreme
Court.
1t IL said that the tobacco men do not
expect the Supreme Court OF the State to
set aside the law in respect to dealers, but
this phase OF it will go to the United States
Supreme Court. II does expect however,
that the State court will set aside the law
as it relates to private individuals, and
thus the way will be opened for entrance
into the State through its mail order depart
ment.
In one OF the cities Judge has gone so
far as to construe the law to apply to a
small cigar the size OF cigarette, but hav-
ing q tobacco wrapper, and an arrest has
been made. but this is the only case OF the