New-York tribune., 1912-08-13
MRS. WILSON AGAINST
CIGARETTES FOR WOMEN
Indignantly Denies interview
Quoting Her as Favoring
the Practice
WRITES TO OHIO EDITOR
mo Woman in Our Household
Ever Has or Ever Will
Smoke" Candidates
Wife Declares. u
BY telegraph to The Tribune.

BY IcleSraph 10 Ihe tribune.
Sea Girt. y. j. Aug 12.-Mrs. Woodrow
Wilson. wife Of the Democratic candidate
for President. put her foot down good
and hard to-day on the use of cigar
cites by women. when in a letter to the
editor of The Ohio State Journal she
expressed in unmistakable terms her dis
approval Of the practice.
Friends of Mrs. Wilson had called her
attention to an interview purportinG to
come from her which had been sent by a
news syndicate 10 a number Of Sunday
newspapers in which the wife of the New
Jersey Governor was quoted as being en-
thusiastically in sympathy with the use
q cigarettes among women
According to the interview. a woman
writer had asked Mrs. Wilson if she
agreed with Gertrude Athertons opinion
on the smoking of cigarettes by women.
Mrs Wilson's friends assured her that
the interview in question had in all prob
ability been given by Mrs. Wilson Wood
row. a novelist. who. il is said. does not
disapprove of women indulging in tobacco,
but the wife Of the Democratic candidate
for President wanted no misunderstanding
as 10 her views. so she made public the
letter 70 the Ohio paper to-day, as fol-
lows:
have just received a copy of the
journal with your editorial entitled
Smoking Women" and l beg leave TO in
dignantly deny the statement that l APP
prove Of women smoking cigarettes.
The interview upon which your editorial
was based is a pure invention. l intensely
dislike the cigarette smoking habit for
women in fact, so strong is my feeling
on the subject that my real danger lies
IN being unjust and unkind in M judy
ment of those who differ with me In thts
respect.
But certainly no woman in our house
hold ever has or ever will smoke quite
apart from the bad taste of II, | believe
with you that 1t has an extremely IN
furious effect on the nerves. YOURS very
sincerely, ELLEN \. WILSON.
The editorial that brought the quick re-
tort from Mrs. Wilson contained the sug-
gestion that it would be better for the
Democratic candidate 10 be defeated than
10 have a cigarette smoking mistress Of
the White House.
II was in part as follows:
friend sends us an extract from a
newspaper which quotes Mrs. Woodrow
Wilson as approving women smoking
Cigarettes There is certainly some mis-
take about this. If there isn't Mrs.
Woodrow Wilson shouldn't be mistress
of the White House. The leading lady
Of the land should not be the apologist
Of this habit. With her as an example,
and cigarette smoking obtaining q foot
ag in the household, what will become
o. our girls and boys? Intelligent physl-
ho Ia Ead
feet upon tine youth in their formative
period. a woman's example would eX-
tend the evil
The article goes on TO quote Mrs. Will
son as saying, Smoking cigarettes is
question Of manners. not morals" and
adds:
OF course this good lady has too much
sense TO say that Whatever Injuries the
health or breaks up the nerves is I'M
moral and il is the worst kind of i'm
morality. too--at least quite as bad as
swearing stealing or lying. NO. MTs.
Wilson didn't say that She hasn't de-
MED II. but she will. II would be better
that her husband were defeated than TO
have A cigarette smoking mistress or
the White House
as follows
She smilingly exhibited three cigarette
boxes piled In the corner Of her desk
all but empty. Why shouldn't woman
smoke if she enjoys it?' she queried.
Why hasn't she just as much right to
cigarette as man? Certainly, | agree
With Mrs. Atherton that any existing
prejudice against women smoking is TO
tho last silly and absurd.
Smoking cigarettes u question OF
manners, not morals
Some women feel that a cigarette
calms their nerves and helps their brain
into working order. Personally, smok-
ing diCuses my thoughts instead of con-
centrating them. | enjoy il as I enjoy
afte- dinner coffee Both are pleasant
SC. If ending and finishing off: both
:r. - conviviality and good fellowship. -
'iioW about its effect on woman =
health | suggested.
"Of course. one hears weird tales about
cigarette hends. and some Of them are
said TO be women The answer 10 tina t
3 that anything will hurt YOU IL YOU
carry II 70 excess. Plenty of people suf-
fer from dyspepsia. but eating isn't con-
sidercd sin.
IT is unQu' stiOnably true that more
american women smoke to-day than ever
before. But that Is because We arc aC-
curing q broader point of view, which
must in every way make for q greater
measure Of individual freedom and gen
eral tolerance"
a