The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1914-04-14
THE COST
Of The Smoking Habit Is
Here Shown
By Remarkable Figures Just
Prepared
(Springfeld Republican,

A UeploraDle showing as 10 Jue COSI
OF tobacco is made by writer in the
new Unpopular Review. By the last
census the manufactured tobacco in
the United States was worth in 1909
Si16,695, 900. But this is only part
OF the expenditure. Two years ago
Prof. Bailey, of Yale, estimated that
the people of the United States spent
81 100, 100000 on tabocco in q single
year; by this time Is may be $1,000
100000 Pipes and smokers articles
account for nearly $1,5O0,0O0.
Compared with other kinds of ex-
penditure the total is staggering. 1t is
twice what is spent on railroad travel
or on the Government of the United
States interest on the national debt in.
oluded. Annually the country spends on
tobacco three times the cost of the
Panama Canal, or three times the loss
involved in the San Francisco earth
quake. The annual total is but trife
less than the combined expenditure
on armaments by Germany, Russia,
trance, Great Britain and Japan, and
considerably more than the huge war
indemnity exacted from France by
Germany.
But to the direct cost must be add
ed great loss of property from fire
caused by careless smokers. The fig
ures are naturally hard to get; they are
set down as from s45,0OO,OOO to $780,
10000, exclusive of forest fires, which
IN 1908 in Massachusetts alone caused
. loss of $3.50 in those cases traced
to smokers. Then we must add the in
crease in the cost of living due to the
pre-emption of the land needed to raise
annually In the United States tobacco
worth over $100,O00,000. Incidental eX.
penses are for smoking cars, represent.
ing S71, 100000 in capital on which in.
terest and depreciation have to DE
charged, and other special accommo.
cations have to be provided. Moreoy-
er, the cost of keeping the world clean
must be enormously enhanced, though
naturally no figures are available
Against this enormous cost, not to
speak Of loss of time and whatever in
jury may be done to health, the author
can find nothing to put down on the
credit side of the account except
smokers suphoria, that is, whatever
pleasure those who use tobacco get out
Of it.
1t is a staggering total, and the first
Impression may be one of gratitude
that women dislike tobacco. If they
took to it the bin would be more than
doubled for they would no doubt insist
on monogrammed cigarettes, and arith
metic would hardly serve to compute
the cost The second impression Is
that there must be something wrong
with the statistics. After all, the alb
origins OF North America, whose econ
omic status was incomparably below
cur, We're at least able to afford the
luxury, ii it is a luxury, of pipe OF
tobacco. It would be an odd paradox
is increasing wealth made that no long
er possible!
Indeed, on scrutinizing the figures
certain fallacies do appear, and since
they are typical OF some statistical er
rors which frequently recur it may be
worth while to consider them, leaving
the tobacco question quite to one side
In the first place. there Is a fallacy ol
the undistributed total IL we had the
statistics Of million planets as wick
ed as ours the sum OF their sins anC
tollies would be million times rs
alarming as the figures for any planet
taken separately, yet the addition
would not make things a whit worse
than they were before, When the
s'0tistician has piled up his denatureC
hgures, our lrst task must be to hu
manl2e them again by Citing them Il
euses.
'N"H NFNA = AbAF hlAOWS NuaL ny Atku
,@tins his tastes he may make his in
dulgences either moderate or extrava
CANT according to his means and hi,
plan of life.o lie may consume beef
steak or beans, beer or champagne
shas In clay pipe or Havana cigars
wrapped in gold Leaf Unquestionabl!
under the pinch OF necessity the to
bacco bill like most bills, could b,
y Nery greatly reduced without reducing
Tie number OF smokers, and the dill
ference should be charged, like othe
kinds Of high living, to the general ac
count Of extrayagant expenditure; tn,
base llao may fairly be fixed at wha
the poor and economical man feel,
That he can efrord, which is not so dit
icrent from the Indulgence which wai
/ POSSIBLE for the American Indian.
Nor is it quite correct TO charge L
IRE loss to tho account of tobacco; i
would NJ most suggest that chewing !,
t1 be preferred to smoking. But, as
matter OF fact, that FIRE loss a some
] tgsh hat -,