The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1923-05-16
HAS NO. FEAR Of
ANTI-TOBACCO
CRUSADE
LET People Take Care Of Own
Morals" Says F. A. de
Pills, Manufacturer.

LET the American people take
care of their own morals. They are
capable and can do it to their own
satisfaction once they will malpe up
their mind to the need.
This is the answer of F. A. de
Pills, president of the Matoaka To-
bacco Company and vice president of
Patterson Brothers Tobacco CorpQ-
ration, one OF the largest Independent
tobacco manufacturers in the Unlted
States, to the question as TO TIE
prospect Of national anti.tobAcc0
legislation.
The question of tobacco prohioi.
ton is not one of the worries" OF
the 400 delegates now in session at
the Willard Hotel, according to De
Pills.
1.-THE American public will never
stand for a national law that makes
man a criminal who enjoys his
quiet smoke" the tobacco manufac-
turere declared.
He characterized as absurd the
Utah legislation which classes as
criminal a mon or woman VINO ~
caught smoking a cigarette in tnat
State.
Discusses Morals Of Habit.
In discussing the morals" Of the
tobacco habit, De Pills said that the
tobacco manufacturers themselves
would like to see men observe the
same courtesy in smoking that they
do toward guests in their home.
I'm other words, a gentleman
should never smoke in the presence
OF a woman without first asking
her permission; men should not
smoke in elevators, or in the, pres
ence of people who do not tnem-
selves enjoy the fragrance or TO-
bacco. That, however, is courtesy,
and has nothing to do with morals,
de Pills declared.
Present consumption of cigarettes
il about 1000 900 900 a month and
is steadily growing. The tobacco
industry now ranks third or fourth
as the leading industry of the coun-
try, the figures show.
One of the problems that will be
discussed at the present convention
is that of taxation-especially on
cigarettes. Under the present law,
the Federal taxation cost to the re-
taller Is approximately 100 per cent.
Advertising. manufacturing. dis
tribution and profits on 1000 ciga-
rettes amount to So. The Federal
tax on 1000 cigarettes is So, thus
making the taxes on our COMMODITY
! ZOE per cent, and is the highest OF
any manufactured article in the
United States" de Pills pointed out:
These high taxes, and the need
of independent producers investing
as much money in Federal stamps
as he does in his manufacturing
cost Of material, selling, ETC., tend
to kill the independent producer;
enriches the large manufactures,
and does. not in the least suppress
the use of cigarettes the figures
show
Aids Larger Companies.
THE theory of the 100 per cent
taxation was to suppress, by legisla-
ton, the use of cigarettes, but the
facts show that it does not affect
it in the least and only makes 1t
possible for the larger companies
to keep the independent manl-
facturer out of the field"
In the opinion of de Pills, tobacco
manufacturers should be made to
either stay out Of the retail field, or
when they sell through chain
stores, should be forced to use Their
own name. in order that the public
might know whether they are buy
ing from a retail store Of the manu-
facturer or from a retail merchant.
There is no tobacco trust in the
United States today, the tobacco
| men declare, following the dissolu-
| ton of the trust in 1911 by Presi-
dent Roosevelt. Speaking of the go.
called "tobacco-trust," de Pills, as
an independent manufacturer. said:
THE tobacco industry today Is
being conducted on a fair competi.
| tive basis. There is business
enough for all. and while some of
US are larger than others, we hon.
estly believe that the lambs and
lions can lie down together in
mutual safety"