TOBACCO IN EUROPE. 103 



confesse, a vertuous herb, if it be well qualified, opportunely 

 taken, and medicinally used ; but, as it is commonly abused 

 by most men, which take it as tinkers do ale, 'tis a plague, a 

 mischief, a violent pnrger of goods, lands, health, hellish, 

 divclish and damned tobacco, the mine and overthrow of 

 body and soul." 



The duty on importation had been only twopence per 

 pound, a moderate sum in view of the prices realized by the 

 sale of it. 



The King now increased it to the enormous sum of two 

 shilling and ten pence. James termed the custom of using 

 tobacco an "evil vanitie" impairing " the health of a great 

 number of people their bodies weakened and made unfit for 

 labor, and the estates of many mean persons so decayed and 

 consumed, as they are thereby driven to unthriftie shifts 

 only to maintain their gluttonous exercise thereof." * Brodi- 

 gan says of the " Counterblast : " 



"However absurd his reasoning may appear, it unfortu- 

 nately happened that he possessed the power to reduce his 

 aversion to practice, and he may be considered as the author 

 of that : un warrantable persecution of the tobacco plant, which 

 under varying circumstances, has been injudiciously continued 

 to the present time." 



Other royal haters of the plant issued the most strenous 

 lawsf and affixed penalties of the severest kind, of these may 

 be mentioned the King of Persia, Amuroth IV. of Turkey, 

 tho Emperor Jehan-Gee and Popes Urban VIII. and 

 Innocent XII., the last of whom sho'ved his dislike to many 

 other customs beside that of tobacco taking. 



One of the edicts which he issued was against the taking 

 of snuff in St. Peters, at Rome ; this was in 1690 ; it was, 

 however, revoked by Pope Benedict XIV., who himself had 

 acquired the indulgence. 



Early in the Seventeenth Century tobacco found its way to 

 Constantinople. To punish the habit, a Turk was seized and 

 a pipe transfixed through his nose. 



"Ktnpr .Tamos* violent nrrJndirrsapralnKt nil uso of tobacco arose from his aversion to 

 Sir waiter Bufchrli, i:s first importer into England whom ho intended a sacrifice to tlic grat- 

 iucnt.io:i of t!i<; K|M of Spain." 



I 1 h(5 Kim>rcRn F.llz-ihi't'i was ]r>* scvoro. Sho docrncd that tho pnnff-hoxcs of those who 

 -nade uso of them iu church should bo confiscated 10 the uso of tho beadle. 



