118 TOBACCO. 



This is, certainly, an important advantage and 

 worthy of cultivation in other directions. There is 

 frequent complaint of the formal, unsocial prayer 

 meetings in the church. We all are familiar 

 with the long, painful silences when no one has 

 anything to say. Strange that some one has not, 

 at this juncture, introduced cigars to loosen the 

 tongues of the silent brethren ! The only awk- 

 ward thing about it would be the presence of the 

 sisters. One would hardly like to turn them out 

 of the meeting, even for the sake of greater free- 

 dom among the brethren. Besides, on these occa- 

 sions the spell of silence is on the sisters also. 

 Why not set them to smoking likewise, thus secur- 

 ing a lively prayer meeting ? 



The great question as to the promotion of soci- 

 ability by the tobacco habit is — Does it pay ? 

 Taking into account the trespassing on good man- 

 ners which is inevitable to the most gentlemanly 

 assemblege of smokers, and the tendency to a 

 disintegration of society by the separation between 

 man and woman that it necessitates, to say nothing 

 of the physical, mental, and moral results of the 

 habit, I emphasize the question : — Does it pay? 



