Smoking soothes and comforts millions of the worried and the weary,
and brings much pleasure to the habitual smoker, but it always more
or less injures the health of the smoker and sometimes kills him. The
vast majority of the medical fraternity condemn smoking, especially
by the young.
Smoking injures multitudes of boys in many respects.
Smoking often leads to boys into bad company.
Smoking often makes them precocious, undutiful, impudent and
callous.
Smoking often ruins the health.
Smoking generally stunts their growth.
Smoking generally sallows their complexion.
Smoking often leads them to lying.
Smoking often leads them to stealing.
Smoking often leads them to drinking.
Smoking degenerates the boy physically, mentally, and morally.
Smokers cannot excel in athletic sports, such as boating, cricket,
cycling.
Smokers are always at the bottom of the class in school and
college, and backward at all kinds of study.
Excessive smoking causes mental and physical laziness in boys and
men.
The following organs, fluids, functions, etc., of the body,
especially of the young, are frequently more or less affected by the
use of tobacco:--The blood, the heart, the nerves, the brain, the
liver, the lungs, the stomach, the throat, the saliva, the taste, the
voice, the eyes, the ears, the nose, the mouth, the tongue, the
palate, the pancreas, the lips, the teeth, the bones, the skin.
Medical men and observing experts affirm many diseases are caused or
accelerated by the use of tobacco, among which are the following:--
Heart disease, consumption, cancer, ulceration, asthma, bronchitis,
neuralgia, paralysis, palsy, apoplexy, indigestion, dysentery,
diarrhoea, constipation, sleeplessness, melancholia, delirium
tremens, insanity.
Smoking frequently leads to prolonged suffering.
Smoking often destroys the appetite.
Smoking sometimes weakens the will power.
Smoking sometimes leads to loss of memory.
Smoking often leads to despondency.
Smoking sometimes leads to suicide.
Smoking frequently leads to loss--loss by bad health and waste of
valuable time--direct loss in money required for other purposes,
and immense loss through reckless, thoughtless, or unfortunate
smokers being the cause of partial or total destruction by fire of
buildings, ships, factories, homesteads, crops, stores, and
property of many kinds; also loss of life and property by
explosions in mines, explosive factories, powder magazines,
explosive stores, etc.
Tobacco using is an unclean habit, and offensive habit, an
enslaving habit, often it is an intensely selfish habit.
Tobacco fumes, especially in small and poorly-ventilated houses or
rooms, injure or destroy the health of multitudes of wives, and
injure the health of multitudes of infants and children.
Tobacco using injures the unborn child by giving it a puny body and
an imperfect start in life.
Tobacco using is fast degenerating the race.
A third of the recruits for the Army are disqualified through
smoking.
The following Governments have passes laws against juvenile smoking:
Germany, Switzerland, Norway, Japan, Canada, Nova Scotia, New
Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, British Columbia, the North West
Territories, Cape Colony, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia,
Tasmania, and about 48 of the States and Territories out of 53; and
so terrible and deplorable an effect has juvenile smoking upon the
race that most other Governments are considering the advisability of
passing laws against it.
The insidious influence of cigarette smoking by boys is shown in
these examples of handwriting, taken from a London Country Council
health report. The first was written by a boy when he was a victim of
the habit; the second is the same boy's writing when he had given it
up, ten months later.
[Illustration: Handwriting Samples.]
[Page 204--Narcotics and Intoxicants]