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A cigarette, or cigaret (from French "small cigar"), is a small cylinder of finely cut tobacco leaves rolled in thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end causing the cigarette to smolder and allowing smoke to be inhaled from the other end, which is held in or to the mouth; in some cases, a cigarette holder may be used, as well. Most modern manufactured cigarettes are filtered, and also include reconstituted tobacco and other additives.

Cigarettes in Crosstime Traffic[]

Cigarettes and other tobacco products were viewed as disgusting vices by the late 21st century in the home timeline. Crosstime Traffic employees were often horrified by how the habit pervaded other alternates.

Cigarettes in Days of Infamy[]

Cigarettes were becoming scarce in Hawaii after it was conquered by Japan in 1942. Some people were even using toothpicks or alligator clips to hold tiny butts and squeeze an extra drag or two out of them. Chesterfield was the most popular brand of cigarettes in both Hawaii and the American mainland. Japanese soldiers stationed in Hawaii considered the American quality of cigarettes to be far superior to the Japanese brand.

Cigarettes in "Powerless"[]

Cigarettes was an important commodity in the West Coast People's Democratic Republic. The state rationed it, issuing its own low-quality brand, Progress, to the workers. However, Communist Party members (such as Mary Ann Hannegan) had access to better product, such as Marlboro, Camel, and Winston. The average worker could get better brands only through the black market. Charlie Simpkins was able to buy several packs of Camels from a black marketeer when his Progress ration was cut.[1]

Cigarettes in Southern Victory[]

Cigarettes were widely smoked by many people throughout the United States, the Confederate States, Canada, and the Republic of Quebec. They were smoked by both young and old, black and white, powerful and ordinary, and, after the end of the Great War, men and women. They were, however, forbidden by the Mormons for religious reasons.

Cigarettes

Cigarettes made in the Confederate States were widely considered to be the best in the world, and when the Second Great War broke out between the CS and US in 1941, smokers in the US complained incessantly about the inferiority of domestically-made cigarettes compared to the Confederate imports they smoked in peacetime. Confederate soldiers often traded cigarettes for canned rations with US soldiers during truces.

Cigarettes in The War That Came Early[]

The quality of cigarettes decreased sharply due to wartime disruption of production. French cigarettes, notably Gitanes, saw a steep decline in quality, German brands a sharper decline still. Junos were considered the highest quality German brands but were still awful. In all of Europe, only American diplomats continued to smoke what were considered high-quality cigarettes, as American brands were sent to them in sealed diplomatic pouches. Russian and Japanese smokers either remained happy with the quality of their cigarettes or at least saw no point in complaining.

In Germany, tobacco was subject to wartime rationing. As one of many punitive measures against the Jews, the Nazis cut off all tobacco rations to Jews, meaning that Jewish smokers such as Samuel Goldman would have to scrounge for tobacco from non-official sources, such as picking up discarded cigarette butts from the street.

Despite all these privations and, in some cases, indignities, hardly anyone considered going without cigarettes.

Cigarettes in Worldwar[]

Cigarettes were popular throughout the world when the Race's Conquest Fleet arrived in 1942. Joseph Stalin and Franklin D. Roosevelt both smoked cigarettes, though Adolf Hitler hated cigarettes and tobacco in general, and Winston Churchill preferred cigars.

The Race's arrival disrupted cigarette supplies throughout the world, and cigarettes were only regularly available in areas in which they were produced. After the Peace of Cairo, cigarette supplies returned to normal in both the independent human powers and the Race's colonies, and world cigarette consumption was restored along with it.

The popularity of cigarettes was only slightly diminished when the Race's doctors discovered they were carcinogenic. Still, their use remained common among older folks in the 1960s.

References[]

  1. Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction September/October, 2018, ebook.
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