An interesting discussion on smoking preferences which may, or may not, have anything to do with Mark Twain, but I'm going to wade in all the same: >On Sun, 20 Aug 1995, mlarry wrote: > >> A cigar is just a cigar(?)--an addictive, smelly route to a death enjoyed >> by Twain's idol, General Grant, among others. Sometimes the reality is >> more horrible than the symbolism. > >Addictive? Simple answer -- no, not cigars. > >Smelly? Perhaps in MTs case. He was known to prefer stogies to the finer >products of the cigar rollers are. Beyond that, beauty is in the nose of >the beholder. So is smell. I know a woman who prefers cheap cigar smoke to the $20 Havanas available in my country. You know, when Freud said, "Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar," it wasn't as tho' he didn't have a personal stake in the discussion. He was not, as we would say, a disinterested observer. >Route to death? Absolutely not. Most studies of smokers that bother to >include cigar smokers show that cigar smokers actually live on average >LONGER (and better, I might add) than those who do not smoke anything at >all. And most insurance companies grant cigar smokers the same rates as >non-smokers. Ahh, yes, but cancer of the jaw, which attacked Twain's beloved ex-Prez Grant and, I might add, Sigmond himself, is a dastardly way to go.