Desperate Fight for A Cigarette

A near fatal brawl between two men for possession of a cigarette is instigated by an argument over who should smoke it.

Chicago, June 9. – Two men fought with meat cleavers for the possession of a cigarette, and Gustavus Vlockas, twenty seven year old, is in a hospital with several cuts in the head, and John Arahontis, twenty-six year old, is under arrest. Vlockas has one cigarette, and in a dispute over which one should smoke it Arahontis seized a meat cleaver and started after Vlockas. The owner of the cigarette seized a similar weapon. When the police arrived Arahontis was taking the cigarette out of the prostrate Vlockas’ pocket, but the cigarette was found to be crushed beyond usefulness.

“Desperate Fight for A Cigarette,” Black Virginia: The Richmond Planet, 1894-1909, accessed March 21, 2025, https://blackvirginia.richmond.edu/items/show/1897.