In John Steinbeck’s 1936 novel In Dubious Battle, a cynical older labor organizer offers a young migrant worker a fresh-rolled cigarette, along with some advice: You ought to take up smoking. It’s a nice social habit. You’ll have to talk to a lot of strangers in your time. I don’t know any quicker way to soften a stranger down than to offer him a smoke, or even to ask him for one. And lots of guys feel insulted if they offer you a cigarette and you don’t take it. You better start.14
