The Hemisphere: Bootleg Cigarettes

Smoking smuggled U.S. cigarettes is rapidly becoming as commonplace in Canada as was the drinking of smuggled Canadian liquor in the U.S. during Prohibition. Deeply resentful of the government's 182% cigarette tax, which has forced prices as high as 46¢ a pack, the average Canadian seems to feel no moral guilt whatever in buying the smuggled U.S. article at 15¢-a-pack less.

Border guards have tried to stamp out the smuggling with extra patrols and more careful searches. The courts have stiffened the penalties for large-scale smuggling, raising the customary $200 fine to $1,000 and confiscating trucks caught carrying contraband. But the...