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Interesting Invention - Cigarette Lighter

The cigarette lighter was invented before the match.

(The cigarette lighter was invented in 1816 by a German chemist named J.W. Dobereiner . Whilst matches were originally invented in 1826, by John Walker, but patented by a sneaky Samuel Jones who went on to produce matches called "Lucifers".)

The Third Light Superstition

There is a superstition about lighting 3 cigarettes from one match (or 1 one burning of a cigarette lighter).

It started in WWI where the theory was that enemy snipers were drawn, at night time, to the flash of light of striking a match and lighting of the first cigarette, lighting the second cigarette allowed the sniper to get set and if a third was lit it gave time for the sniper to aim and to shoot.

Even though the risk of being sniped by a German marksman has reduced considerably since 1918, it is still considered "bad luck" to do so.

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