Did Claude Debussy Smoke? Did He Ever

I'm writing a story and all of a sudden I just HAD to know if Claude Debussy smoked. If I had had to guess I would have said yes -- a turn of last century Frenchman? But, as distractions sometimes make us do, I flipped over to Google and searched "Debussy smoke". The first few hits had to do with fires that happened at concerts where Debussy pieces were performed (I've never thought of the concert hall as a dangerous place!).

But there it was -- a few more entries down -- a link to a June 17, 1910 interview with Debussy from the New York Times. The article not only describes how his garden smells and what his study looked like, but describes the jar in which his many, many cigarettes are stored.

I love the New York Times.