 |
| 1920's image from either Muskoka or Algonquin. |
 |
| 1922 Signed Black and White Portrait by Albert Dumas, Montreal |
AN ADVISORY FROM THE LEGENDARY CAPTAIN COOK - ON THE UPKEEP OF SHIP AND CREW
1862 REVISED SELF HELP BOOK - IN CASE YOU OPERATED A SCHOONER - OR SAILED ABOARD
MY BATTLE-WORN 1862 COPY, OF MACKENZIE'S UNIVERSAL RECEIPT BOOK, IS CURRENTLY WITHOUT ITS COVERS. IT HAS BEEN WELL USED SINCE ITS RELEASE IN 1862, THE FOURTH REVISION SINCE THE 1820'S FIRST EDITION. IT WAS FOUND AT A MUSKOKA FARMSTEAD, AND HAD BEEN PASSED DOWN THROUGH THE GENERATIONS, EACH ONE I SUPPOSE, ADDING TO ITS WORN AND TATTERED CONDITION. THE TEXT ITSELF, HAS LOST ITS ANTIQUARIAN VALUE, BUT THE EDITORIAL PORTION, FOR REFERENCE, STILL HAS A LOT OF SERVICE TO PROVIDE RESEARCHERS LIKE ME. HAVING BOOKS LIKE THIS, ON THE HOMESTEAD, WAS OF CRITICAL IMPORTANCE, PARTICULARLY THE MEDICAL ADVISORIES PUBLISHED IN ONE OF THE LONGER CHAPTERS. THERE IS A LOT OF INFORMATION FOR THE ISOLATED PIONEER, ESPECIALLY DETAILING REMEDIES AND ALIXERS TO TREAT THOSE IN MEDICAL CRISIS. AS THERE WERE FEW DOCTORS TO GO AROUND, IN THE 1860'S, IN MUSKOKA FOR EXAMPLE, HAVING A BOOK LIKE THIS WOULD HAVE AT LEAST PROVIDED SOME BASIC DIAGNOSTIC OVERVIEWS, AND HERBAL TREATMENTS THAT COULD RELIEVE SOME OF THE DISCOMFORT. ON THE OTHER HAND, THE ABILITY FOR THE HOMESTEADERS TO IDENTIFY THE CORRECT HERBAL INGREDIENTS, BECAUSE THE BOOK ISN'T ILLUSTRATED, UNDOUBTEDLY PUT SOME IN EVEN GREATER PERIL. SOME OF THE MEDICAL SOLUTIONS PROBABLY DID WORK, AND THUS, THE THREE OR FOUR DOLLARS TO BUY THE TEXT, WAS WORTH THE INVESTMENT. MY WIFE'S FAMILY ARRIVED IN MUSKOKA AT THE TIME THIS AMERICAN ISSUE WAS PUBLISHED, AND ALTHOUGH I CAN'T SAY THAT THEY POSSESSED THIS BOOK, THEY WOULD DEFINITELY HAVE HAD SOMETHING SIMILAR IN THE SHANTY. THESE TYPES OF BOOKS WERE OF COURSE, BIG SELLERS, BECAUSE THEY COVERED SO MANY AREAS OF GENERAL INTEREST.
AS I WROTE ABOUT EARLIER, MANY OF OUR FAMILY MEMBERS, DURING PERIODS OF EMIGRATION FROM EUROPE TO NORTH AMERICA, SPENT THOUSANDS OF NAUSEATING HOURS, ABOARD SAILING SHIPS AND STEAMBOATS, MAKING THE PRECARIOUS CROSSING OF THE ATLANTIC OCEAN, THROUGH ALL KINDS OF WEATHER.....MUCH OF IT STORMY. I HAVE READ MANY ACCOUNTS OF THE TERRIBLE CONDITIONS EMIGRANTS EXPERIENCED CROSSING THE OCEAN IN STEERAGE CLASS, WHICH AFFORDED FEW LUXURIES, AND THE RATS WERE FREE. A LARGE NUMBER OF PASSENGERS ARRIVED DECEASED. OTHERS WERE GRAVELY ILL, THE RESULT OF SPREADING INFLUENZA, AND COMMON SHIP MALADIES, SUFFERED DUE TO CONTAMINATED AIR, DUE IN PART TO IMPROPER SEWAGE HANDLING AND DISPOSAL. THEN ADD SEA-SICKNESS ONTO THESE OTHER MALADIES. AS WE LOOK BACK UPON OUR ANCESTRAL ROOTS, SAILING SHIPS AND STEAMBOAT PASSAGE FROM EUROPE, HAS BEEN PART OF OUR OWN INTIMATE CHRONICLE HERE IN CANADA. WE MAY FEEL DISTANT FROM THAT PERIOD, BUT HISTORY WOULD BE VASTLY DIFFERENT, IF THEY HADN'T MIGRATED IN THIS FASHION. SO IT HAS INFLUENCED US, YET WHAT DO WE REALLY KNOW ABOUT THE ASSOCIATED HARDSHIPS WITH TRANS-OCEANIC TRAVEL. LET'S RETURN TO THE 1862 TEXT FOR A LITTLE ADVICE FROM CAPTAIN COOK ON HOW TO KEEP NAVIGATION SAFE AND HEALTHFUL, AT LEAST AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE.
"1. THE CREW TO BE AT THREE WATCHES. THE MEN WILL HAVE TIME TO SHIFT AND DRY THEMSELVES, AND GET PRETTY WELL REFRESHED BY SLEEP, BEFORE CALLED AGAIN TO DUTY. WHEN THERE IS NO PRESSING OCCASION, SEAMEN OUGHT TO BE REFRESHED WITH AS MUCH UNINTERRUPTED SLEEP AS A COMMON DAY LABOURER.
"2. TO HAVE DRY CLOTHES TO SHIFT THEMSELVES AFTER GETTING WET - ONE OF THE OFFICERS TO SEE THAT EVERY MAN, ON GOING WET FROM THIS WATCH, BE IMMEDIATELY SHIFTED WITH DRY CLOTHES, AND THE SAME ON GOING TO BED.
"3. TO KEEP THEIR PERSONS, HAMMOCKS, BEDDING AND CLOTHES, CLEAN AND DRY - THIS COMMANDER MADE HIS MEN PASS IN REVIEW BEFORE HIM, ONE DAY, IN EVERY WEEK, AND SAW THAT THEY HAD CHANGED THEIR LINEN, AND WERE AS NEAT AND CLEAN AS CIRCUMSTANCES WOULD ADMIT. HE HAD ALSO EVERY DAY, THE HAMMOCKS CARRIED ON THE BOOMS, OR SOME OTHER AIRY PART OF THE SHIP, UNLASHED, AND THE BEDDING THOROUGHLY SHAKEN AND AIRED. WHEN THE WEATHER PREVENTED THE HAMMOCKS BEING CARRIED ON DECK, THEY WERE CONSTANTLY TAKEN DOWN, TO MAKE ROOM FOR THE FIRES, THE SWEEPING, AND OTHER OPERATIONS. WHEN POSSIBLE, FRESH WATER WAS ALWAYS ALLOWED TO THE MEN TO WASH THEIR CLOTHES, AS SOAP WILL NOT MIX WITH SEA WATER, AND LINEN WASHED IN BRINE NEVER THOROUGHLY DRIES.
"4. TO KEEP THE SHIP CLEAN BETWEEN DECKS.
"5. TO HAVE FREQUENT FIRES BETWEEN DECKS, AND AT THE BOTTOM OF THE WELL - CAPTAIN COOK'S METHOD WAS TO HAVE IRON POTS WITH DRY WOOD, WHICH HE BURNED BETWEEN DECKS, IN THE WELL, AND OTHER PARTS OF THE SHIP; DURING WHICH TIME, SOME OF THE CREW WERE EMPLOYED IN RUBBING, WITH CANVAS OR OAKUM, EVERY PART THAT HAD THE LEAST DAMP. WHERE THE HEAT FROM THE STOVES DID NOT READILY ABSORB THE MOISTURE, LOGGERHEADS, HEATED RED HOT, AND LAID ON SHEETS OF IRON, SPEEDILY EFFECTED THE PURPOSE.
"6. PROPER ATTENTION TO BE PAID TO THE SHIP'S COPPERS, TO KEEP THEM CLEAN AND FREE FROM VERDIGRIS.
"7. THE FAT THAT IS BOILED OUT OF THE SALT BEEF OR PORK, NEVER GIVEN TO THE PEOPLE.
"8. THE MEN TO BE ALLOWED PLENTY OF FRESH WATER, AT THE SHIP'S RETURN TO PORT; THE WATER REMAINING ON BOARD TO BE STARTED, AND FRESH WATER FROM THE SHORE TO BE TAKEN IN ITS ROOM.
"9. BY MEANS OF THE ABOVE REGULATIONS, (IN ADDITION TO RULES RELATIVE TO TEMPERANCE; AND SUPPLY THE CREWS AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE WITH FRESH MEAT AND VEGETABLES), THIS CELEBRATED NAVIGATOR PERFORMED A VOYAGE OF UPWARDS OF THREE YEARS, IN EVERY CLIMATE OF THE GLOBE, WITH THE LOSS OF ONLY ONE MAN.
"THE METHOD OF OBTAINING FRESH WATER FROM THE SEA, BY DISTILATION, WAS INTRODUCED INTO THE ENGLISH NAVY IN THE YEAR 1770 BY DR. IRVING, FOR WHICH HE OBTAINED A PARLIAMENTARY REWARD OF THREE THOUSAND POUNDS. IN ORDER TO GIVE A CLEAR NOTION OF DR. IRVING'S METHOD, LET US SUPPOSE A TEA-KETTLE TO BE MADE WITHOUT A SPOUT, AND WITH A HOLE IN THE LID, IN THE PLACE OF THE KNOB; THE KETTLE BEING FILLED WITH SOME WATER, THE FRESH VAPOUR, WHICH ARISES FROM THE WATER AS IT BOILS, WILL LEAVE THROUGH THE HOLE IN THE LID, INTO THAT HOLE FIT THE MOUTH, OF A TOBACCO PIPE, LETTING THE STEM HAVE A LITTLE INCLINATION DOWNWARDS, THEN WILL THE VAPOUR OF FRESH WATER TAKE ITS COURSE THROUGH THE STEM OF THE TUBE, AND MAY BE COLLECTED BY FITTING A PROPER VESSEL TO ITS END. THIS WOULD BE AN APT REPRESENTATION OF DR. IRVING'S CONTRIVANCE, IN WHICH HE HAS LUTED OR ADAPTED A TIN, IRON, OR TINNED COPPER TUBE, OF SUITABLE DIMENSIONS, TO THE LID OF THE COMMON KETTLE USED FROM BOILING THE PROVISIONS ON BOARD A SHIP; THE FRESH VAPOUR WHICH ARISES FROM BOILING SEA-WATER IN THE KETTLE, PASSES, AS BY COMMON DISTILATION THROUGH THIS TUB; INTO A HOGSHEAD, WHICH SERVES AS A RECEIVER AND IN ORDER THAT THE VAPOUR MAY BE READILY CONDENSED, THE TUBE IS KEPT COOL BY BEING CONSTANTLY WETTED WITH A MOP AND DIPPED IN COLD SEA WATER. THE WASTE WATER RUNNING FROM THE MOP, MAY BE CARRIED OFF BY MEANS OF TWO BOARDS NAILED TOGETHER LIKE A SPOUT. DR. IRVING PARTICULARLY REMARKS, THAT ONLY THREE-FOURTHS OF THE SEA-WATER SHOULD BE DISTILLED; THE BRINE IS THEN TO BE LET OFF AND THE COPPER REPLENISHED, AS THE WATER DISTILLED FROM THE REMAINING CONCENTRATED BRINE IS FOUND TO HAVE A DISAGREEABLE TASTE; AND AS THE FARTHER CONTINUATION OF THE DISTILATION IS APT TO BE INJURIOUS TO THE VESSELS. WHEN THE WATER BEGINS TO BOIL, LIKEWISE, THE VAPOUR SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO PASS FREELY FOR A MINUTE; THIS WILL EFFECTUALLY CLEANSE THE TUBE, AND UPPER PART OF THE BOILER."
PRESERVATION FROM DROWNING AND SHIPWRECK
"WHEN A MAN FALLS OVERBOARD - THE INSTANT AN ALARM IS GIVEN THAT A MAN IS OVERBOARD, THE SHIP'S HELM SHOULD BE PUT DOWN, AND SHE SHOULD BE HOVE IN STAYS; A HEN COUP OR OTHER OBJECT THAT CAN FLOAT SHOULD ALSO BE THROWN OVERBOARD AS NEAR THE MAN AS POSSIBLE, WITH A ROPE TIED TO IT, AND CAREFULLY KEPT SIGHT OF, AS IT WILL PROVE A BEACON, TOWARDS WHICH THE BOAT MAY PULL AS SOON AS LOWERED DOWN. A PRIMARY OBJECT IS HAVING A BOAT READY TO LOWER DOWN AT A MOMENT'S NOTICE, WHICH SHOULD BE HOISTED UP AT THE STERN IF MOST CONVENIENT; THE LASHINGS, TACKLE, ETC., TO BE ALWAYS KEPT CLEAR, AND A RUDDER, TILLER TO BE KEPT IN HER. WHEN DARK, SHE SHOULD NOT BE WITHOUT A LANTERN AND COMPASS. THERE SHOULD ALSO BE KEPT IN HER A ROPE WITH A RUNNING BOWLINE, READY TO FIX IN OR TO THROWN TO THE PERSON IN DANGER. COILS OF SMALL ROPE, WITH RUNNING BOWLINES, SHOULD ALSO BE KEPT TO THE CHAINS QUARTERS, AND ABAFT, READY THROW OVER, AS IT MOST GENERALLY OCCURS, THAT MEN PASS CLOSE TO THE SHIP'S SIDE, AND HAVE OFTEN BEEN MIRACULOUSLY SAVED BY CLINGING TO THE ROPES.
"UPSETTING OF A BOAT - IF A PERSON SHOULD FALL OUT OF A BOAT, OR THE BOAT UPSET BY GOING FOUL OF A CABLE, OR SHOULD HE FALL OFF THE QUAYS, OR INDEED FALL INTO ANY WATER, FROM WHICH HE CANNOT EXTRICATE HIMSELF, BUT MUST WAIT SOME LITTLE TIME FOR ASSISTANCE - HAD HE PRESENCE OF MIND ENOUGH, TO WHIP OFF HIS HAT, AND HOLD IT BY THE BRIM, PLACING HIS FINGERS WITHIN SIDE OF THE CROWN, TOP UPWARDS, HE WOULD BE ABLE, BY THIS METHOD, TO KEEP HIS MOUTH ABOVE WATER TILL ASSISTANCE SHOULD REACH HIM. IT OFTEN HAPPENS THAT DANGER IS APPREHENDED LONG BEFORE WE ARE INVOLVED IN THE PERIL, ALTHOUGH THERE MAY BE TIME ENOUGH TO PREPARE THIS, OR ADOPT ANY OTHER METHOD. TRAVELLERS, IN FORDING RIVERS OF UNKNOWN FORDS, OR WHERE SHALLOWS ARE DECEITFUL, MIGHT MAKE USE OF THIS METHOD WITH ADVANTAGE.
"PROVIDE A CORK WAISTECOAT, COMPOSED OF FOUR PIECES, TWO FOR THE BREAST AND TWO FOR THE BACK, EACH PRETTY NEAR IN LENGTH AND BREADTH TO THE QUARTERS OF A WAISTCOAT WITHOUT FLAPS; THE WHOLE IS TO BE COVERED WITH COARSE CANVASS, WITH TWO HOLES TO PUT THE ARMS THROUGH. THERE MUST BE A SPACE LEFT BETWEEN THE TWO BACK PIECES, AND THE SAME BETWIXT EACH BACK AND BREAST PIECE, THAT THEY MAY FIT THE EASIER TO THE BODY. BY THIS MEANS THE WAISTECOAT IS OPEN ONLY BEFORE, AND MAY BE FASTENED ON THE WEARER BY STRINGS; OR IF IT SHOULD BE THOUGHT MORE SECURE, WITH BUCKLES AND LEATHER STRAPS. THIS WAISTECOAT MAY BE MADE UP FOR FIVE OR SIX SHILLINGS. IF THOSE WHO USE THE SEA OCCASIONALLY, AND ESPECIALLY THOSE WHO ARE OBLIGED TO BE ALMOST CONSTANTLY THERE, WERE TO USE THESE WAISTECOATS, IT WOULD BE NEXT TO IMPOSSIBLE THAT THEY SHOULD BE DROWNED.
"IT WILL LIKEWISE BE PROPER TO PREPARE AN OIL SKIN BAG, ON GOING TO SEA, FOR A TEMPORARY SUPPLY OF PROVISIONS, IN CASE OF A SHIPWRECK. IF SUDDENLY PLUNGED INTO THE WATER, AND UNABLE TO SWIM, IT WILL BE NECESSARY TO KEEP THE HANDS AND ARMS UNDER THE WATER - FEW ANIMALS BEING CAPABLE OF DROWNING OWING TO THEIR INABILITY TO LIFT THEIR FORE LEGS OVER THEIR HEADS. THE LEGS THEREFORE, BEING NECESSARILY IMMERSED IN THE WATER, THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE SPECIFIC GRAVITY OF THE ANIMAL AND THE WATER, IS SUFFICIENT TO ENABLE IT TO KEEP ITS NOSTRILS AND MOUTH ABOVE THE WATER AND THEREFORE, IT IS NOT SUFFOCATED BY THE FLUID, BUT BREATHES FREELY. BUT MAN, ON THE CONTRARY, BEING ABLE TO LIFT HIS HANDS OVER HIS HEAD, AND GENERALLY DOING SO IN CASE OF THIS ACCIDENT, HIS HANDS AND ARMS MAKE UP THE DIFFERENCE IN SPECIFIC GRAVITY, AND HIS HEAD IMPELLED BY THE WEIGHT OF HIS HANDS AND ARMS BELOW THE WATER, HIS BODY FILLS, AND HIS IS CONSEQUENTLY CHOKED AND SUFFOCATED. THE REMEDY THEREFORE IS, IN ALL SUCH EASE, TO KEEP DOWN THE HANDS AND ARMS, AND AS A FURTHER SECURITY, TO ACT WITH THEM UNDER AND AGAINST THE WATER. IT WILL THEN BE IMPOSSIBLE TO SINK, UNLESS THE WEIGHTS OF CLOTHES OR OTHER CIRCUMSTANCES OPERATE TO THE CONTRARY.
"THE MARINE SPENCER IS MADE IN THE FORM OF A GIRDLE, OF A PROPER DIAMETER TO FIT THE BODY, AND SIX INCHES BROAD, COMPOSED OF ABOUT 500 OLD TAVERN CORKS, STRUNG UPON A STRONG TWINE, WELL LASHED TOGETHER WITH LAY-CORD, COVERED WITH CANVAS, AND PAINTED IN OIL SO AS TO MAKE IT WATER-PROOF. TWO TAPES OF CORDS, ABOUT TWO FEET LONG, ARE FASTENED TO THE BACK OF THE GIRDLE WITH LOOPS AT THE ENDS. ANOTHER TAPE OF CORD OF THE SAME LENGHT, HAVING A FEW CORKS STRUNG TO THE MIDDLE OF IT, IS COVERED WITH CANVAS PAINTED. A PIN OF HARD WOOD, THREE INCHES LONG AND A HALF AND INCH IN DIAMETER, IS FASTENED TO THE FRONT OF THE GIRDLE BY A TAPE OR CORD, ABOUT THREE INCHES LONG. TO USE THE SPENCER, IT SHOULD BE SLIDDEN DOWN THE FEET CLOSE UP TO THE ARMS; THE TAPES OR CORDS ARE TO BE BROUGHT OVER EACH SHOULDER, AND FASTENED BY THE LOOPS TO THE PIN; THOSE BETWEEN THE LEGS ARE TO BE FASTENED TO THE OTHER PIN. A PERSON THUS EQUIPPED, THOUGH UNACQUAINTED WITH SWIMMING, MAY SAFELY TRUST HIMSELF TO THE WAVES; FOR HE WILL FLOAT, HEAD AND SHOULDERS ABOVE THE WATER, IN ANY STORM, AND BY PADDLING WITH HIS HANDS, MAY EASILY GAIN THE SHORE. SUCH A SPENCER MAY ALSO BE MADE OF CORK SHAVINGS PUT INTO A LONG CANVASS BAG.
"IT HAS BEEN SUGGESTED, THAT EVERY PART OF THE USUAL DRESS OF THE SAILOR, SHOULD BE MADE WITH A VIEW OF PRESERVING HIS LIFE, IN CASES OF ACCIDENTS AND FOR THIS PURPOSE THAT A QUANTITY OF CORK SHAVINGS OR CLIPPINGS SHOULD BE QUILTED INTO HIS JACKET ABOUT THE COLLAR AND THE NECK, BETWEEN THE OUTSIDE AND INSIDE LINING, OR AS A BELT, OF CONSIDERABLE BREADTH ACROSS THE BACK AND THE SHOULDERS, THEN PRINCIPALLY OMITTED UNDER THE ARMS, AND RESUMED OVER THE CHEST AND STOMACH, YET NOT SO MUCH AS TO CREATE INCONVENIENCE. IF IN THESE, AND OTHER PARTS OF THE DRESS, SO MUCH CORK COULD COMMODIOUSLY BE WORKED, AS WOULD GIVE THE SAILOR AN OPPORTUNITY OF RECOVERING HIMSELF, AND MAKING USE OF HIS OWN POWERS IN CASES OF CONTINGENCY, MAY BE VALUABLE; LIVES MIGHT BE SAVED."
"AS FOR THE CREATIONS OF LIFE BOATS AND THE 1806 OF THE ROYAL HUMANE SOCIETY, THE MEN WHO MANNED THESE BOATS, "THE SUCCESS ATTENDING THIS EXPEDIENT FOR DIMINISHING THE NUMBER OF UNHAPPY INDIVIDUALS ALMOST DAILY LOST IN A WATER GRAVE, APEARS TO HAVE BEEN MORE THAN EQUAL TO THE MOST SANGUINE EXPECTATIONS FORMED OF ITS UTILITY; AND THE GREAT OBJECT IN VIEW, THE SAFETY OF THOSE PERSONS WHO HAZARD HEIR OWN SECURITY TO PRESERVE OTHERS, HAS BEEN FULL ACCOMPLISHED."
THE REALITY IS, MANY SAILORS AND PASSENGERS WHO FELL OVERBOARD, IF THEY WEREN'T DROWNED IMMEDIATELY; HAVING BEEN PULLED UNDER THE VESSEL IN PASSAGE, OR SINKING, PERISHED AS A RESULT OF HYPOTHERMIA FROM THE COLD WATER. EVEN DURING THE SECOND WORLD WAR, CREWS WERE NOT PROPERLY TRAINED, ON HOW TO HANDLE THE CRITICAL EXERCISE OF WARMING VICTIMS SLOWLY. MY FATHER HELPED RESCUE MANY SAILORS FROM THE ATLANTIC OCEAN AFTER THEIR SHIPS HAD BEEN SUNK BY U-BOATS (MERCHANT SHIPS ESPECIALLY), AND MANY ARRIVED ON BOARD ALIVE, ONLY TO PERISH AT THE HANDS OF THEIR RESCUERS, WHO WARMED THEM TOO FAST WITH BLANKETS. SO IT WASN'T JUST DEATH BY DROWNING, IN THE FORMER DAYS OF SAILING THE SEVEN SEAS, BUT FROM THE RAVAGES OF HYPOTHERMIA.
THERE ARE NO STATISTICS OF WHICH I'M FAMILIAR, ABOUT HOW MANY EMIGRANTS, FROM THE MID 1800'S, AND CREWMEN PERISHED, IN PASSAGE ACROSS THE ATLANTIC, BOTH FROM DROWNING AND ILLNESS, BUT SUFFICE TO SAY, IT WAS A LARGE NUMBER. AND AS FAR AS PRECAUTIONS FOR THE CREW OF THESE SHIPS, THE REALITY IS, IN ADDITION, THAT ANYTHING THAT COST THE SHIP'S OWNER MONEY, AS AN IMPROVEMENT TO CONDITIONS, WAS FAR DOWN THE LIST OF ABSOLUTE NEEDS. SAILORS WOULD HAVE TOLD A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT STORY, ABOUT THE CONDITIONS ONBOARD, THE SCHOONERS AND STEAMBOATS....WHICH IN FACT, WERE MUCH LESS SUBSTANDARD THAN CAPTAIN COOK HAD ADVISED FOR HIS OWN SHIP AND CREW.
THANKS SO MUCH FOR JOINING TODAY'S BLOG ABOUT LIFE ON THE HIGH SEAS, FACED BY OUR ANCESTORS, COMING TO THE PROMISED LAND.
WARNING; IN TOMORROW'S BLOG WE'LL REVISIT THIS SAME 1862 TEXT, TO LOOK AT THE WAY SOME SERIOUS INJURIES WERE DEALT WITH, ON SHIP AND ON LAND (PIONEER FARMSTEADS).....EVEN IN THE BATTLEFIELD, SOME REQUIRING AMPUTATION. BUT THIS IS WHAT OUR FAMILIES HAD TO ENDURE WHEN OTHER MEDICAL SERVICES WERE UNAVAILABLE.....AND THIS WAS FREQUENT. SO AS FAR AS PAIN AND SUFFERING, IT IS PART OF OUR FAMILY HISTORY....SO IT DOESN'T HURT (GET IT), TO REVISIT THESE DAYS FROM TIME TO TIME....TO SEE JUST HOW MUCH WAS ENDURED TO CARRY ON WITH EMIGRATION HARDSHIPS, WORK AND THE HOMESTEAD LIFESTYLE.....AND WHAT WE HAVE TO BE THANKFUL ABOUT, BEING SO MANY GENERATIONS REMOVED. SEEING AS WE HANDLE THEIR RELICS TODAY, IN OUR ANTIQUE SHOPS AND PRIVATE COLLECTIONS, PONDERING HOW AND WHERE THEY WERE UTILIZED, SUCH AS EARLY MEDICAL INSTRUMENTS FOR THE SURGEON, WE SHOULD HAVE A GREATER APPRECIATION FOR THE WAY IN WHICH THEY WERE USED.....AND THE MEDICINES PRESCRIBED TO PROMOTE RECOVERY. AS THEY SAY, NO PAIN NO GAIN. OBVIOUSLY, WE HAVE GAINED A LOT OVER THE DECADES, BUT MANY OF THE YOUNGER GENERATION HAVE LITTLE IDEA HOW IT WAS IN THE BEGINNING....AND HOW THEIR OWN FAMILY CHRONICLE WAS RIDDLED WITH TRAGEDY AND HARDSHIP, OF WHICH THEY HAVEN'T A CLUE ABOUT....LARGELY BECAUSE IT HAS NEVER BEEN EXPLAINED TO THEM.
I OVERHEARD A CONVERSATION, FROM A CUSTOMER RECENTLY, WHO WAS COMPLAINING ABOUT A DAUGHTER, WHO HAD A GENERAL DISLIKE FOR ANTIQUES ASSORTED. WHEN IT WAS POINTED OUT BY THE GIRL'S MOTHER, HOW MUCH DELICATE WORK WAS INVOLVED, FOR EXAMPLE, MAKING THE HANDCRAFTED LACE TABLE CLOTHS, WHICH WE SELL, THE YOUNG LADY RETORTED, THAT IT WAS MUCH EASIER FOR THEM (OLDER GENERATION) BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T HAVE JOBS TO GO TO....LIKE THE MODERN POPULATION. THUSLY, AND STERNLY, IT WAS EXPLAINED, THAT FOR HER FAMILY, WORKING ON A FARM, MEANT ENDLESS DAYS, ENDLESS TASKS, PLANTING, MAINTAINING, HARVESTING, PRESERVING, AND COOKING, WHILE LOOKING AFTER THE HOUSE AND RAISING A FAMILY. SO INDEED, WORKING ON A LACE TABLE CLOTH WOULD HAVE ONLY BEEN FIT IN, EDGE-WISE, YOU MIGHT SAY, IN A BURDENED LIFESTYLE, HONED COINCIDENTALLY TO MAKE LIFE BETTER FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS. WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THOSE YOUNGER GENERATIONS FORGET ABOUT THE DEGREES OF ADVANCEMENT, WE'VE ACHIEVED OVER THE PAST TWO CENTURIES? WELL, WE GET PEOPLE WHO DON'T APPRECIATE THE BASICS OF SURVIVAL.....LIKE PUTTING FROZEN FOOD FROM A FREEZER IN SEALED CONTAINERS, OUT OF DOORS, WHEN THE HYDRO GOES OFF FOR EXTENDED PERIODS IN THE WINTER MONTHS. I COULDN'T BELIEVE WHAT I WAS WATCHING ON TELEVISION, IN NEWS COVERAGE OF THE RECENT ICE STORM, SHOWING PEOPLE THROWING OUT ALL THAT WAS IN THEIR SEALED FREEZERS, AFTER ONLY THREE DAYS WITHOUT ELECTRICITY. MUCH OF WHAT I SAW, APPEARED TO BE ROCK HARD, AND COULD HAVE BEEN SUPPLEMENTED WITH BAGS OF ICE FROM OUTDOORS, PLACED IN THOSE FREEZERS, OR TRANSFERRED IN SEALED CONTAINERS, TO BE KEPT COOL OUTSIDE. THIS IS WHERE SOME HOMESTEAD SKILLS WOULD HAVE BEEN QUITE APPROPRIATE, AND ECONOMICAL, INSTEAD OF WATCHING SO MUCH UNNECESSARY WASTE. HOME ECONOMICS? I MARRIED A HOME ECONOMICS TEACHER. I CAN'T TELL YOU HOW MANY TIMES SUZANNE AND I HAVE COMPLAINED ABOUT ITS LESSER ROLE IN HIGH SCHOOL. WHAT'S WRONG WITH OUR PROVINCE? WHAT'S WRONG WITH OUR EDUCATION SYSTEM, WHEN A COURSE SO IMPORTANT TO OUR GENERAL WELL BEING, IS CONSIDERED A WASTE OF TIME AND MONEY. I'LL TELL YOU WHAT IS A WASTE OF MONEY? THROWING OUT FROZEN FOOD LONG BEFORE THERE IS THE SLIGHTEST POSSIBILITY OF FOOD SPOILAGE. NOW IF THEY WOULD HAVE HAD TAKEN A HOME ECONOMICS COURSE, OR HAD PARENTS AND GRANDPARENTS FROM A FARMING BACKGROUND, THEY WOULD HAVE FOUND AN ALTERNATIVE TO THROWING
OUT SO MUCH FOOD.....SO SOON AFTER THE STORM. WE'VE SURVIVED A LOT OF POWER OUTAGES, EVEN IN THE SUMMER, AND HAVE ONLY THROWN OUT A FEW ITEMS, THAT WERE CLOSE TO THEIR EXPIRY DAY ANY WAY.
WITH THE NATURAL CALAMITIES OCCURRING FREQUENTLY, ON A WIDE SCALE, AND EXPECTED TO ACCELERATE IN THE FUTURE, WE ALL NEED TO KNOW MORE ABOUT SURVIVAL STRATEGIES. IT WOULD HAVE BEEN HELPFUL, IF THE MEDIA, COVERING THE RECENT ICE STORM, HAD GIVEN A BETTER PROFILE, AND HEALTH MINISTRY ADVISORIES, VIA THE PRINT MEDIA, OR PUBLIC MEETINGS, TO HELP THOSE WITHOUT POWER, UNDERSTAND WHAT IS SAFE PRACTICE, AND WHAT CAN BE DONE TO SAVE FROZEN FOOD. HERE I AM RANTING AGAIN, BUT THIS TIME IT'S NOT ABOUT POLITICS. IT'S ABOUT HOME ECONOMY. SIMPLE, EFFECTIVE HOME ECONOMY.
SEE YOU AGAIN TOMORROW.
No comments:
Post a Comment