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Carpal Tunnel
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My stuff has nothing whatsoever to do with the internet. It is all factual history as researched and offered as part of the interpretations at the historic village where I work. As I pointed out, some of these things evolved over the centuries, not just in the 1500's, especially the bathing customs after people decided to start going back into the tub, from the late 1700's to the mid 1800'S. So I'd have to say many of the "debunkings" on the debunking site are debunked! What's their source? I didn't spend my time writing this out as a lark. The Reshaping of Everyday Life, 1790-1840, by Jack Larkin, Director of Research, Collections, and Library at Old Sturbridge Village, one of the country's foremost outdoor living history museums located at Sturbridge, Massachusetts, will corroborate much of this information.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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My stuff has nothing whatsoever to do with the internet.
Therefore it must be true.
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Joined: Dec 2000
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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According to Robert Graves the June wedding thing went back to the Romans or before and the Romans were *real good about baths. It had something to do with the prejudices of one aspect or another of the Goddess.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Weddings in May were supposed to be particulary unlucky. Seems like the closer to the bath you got the better off you'd be and May would be better than June.
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Carpal Tunnel
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OP
Carpal Tunnel
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Well, it appears that at least the definition of threshold holds good, so to speak.
But as I said, I offered the list without comment.
The idiot also known as Capfka ...
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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People get married in June
This year's June is next year's Junior.
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Joined: Aug 2001
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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tomatoes they stopped eating them for 400 years.Though I will abstain from general debunkery, the recent interest in food-postings suggest that the history of the tomato may be of interest: http://www.learnaboutfood.com/article1011.html
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Carpal Tunnel
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In the 1700's Europeans were still afraid to even swim, and picture our USn "Founding Fathers," Franklin and Washington, in those hot clothes never dousing for a full-bodied wash. Do not denigrate my man Franklin  , who was an excellent swimmer. (He is also credited with inventing swim fins.) Chapter V of his autobiography merits quote at length: At Watts's printing-house I contracted an acquaintance with an ingenious young man, one Wygate, who, having wealthy relations, had been better educated than most printers ... I taught him and a friend of his to swim at twice going into the river, and they soon became good swimmers. They introduc'd me to some gentlemen from the country, who went to Chelsea by water to see the College and Don Saltero's curiosities. In our return, at the request of the company, whose curiosity Wygate had excited, I stripped and leaped into the river, and swam from near Chelsea to Blackfryar's, performing on the way many feats of activity, both upon and under water, that surpris'd and pleas'd those to whom they were novelties.
I had from a child been ever delighted with this exercise, had studied and practis'd all Thevenot's motions and positions, added some of my own, aiming at the graceful and easy as well as the useful. All these I took this occasion of exhibiting to the company, and was much flatter'd by their admiration ...
...
On one of these days, I was, to my surprise, sent for by a great man I knew only by name, a Sir William Wyndham, and I waited upon him. He had heard by some means or other of my swimming from Chelsea to Blackfriar's, and of my teaching Wygate and another young man to swim in a few hours.
He had two sons, about to set out on their travels; he wish'd to have them first taught swimming, and proposed to gratify me handsomely if I would teach them. ... I could not undertake it; but, from this incident, I thought it likely that, if I were to remain in England and open a swimming-school, I might get a good deal of money; and it struck me so strongly, that, had the overture been sooner made me, probably I should not so soon have returned to America. After many years, you and I had something of more importance to do with one of these sons of Sir William Wyndham, become Earl of Egremont, which I shall mention in its place.
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Carpal Tunnel
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at least the definition of threshold holds good
Not according to ASp's snopes link.
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Carpal Tunnel
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swimming
Yes, perhaps Franklin was a poor choice as he was a health fanatic, who did invent the "air bath," and was also noted for his penchant for insisting on opening the windows for fresh air when he slept. This always caused problems when he was sharing a bed at an inn, because most folks then were paranoid of drafts (not to mention insects). Remember, this was the late 1700's, and some European folks were venturing back into the water, especially in the US where they saw that the swimming and bathing habits of the indigenous people caused no ill affects. As noted in your citation, Keiva, swimming was quite a novelty then, and Franklin could've made a fortune opening a swimming school on the European continent. Found this on the International Naturists Site
http://clothesfree.com:
Benjamin Franklin, U. S. statesman and inventor and --John Adams, U. S. President Franklin, would you believe, was a practicing 18th century nudist! He took his "air baths" by sitting in the buff in front of an open window. President Adams regularly swam nude in the Potomac river. Anne Royall, a journalist, heard of Adam's early morning skinny dips. After being refused interviews with the President several times, she
went to the river, gathered his clothes and sat on them until he agreed to speak to her. Before this, no woman journalist had ever interviewed a president. (Way to go, Annie!)
Also this, from the IEEE History Center site:
Benjamin Franklin's Work in London, 1757-1775, 36 Craven Street
Franklin, considered one of the founders of modern Physics, was already a famous scientist when he arrived at Craven Street in 1757. He resided there for 16 years.
In the room behind his parlor, Franklin constructed a laboratory for his research. Here he continued his
electrical experiments. He proved that electricity has a positive and a negative charge, invented an improved generator and storage batteries. Franklin had proved that lightning is electrical. He had flown metal-tipped kites during thunderstorms and "captured the fire of heaven". He continued these experiments, sending kites aloft along the Thames during thunderstorms. By experimenting with different metals and shapes he was able to perfect his famous lightning rod conductor. This was such a success that Lightning Rods were placed on St. Jame's Palace (greatly to the annoyance of George III) and on the other great State buildings, churches and cathedrals in London.
At Craven Street, Franklin perfected his famous Stove, which is still in wide use today. It burns its own smoke and saves fuel.
During a hot London summer Franklin invented the Air Bath, the forerunner of Air Conditioning.
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