Hard Tack: The Sailor's Saltine Cracker?

This weekend I decided to make some hard tack, in an effort to better understand the harsh diet that poor sailors of the 18th Century had to endure. Just one of the awful staples, though probably "wholesome" none-the-less, was hard tack. It is quite simple to make:

2 cups flour
1 cup water
pinch of salt (or use a cup of sea water if you find yourself out on the ocean!)

Combine the ingredients, knead the dough a bit, roll out thinly on a floured surface. Cut into squares or rounds. Prick with fork tines, and bake for about 25 minutes at 350o. Then let dry on a baking sheet. Actually, I rolled mine out on corn meal, just to be different. The recipe yields about two dozen.

Well, to say they are tasty would be a great lie. To say they are easy to eat...that would be another. To say they are basic food. Yes, I guess you could say that! (And they last FOREVER). I actually had a couple for breakfast this am, though I improved them with honey and some almond butter. I must say, they look nice (see below), but would I proudly serve them to friends and family? I should think not!!!

It's Friday, and the weekend and all its possibilities loom! But, before I call it a day at my desk, I am putting out a small request! I would LOVE to hear from my blog followers! Tell me what you think. Do you enjoy my posts? Would you like to read about something in particular? I would be happy to oblige!

With great thanks to those who do follow! I'd love to know who you are!

A Pox on You!

Yesterday I spoke about the surgeons at sea, their training and their pharmacuticals. I was on-line later and saw an interesting article about a English woman in the 18th Century who can be credited with helping with the eradication of small pox through vaccination!

Her name is lady Mary Wortley Montagu, who lived from 1689-1762. She was a beauty for her time, daughter of the Duke of Kingston, she was a writer, a "feminist", and a socialite. She was to be married to another, but eloped and married Lord Edward Wortley Montagu in 1712,  and had a son in 1713.
She and the child accompanied her husband to Constantinople,Turkey where he was appointed ambassador.
In December of 1715, she contracted small pox, and it ruined her good looks, leaving her without eyelashes, and a deeply pitted skin.

In Turkey, she learned Turkish, and made friends, and learned the customs. She witnessed the practice of inoculation, which she called "engrafting", the use of live smallpox virus taken from a smallpox blister from a mild case of the disease, scratched onto a well person. She had her own son inoculated with the process. Back home, in London, though she was enthusiastic about the procedure, she encountered resistance from the medical establishment because she was a woman, and because of where the procedure was being performed.

Mary was able to get some prisoners to undergo the procedure, and they lived.In 1722, King George I allowed a doctor she knew to inoculated two of his grandchildren! They lived as well. Later on, cow pox was used, but she was indeed a pioneer, and we can thank her for her effort! Shown below, in her Turkish style, which was very avant garde.

Under the Weather

For the past couple days, I've suffered the dreaded effects of lower-back pain. Things are improving, but I wouldn't wish it on anyone. Generally, I'm one for home/natural remedies, or waiting out the storm; I don't like taking the strong, "aleve-ing" type of pain relievers. I don't mind some "Wonder Drug" (Bayer aspirin), but most often, I carry on, trying to get some rest as I can, and keep on keepin' on.

Currrently, I am reading Rough Medicine: Surgeons at Sea in the Age of Sail by Joan Druett. It's an interesting account of life at sea for medical men during the 1700's and early 1800's. Actually, the father of modern medicine in this regard is John Woodall, who lived in the 1500's. He actually catagorized medicines (herbal to chemical), and brought the idea of surgery to an actual profession. Before that time, if you needed to be cut, you went to a barber!

But by the 18th Century, men who called themselves doctors actually had to undergo some certifiable training, actually getting a license, and serving an apprenticeship or internship in order to gain enough experience to hang a shingle, as it were. They got the designation of L.S.P. for Licensed Society of Pharmacologists, as well as M.R.C.S., Member of the Royal College of Surgeons.

A particular way to gain  medical experience was by becoming a surgeon/physician on board one of the sailing ships, i.e., whaler, man-of-war, clipper ship, etc. for a 6 month to year-long voyage. You would certainly encounter all kinds of ailments, injuries, need to dispense pharmacopia, or hack off an arm or leg for the duration. Of course, you were provided room (though cramped) and board (often hardtack, dried peas, stew of salted meat). This would which certainly was helpful for a starving medical student. You also got the opportunity to see the world! A wonderful chance to see exotic places. The area set aside for surgery was generally on the orlop deck, one above the bilge, and it was very small indeed. But, it did have a skylight!

But in reading this very informative book, I am aghast at some of the particular remedies and pharmacuticals that were being used in the 1700's. Of course, opium and laudanum were used to dull pain, set up someone for a surgical procedure, but the herbs and other "delights" are out of this world. I guess you could call ground pearls somewhat like calcium. I guess certain very dangerous and poisonous leaves and herbs like nightshade and baneberry (at left), or dropwort/hemlock (at right) could be an effective purge if used sparingly. Alot of this was trial and error. Plasters of mercury ointments were applied, and of course, there was the bleedings. I often think perhaps if they helped lower blood pressure, by loss of blood as a whole, maybe someone might feel better. Who knows? Though bleedings were for relieving the body of ill humors. I love that term.

Makes me glad I only have a backache! Ha ha!

These Plates are giving me The Blues!

My daughter is an enthusiastic collector of fine china, recently purchasing some Blue Canton (at left). We were talking about the wonderful blue Chinese porcelains, which also include the Willow Pattern. Then, I was reminded of the Willow Ware that I had, put up somewhere high in my kitchen cabinets!
I forgot how lovely they were. I have 6 dinner plates, and I should start putting them to good use.

I looked into the Willow pattern, and found they were designed by Thomas Minton around 1790, and they have been in use for over 200 years now!  Minton lived from 1765-1836, a noted English potter, founding Minton and Sons in Staffordshire in 1793, which grew into a major factory with international reputation. He mostly produced domestic tableware in blue transfer printed or painted.

By the way, the Blue Willow has an interesting marketing story, which you can see on http://dressedintime.blogspot.com! Check it out!

Porcelains from China were always in high demand in Europe, but importing them was pricey. In the 18th Century, the demand began to wane, and by the second half of the century, the trade was in serious decline. The English, as well as the new Colonists, began making their own, using designs from the Orient, with an English flare. The Colonists took the idea a step forward, using the blue along with American themes, including maritime. People were happy to purchase these exotic dining ware, at reasonable, domestic prices.

But, while production was being churned out in China, their factories were booming! Above is an interesting print that can be found in the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, MA. I visited there last Fall, and saw their wonderful exhibit (part of the permanent collection) of Asian porcelains.

This print shows the factory workers packing the plates, utilizing straw baling. In the Peabody, you can see one of the bales (about 2' long x 12" wide), left unopened, that has been x-ray'd. Inside you can see the cups and saucers stacked, one after the other. Today, I guess we would use bubble-wrap!

 

What Capability!

With the weather turning, affording bright blue, cloudless skies and moderate weather, it is time to give some thought to gardening, and planning what will be outside on my small, but pleasant, balcony this season. When the weather is mild, and refreshing, I like to take breakfast outside, listening to the birds sing, and the day begin. On these evenings, before our desert sun becomes too incredibly strong, prohibiting dining alfresco, I like to relax out there and enjoy dinner and a nice glass of red, or a good, single-malt scotch over a little pure water ice. Ahh!

Looking forward to these tranquil, simple delights, I remember the English Garden of the 18th Century, and its author, Lancelot "Capability" Brown (shown above). He was born in August 1716 and lived until 1783. He was a true landscape architect, known as "England's Greatest Gardener", his nickname coming from his fondness for speaking of a country estate as having great "capability" for improvement. He was certainly capable, indeed, and remembered for his prolific 170 count of parks, which still endure.

In 1739 he was commissioned to design a new lake for a park in Kiddington Hall, in Oxford, then he moved on to Buckinghamshire, where he joined the gardening staff at Stowe. There he married a local girl, and had the first four of his children.

He was sought after as his reputation grew for gardening excellence, and eventually, he designed for the Churchill family's gorgeous Blenheim Palace estate as well a the Chatworth House in the Peaks District, in Derbyshire. Above is shown Blenheim's lovely rose garden.

Mazes were an atractive addition to any huge estate, and in the picture above, you can see the one he designed at the Chatsworth House, that was owned by the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire. I have visited Chatsworth, and it is a site to see. I took tea in the garden there with my daughter. Sitting back, enjoying some English Breakfast, and little cakes, I fondly remember the time together there as relaxing and thoroughly enjoyable.

Brown's style of smooth undulating grass among scattered trees and serpentine lakes lends less formality, and a more natural approach to the garden, working with nature as opposed to making plants and trees conform to the space. I think that is why this style is so pleasing; it is organized, without appearing so.

World Trade Center Discovery!

With all the hub-bub about the 100th Anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, I got to thinking about what 18th Century ship of note may have sunk in an unusual way. Of course, there were many, hundreds in fact, sunk in battles, but what others?

Researching a bit, I found a very interesting story!                         

In 2010, while excavating the World Trade Center site for the new building to be erected (in due time), the remnants of a 30-foot length of wood-hulled vessels was discovered about 20-30 feet below the street level! It is the first such large-scale archaological find along the Manhattan waterfront since 1982, when another 18th century cargo ship was unearthed.


This new find dates to about mid-1700's, and has not been disturbed for more than 200 years! Archaeologists hurried to the site, not only because of the importance of this discovery, but because now that the timber was exposed to the air, it could begin deteriorating immediately. Currently, pieces of pottery have been found (at left) and even a shoe (below)!

An old map from 1797 shows that the excavation site is close to Lindsey's Wharf, that projected into the Hudson River. A name is not currently known for this vessel, but it's probably only a matter of time, when records are researched indicating ships harbored in the area. Then, we might know what happened to this ship and its crew. A mystery to be uncovered!