Mission

As I was out walking this morning, musing on this and that I got to thinking about the way people dress today, particularly when you compare older folks with younger ones. If you were re-enacting this era in some distant time, you might look at a picture of a rapper and decide that people wore their pants on their hips, possibly with their boxers poking out the top and offensive t-shirts. The aged rarely dress like this (that I've noticed) and seem often to resort to comfortable clothes, mostly non-descript slacks, sweaters and collared shirts. Which all leads me to wonder... wouldn't there have been variences in clothing amongst folks of different ages and stations in life? (By which I do not mean different classes, which we have pretty well established to be the case.) As folks got older, I would think they would tend to worry less about what they congnoscienti are wearing in court and more about what works best and wears easiest. A lot of the drawings I've seen seem to focus on the younger, higher classes. But what might a regular, older, less-fashion conscious person wear?

Oh, a lot of people seem to like the look. I can think of three very good reenactor friends who wear them and carry them off quite well. For some reason I think they look sort of clunky (and thus dorky). Plus they seem flashy to me - which is something I typically eschew. I respect GOF tremendously, but I care damn all for shoes other than that they be as comfortable as possible and accurate to period. I certainly don't want people staring at my feet when they could be admiring Michael Bagley's excellent hand-stitch work on my waistcoat button-holes. (If they feel the need to stare at my kit at all, that is.) Plus it's been so dreadfully slow around here, I thought I'd throw some opinions out there that might stir debate.

You hate me. (Actually 18th century fashion hates me.) Stupid knee pants.

Really? I'd have voted for him. He has all those green handbills out there with his picture on 'em...

Here's one to set the heart cross-ways in ya'. I throwing some paragraph breaks in to make it a bit more readable. "Their [the residents of Zuakin] Religion is still Paganism, tho' they don't worship Images. They shew outward Civility to Europeans, but kill them, and feast on their Flesh, when any are unfortunately shipwrack'd on their Coast. At first they shew a seeming Humanity, allowing them a convenient Place to lodge in, with Plenty of animal Food to eat, and sometimes entertain them with their Musick, and then destroy the fattest, as they have Occasion to feast on them, an Instance whereof I have from a Missionary at Mocha in Anno 1712, viz. A Turkish Galley bound from Mossava to Judda in Arabia felix, had on board about 20 European Turks, and one Italian Priest, as Passenger; that Galley was drove ashore on the Coast of Zuakin by a Storm, the Galley was lost, but all the Men got safe ashore, and found the abovementioned Entertainment. They had not been long ashore, till some People of Distinction visited them, and seemed to condole their Misfortune, but withal, told them in Arabick, that the King had a great Desire to see some of them, and they chose the youngest and plumpest of the Turks to shew to the King, who very willingly went away with them, but none came back to bring News how they were entertained at Court, and every fourth or fifth Day, another of the best favoured and best fleshed were carried from their Comrades, on the same, or such like Errand till near one Half were carried away, those that remained had no Suspicion, but were lulled asleep by the good Words, __ and good Treatment they received daily. But one Day, an Abasine, who had fled his Country for some Misdemeanour, came to visit them, and, in Discourse, they told him how courteously they had been entertained by the hospitable Natives, and how many of their Company had gone to the King, but that none returned. The Abasine told them, that they were treated after the common Custom of that Country, that when any white Men were shipwrack'd on their Coast, they found such Treatment as they had, to make them fat, and the to kill and eat them, by cutting such Morsels of the Body as they had present Occasion for, and kept Life as long in the poor Victim as they could, and that very Morning a Janisary [Footnote 19: Janissaries were Turkish soldiers, recruited when boys from Christian communities and brought up as Muslims. They were trained as the elite troops of the Ottoman Army.] had been carried on the aforesaid Errand, and had one Leg cut off, and the Half of a Thigh, and he saw them rosting and broiling the Flesh as he happened to pass in his Way to visit them, and told the disconsolate Turks that remained, that if one or two would accompany him a little Way in the Evening, he would convince them of the Truth of what he had told them, but they must immediately after return to their Lodging, The Priest was one that went to behold the sad Spectacle, whom they found not quite dead, tho speechless, on which the Abasine went speedily away, as the others did to acquaint their Fellows of what they had seen. As soon as they made their Report, they were under the greatest Consternation, and unanimously resolved to flee to the Woods that very same Night, and trust the wild Inhabitants rather than the crueller Beasts, the Zuakins." (Hamilton, p. 38-9)

"It was reported in India, that Commodore Littleton had some of that Gang on board the Anglesey at Madagascar, but, for some valuable Reasons, he let them go again, and because they found Difficulty in cleaning the Bottoms of their large Ships, he generously assisted them with large Blocks and Tackle-falls for careening them. Whether these reports were true or false, I will not undertake to determine, but I saw a Pirate at Bengal, in the French Company's Service, that affirmed it. Madagascar is invironed with Islands and dangerous Sholes, both of Rocks and Sand. St Mary's, on the East Side, is the Place where the Pirates first chose for their Asylum, having a good Harbour to secure them from the Weather, tho' in going in there are some Difficulties, but hearing that Squadrons of English Ships were come in Quest of them, they removed to the main Island for more Security, and there they have made themselves free Denizons by Marriage: And I am of the Opinion, that it will be no easy Matter to dispossess them In Anno 1722 Mr Matthews went in Quest of them, but found they had deserted the Island of St Mary's, leaving behind some Marks of their Robberies, for in some Places they found Pepper a Foot thick, lying on the Ground in the open Air. The __ Commodore aforesaid went with his Squadron over to the main Island, but the Pirates had carried their Ships into Rivers or Creeks, out of Danger of the men of War, and to offer to burn them with their Boats, would have been impracticable, since they could have easily distressed the Boats Crews out of the Woods. The Commodore had some Discourse with some of them, but they stood on their Guard, ready to defend themselves, if any Violence had been offered them." (Hamilton, p. 28-9)

Would a sea-surgeon have worn trousers?

Captain Alexander Hamilton (no, not the president) wrote a book of his exploits in the East Indies called A New Account of the East Indies in which he talks about pirates, although not by name as far as I've read. It covers his travels in the years 1683 to 1723. The books is kind of hard to find, so I thought I'd reprint some of the interesting stuff I come across that is relevant to our sport. The first is kind of funny, IMO. In fact it was partially quoted in a modern medical article on sea surgery and is what first led me to this book. "There have been several Squadrons of British Men of War sent to cruize on the Pirates [on Madagascar], but have had very ill Success in finding them out, but one Scots Ship commanded by one Millar, did the Publick more Service in destroying them, than all the chargeable Squadrons that have been sent in Quest of them, for, with a Cargo of strong Ale and Brandy, which he carried to sell them, in Anno 1704 he killed above 500 of them by carousing, tho' they took his Ship and Cargo as a Present from him, and his men entred, most of them, into the Society of the Pirates." (Hamilton, p. 28)

Wow, that's fascinating! I can't imagine you've even scratched the surface, given that many stolen cargoes were not reported in detail, if at all, but still... I have four citations where medicine chests are either being taken or extorted. Small in percentage, but interesting that half of them are demands made by pirates with prisoners from those on land: Blackbeard [cited in Johnson] and Low [cited in Ashton].

Is this because they wore them in the Navy? Who all wore trousers at this time? Merchant seamen wore slops, correct? I do not rely on photos from period to be accurate in depicting someone or some object as I have noted in the past. However, the styles should be relatively accurate. As for the musket, I was curious about it because it sort of looks like a walking stick when the pic is small. (In fact, that is what I thought it was until I was looking at that huge photo. If you look at the small version, it almost seems like there is a knob at the top, such as a walking stick might have.) Blackbeard with a walking stick would be rather absurd, but then so would his fey expression and hand gesture.

I was posting photos of period drawings of pirates in the thread on buckle shoes, one of which was this one: According to Wikipedia Commons, it was first published in 1736 in the General History. (I'm assuming that they're right, of course.) It makes BB look a bit like a silly ass, but I have some questions about it since it's pretty close to period. 1. Why is he wearing long pants? I didn't think that was the style at all. The guys in the background aren't... 2. What is he holding in his right hand? It looks a little like rifle, but then it doesn't. (If you want to really see it, click on the picture and it will be blown up to absurd dimensions.)

Yeah, if that's what speaks to you, you should get them. (My silly opinion notwithstanding. ) Sounds like you'll have to wait, though.

And don't tell Black Bart that. God knows what he'll do to you. Or Howell Davis And then there's Blackbeard...

Ah, get round-toed. Square-toed shoes look überdorky. IMHO, (In Mission's Humble Opinion) (Maybe not being so humble in this case.)

If I had my DVD with me, I'd screen capture Sheldon photographing his scrambled eggs and post it here. Alas. "Okay, I'll let you get back to fixing your eggs." "I’m not just fixing my eggs, I’m fixing everyone’s eggs." "And we all thank you."

Interesting. As there is a discussion going on over in the Sewing Room about belts and suspenders, I was wondering if sashes would be used to hold up breeches. It would appear that they are just a fashion accessory, however. I also note that none of these photos are of common seamen, which is what most pirates would be. Sure, pirates may have stolen sashes from passengers on ships they took, but would they wear such a thing when it served no purpose and would likely get in the way of performing regular ship's duties? (Not to mention battle.)

Ah, here are some other random period quotes related to sleeping. "The length and roughness of the track, and the time I spent looking for plants delayed us, so we slept in the woods under an ajoupa of balisier leaves which we made very quickly. (Pierre Labat, The Memoirs of Pére Labat 1693-1705, p. 94) “Though no one can accuse me of being a bad sailor, it was so rough that I could not get a wink of sleep, and besides this my mattress was soon soaked with water as we were constantly swept by the waves from stern to stem. I sat down on the poop wrapped in my hood and lashed by the middle with a strong rope to the stern very much like a monkey, lest I should be washed overboard.” (Labat, p. 233) "...but the Boatswain and Quarter-Masters of every ship be enjoined to cause the landmen to keep above the decks and in the open air in all fair weather in the daytime; and when it is foul and raining, that they be held below betwixt the decks, that so they may keep their clothes dry; for there is nothing more unwholesome at sea than to sleep in wet clothes, the which being once wet these soldiers must needs undergo, for they have seldom any shift to change withal.” (Nathaniel Boteler [butler], Boteler’s Dialogues, p. 62) "One night after he was cured of his Wound, lying asleep in his Hammock, he was wakened by the wet he felt upon his Breast and Belly..." (Richard Wiseman, Of Wounds, Severall Chirurgicall Treatises, p. 438) "...yea, often (we) were called up before we had slept half an hour and forced to go up into the maintop or foretop to take in our topsails, half awake and half asleep, with one shoe on and the other off, not having time to put it on; always sleeping in our clothes for readiness;" (Barlow, p. 162) “Abundance of mosquitoes and sand-flies hindered our rest, to remedy which we digged holes in the sand, got some grass and laid it therein to to lie upon, in order to cover ourselves from the flies, which most of us did; but it being extreme cold, and firing scarce, we had little comfort.” (Dickinson, Johathan Dickison's Journal or God's Protecting Providence, p. 20) Here's one to start some conjecture for ya': “[1705] Whilst we were at this Island of Amboyna, we were so much troubled with Moskitoes, (which are a sort of Gnats,) that every Night we were forced to put our selves in a Bag, before we could go to sleep; for otherwise these Creatures would so bite us, that there was no sleeping:” (William Funnell, A Voyage Round the World, p. 270) My guess would be that he's talking about a canvas bag, but who know? Of course, his description makes the bag idea sound a bit fantastic, suggesting this was an unusual way of sleeping. Didn't someone once post around here about straw-filled mattresses?

They made tents. Somewhere (in Dampier's book I believe) the creation of a tent by wrapping canvas around poles is mentioned. I've quoted on the site here before, but it's not in my notes because that particular part wasn't related to medicine. Here are several that are. "This Morning we clear’d up Ship, and bent our Sails, and got them ashore to mend, and make Tents for our Sick Men." (Woodes Rogers, Cruising Voyage Round the World, p. 74) “In the Bay where we rid, clear’d a Place in the Woods right ashore, to build Tents for our sick Men, Sail-makers, Smiths and Coopers., which, when up, look’d like a small Village, and our Men call’d it Little Bristol.” (Edward Cooke, Voyage to the South Sea and Round the World in the Years 1708 to 1711, p. 2) “[1670] So the next day we put our sick men on shore, and our casks for water; and making a tent there, our cooper fitted them on shore, and the sick men lay in the tent, and having good refreshing [from scurvy], recovered their health apace.” (Edward Barlow, Barlow’s Journal of his Life at Sea in King’s Ships, East and West Indiamen & Other Merchantman, p. 184) As for their covering, blankets were in use at this time and warm clothes could be worn. (Again, the only reference I have are medical, but here is one prescription for Sweating as a medical cure.) "But when you are doing this [sweating a patient to remove bad humors], you must have ready Flannel Stockins, Drawers, Shirt and Wastcoat, as likewise Flannel Muffler and Cap, for the body must be kept exceeding warm, (which soever way you Salivate.) Then the Patient must be laid in Flannel Sheets, and covered well, the Room or Cabbin must be hung about with warm hangings, that no cold come in; and if there were a small pot or pan of Fire in the Cabbin, it were so much the better." (John Moyle, Chirurgius Marinus: Or, the Sea-Chirurgeon, p. 148) So I would guess they lay on the ground covered by some piece of cloth or tarp like the cowboys did. People are people whatever the age.

Do you realize what this means?! Kitsch and bric-a-brac are period! (And, by way of a rather tortuously extreme extension, so could the Brain Gremlin be...if only in spirit.) Michael, now the Brain really needs a period costume!

Jokes are not nearly as funny when you have to explain them. (Of course, they're not at all funny when no one understands them.) Nevertheless, I will explain: it is an Izod alligator. The shirt looks like a polo shirt to me, especially the collar and gathering band at the base of the sleeves.

Somewhere I read that a man who was wounded in such a way that he could no longer serve as a sailor (say, an amputated leg or something) was made the cook rather than be discharged. As I understand it, being let go could be a pretty difficult problem at this time in history given the apprentice system. Many people held the same job for their entire lives after their multi-year apprenticeship. So it was sort of a mercy thing - again, if I remember and understand it correctly. I thought I had it in my notes, but I can't find it now.

I notice the cook has a peg-leg. Very nice. I make a point in the thing I'm putting together about how the cooks were chosen more for their inablilty to serve as regular seaman than their ability to actually cook. (Although it is just a side point.)

That first one may do for the cook. Where are those from?

Of a ship's cook and a ship's carpenter. Anyone seen anything like that?

If you want to add the real pictures (as opposed to my doctored one - I am the surgeon after all), you can do it like so: 1. Click on the image you want to display in the Museum's "Other Images" selection beneath the image. 2. When the image appears above as a large picture, right click on it and select 'Copy Image Location' (This will save the URL of the image to your clipboard.) 3. Reply to this topic, select the photo icon (looks like a green/blue/orange Poloroid in the menu above your post). 4. Right click, select Paste, then click OK. 5. Viola! I'd do the rest of them, but that would take all day.