Does anyone have any idea what one used for tp in the time period we recreate. Now i know somewill say leaves and I'm good with that and have used them on more than one trek. However we have 3 feet of snow on the level and as I leave for another winter trek I can't help wondering, with no leaves available and no way to maintain proper hygiene, how did they not walk themselves raw on winter hunts?

as cold(and weird)as it may sound, a handful(or 2 or 3)of SNOW works really well....and it sounds like you have an abundance of it!!(as do I here in SW Colorado)..

Well Pard....

I draw the line at serious issues of personal hygiene, and simply carry a "personal" bag. I know this doesn't answer you question and I'm keen to know myself. If anyone has a reference they can share that would be great. I'm getting tired of showing my right index finger to a classroom full of eighth graders when the usual question of what did they use for tp? Is asked.....

regards, stump.

I have no manuscript to back me up, but from first hand expieriance I'd have to agree with Mitch and his handfuls of snow idea. It'l sure clean ya' and leave you feeling refreshed!

In my region ya' always tried to do your business near a crick close to some sycamores. Big gobs of wet leaves to do the dirty work with then lots of sand and running water to clean your hands off with.

WHO WIPES?



OK well ya should've saved up your corncobs from the sweetcorn ya ate over the summer for that mission eh?

LD

Well gents, we dont get a lot of snow down here in arkyland. On occasion I have used snow and it worked well.Another beneifit that I can personally attest to is that it does wonders on hgemmorroids too. A true multifunction substance. yours arkansaw

the secret is out....now a lot of folks will know why 18 th century shirt tails
are long.....

Thanks for all the comments. Some good, others, well just chilly to say the least. What I am gathering is that no one really knows or has found a reference to this messy subject.

I would think that dried moss saved over the summer would be one possibility. Another saving the old wish book catalogue is another possibility . The romans were reported to have use a sponge on a stick and lots of water.

Great that someone finally brought this up! The documentation I’ve studied (from the MtMn era) so far fails to mention it.
Here in Sweden I prefer to use moss, especially from the sphagnidae family (don’t know the english name). It is said to be antiseptic and can absorb a lot of water. We also use it in natural water filters.
A good friend of mine swears he only uses a stick! I hope to learn that technique one day but will stick to the moss as long as I can find it
Although I try to keep everything as authentic as possible, for special occasions I usually keep a package of hygienic hand cleaners in the first aid kit I keep in one of my panniers. A “red eye” or upset stomach sure can spoil the fun.

/Char

www.scandinavianmountainmen.se

We were so poor we prayed our neighbors wouldn't
notice our TP drying on the clothes line..

Charlip
Have always been impressed with Swedes reinactment of Mountain Man Era.
I set my standard by three swedes I met
visiting POw-wows in Germany. I met them, two men and a woman at a pow-wow near frankfurt.
They were dressed to the hilt, fine furs, skins,
guns accouterments. This was 1989. I was relly impressed at their knowledge of the fur trade and their desire to be PC. Scandinavians do it right.

I'm pretty sure the guys you met in German were Danish not Swedish. They quit fur trade re-enactment about the time I started, that is 10 years ago. But I do agree they did do it right. But thats beside the current subject....

If your flower and fauna arent' readily available, a smooth rock or two will do the job. In a lot of parts of the world, this is your major source. And you don't half to worry a whole lot about alergic reactions.

he haw jus watch out for the poison ivy!!!

Using a stick is what has been used historically in China.

I'm not sure, but I suspect the moss to which Char-lip is referring is what we call sphagnum moss

Sparks

Char-lip,
I like the historic quotes on the web page.
Sparks

as to documentation on wiping-I've not seen anything, nor am I surprised that I don't...I keep a "journal" of sorts(both modern and period)-I've never written in either about how I do it, what I use for it,etc....I believe there are lots of daily/mundane tasks that were never written about or described...

quote:

Originally posted by Oracle:
We were so poor we prayed our neighbors wouldn't
notice our TP drying on the clothes line..

You had a clothes line?

We were so poor we only dreamed about having a clothes line.

There was a rich family up the road a ways who had a clothes line. No poles though, they weren't rich enough to be throwing money away on foolishness like clothesline poles.

Anyway, Ma just rinsed us kids off in the crick every once in a while with our clothes still on, then laid us across a line she'd scratched in the dirt to dry in the sun. She usually did "the wash" on Saturday so we'd be all clean and nice for church on Sunday.

As for toilet paper, I've wondered about that for a long time. I never needed it on camping trips and such 'till the last few years. As a yoot, any upset in my daily schedule would halt "production" for as long as four or five days without discomfort. In the last few years though, I seem to have outgrown that. In the Pac. North Wet there are enough leafy plants to provide for one's necessity. Elswhere, you're on your own.

Three Hawks

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Three Hawks,

Hey, maybe Mike Nesbitt could do a story in Muzzleloader mag. about the "wiping stick".

Shadow Lurker