butt fodder

[bigted]

lets talk toilet paper ... bum fodder ... ass wipe;

well what say ye? did they carry such ...or... make due on the trail? also ... if making due ... at what expense to ones person? seems like a personal stink as well as the infernal itchin to the southern reach's.

been meaning to ask this question for some time ... and ... as I did not want to be called a lunatic or heretic or any other "tic". just curious is all. seems like I never heard what would be "historic" when it comes to bowel movements and the cleaning thereof of the effected body parts.

 

[coloradoclyde]

"Cleanliness is next to godliness" and I've seen more than one bible in an outhouse, along with corn cobs, rags, sponges, sears catalogs, etc....

Much like medications and bug spray, take what makes your trip comfortable, safe , and enjoyable. :grin:

 

[Grizzly Adams]

The name "mountain money" is well deserved.

Just don't pack 1 ply, there is a reason they use that stuff in prisons.

 

[tenngun]

I think it was shrik that grabbed the bunny. Rabbit ears grew wild here, most flat tree leaves work well. Most mosses work well. Premade soap went west to the 'voos and were sold where ever a store was set up. I don't think it was the natives that were buying it.Most people knew getting full bodied in to water very often was a way to catch your death. How ever washing was a regular event. I doubt most people would walk around with an itchy bottom if they could avoid it. There is a reason we think of left, in Latin sinister, as being bad, you don't want to touch any one from the levant with your sinister hand.

 

[tenngun]

If you grab a handful of leaves just make sure you know what sort of bush or vine its growing on.

 

[Billnpatti]

I do not have any definitive source that would provide light on such a thing but I would suppose that leaves were the preferred method of removing unwanted....uh....."stuff" from your nether regions. Me....I carry a roll of the modern stuff and historical correctness be damned, I get that area clean with no residual detritus.

 

[tiswell]

Great topic! I have had to do it many times, but my least favorite thing while in the woods is wiping my bottom with dried leaves. Growing up my Grandma didn't have a flush toilet until I was about 12. She had 13 kids and raised them through or just post depression. In short, times were lean! I can remember a basket of corn cobs and old catalogs in the outhouse. I didn't seem to mind it then and would much rather go to corn cobs then dried leaves any day. When leaves are all that is there, poplar leaves are nice and big!
I have used mullein leaves and snow as well.
If you ever have to answer the call in the middle of the night and use snow, it will definitely wake you up!
Tenngun,
Do you know other names for the plant that you call "rabbit ears"? Could it be mullein?

Bill

 

[LRB]

I have seen documentation of TP being issued to the Brit navy in the latter half of the 18th c. Don't know about civilian use of it.

 

[Stophel]

The one modern convenience I refuse to do without! They make these super neat handi wipes made out of a surprisingly tough and thin synthetic fabric that is compressed into a little round pill, maybe the size of a quarter and about a half inch high. Drip just a little water on it and it fluffs up and you unfold it into a nice soft sheet. Definitely not historical, but perfect for camping, hiking, and trekking. Drop a few in your knapsack, snapsack or shot bag. They take little space, weigh nearly nothing, and can be used for many purposes. I like historical accuracy as much or more as anyone, but for this, I go modern! A good idea to have a few first aid supplies too! No need in dying a historically accurate 18th century death!

 

[Captjoel]

This all reminds me of an old joke! A bear and a rabbit were both squatting near each other doing their business, when the bear asked the rabbit, "Mr. Rabbit, do you ever have a problem with poo sticking to your fur?" The rabbit replied, "No Mr. Bear, never had any trouble at all with that." Hearing this, the bear quickly grabbed up the rabbit and used him to wipe his tail section! That's very good to know said the bear as he dropped the rabbit on the pile of his fresh steaming doo and went on his merry way.

 

[Rifleman1776]

With me in the woods also. I remove the tube to squash down the roll, usually a partial roll.

 

[nhmoose]

Stunned absolutely stunned!! Guys on here actually wipe?!!!! :bow:

 

[Juice Jaws]

Hey, you just might of hit on something, I am for sure now, back in the day they did not wear coon skin hats, they wore RABBIT SKIN HATS. And to think we have been wrong all these years.

 

[Stophel]

One could also simply use a piece of cloth, and wash it back out if desired to be reused. Just like diapers! :wink:

 

[bigted]

LOL ... I thought this would be a fun post. even a rough tough feller can get sqampish with an itchin sphincter. I can not imagine bein in a tight spot and have the rear end begin to kick up with the pains nor the itch's.

I been outdoors all my life and always carry some of sumptin to remove the roughage from the south end so as to keep a clean bum.

I have also used the leaves or moss or creek water to finish up the cleanin process but have also been spots where no green or dry leaves could be found let alone water ...[melted and not frozen]. so in these cases I always do the thought provoking thinkin about such matters in a >>> [what if]

 

[tenngun]

Yes mullin is a name for rabbit ears. Is soft and absobant. I have it on good authority that its what mr Whipple uses

 

[coloradoclyde]

just wondered if any knew of a secret that the Indians or mountain men knew about.

Just squat in the nearest river and wash your backside...

 

[Nativearizonan]

Just squat in the nearest river and wash your backside...

Mountain Bidet? :grin:

Since nobody has mentioned it yet, when no decent leaves are available, I have used rocks. It's better than using cactus, which is sometimes the only thing growing in the desert. If you are around a creek, you might find a cottonwood or sycamore leaf, but most of the leaves you find around here are very small and/or come with built in stickers.

 

[coloradoclyde]

Rivers have been used for toilets for millennia.
And has resulted in many diseases. Also while we are on the subject, the importance of hand washing should be mentioned....as this probably causes more people a trip to the toilet than the food they ate.

So.....toilet paper and soap may or may not be HC/PC but it beats getting a HC/PC disease.
Remember disease has killed more people than guns.

 

[Nativearizonan]

On the subject of hygiene, horses like a good roll in the dust, as do dogs. The Navajo, as an example, who live in an area where water is almost non-existent without digging and waiting for a small seep through the sand, didn't make daily treks to the bottom of the Grand Canyon to wash in the river. They did just like horses and dogs do naturally, they took dust baths. Sometimes these would follow a bit of time in a sweat lodge, but other times it was just how they bathed.

I have washed my hands in dirt, when I didn't have enough water to waste. It will get rid of the smell, and take away any particles that may be clinging to you. If I find water, I will use it, but dust or sand is better than nothing. This is not trying to be PC, just part of growing up a child of the desert. If you find yourself in the desert unprepared, it's what you do.

Being prepared is a good thing, though, with TP and handi-wipes; but I would imagine the PC thing would be more like I described above.

As far as MM bathing? I remember an old joke about a cowboy getting ready to take a bath in the fall and remarking: "No wonder it was such a hot summer, I forgot to take my long handles off last spring."

Bathing was probably something you did to relieve yourself of lice, more than having a "fresh as an Irish Spring" feeling and smell. For re-enactors, however, I think cleanliness and hygiene are important, as you are indeed among the public and they wouldn't really appreciate the PC smells.