“The happy effects of the smoke of tobacco in restoring drowned persons to life”
– Dr. Brubier of Paris (in ‘A Physical Dissertation on Drowning:’) 1746
A Calm at a Mediterranean Port – Claude-Joseph Vernet – 1770 – A pipe smoker possibly waiting for his chance to resuscitate
A Pipe for What?
In a 1746 book ‘A Physical Dissertation on Drowning:’ by Rowland Jackson, a very odd use for a smoking pipe emerges from history…
Its the early 18th century… Sitting back, relaxing on the banks of the Seine river in Passy, France a soldier takes a deserved break from the day to puff on his pipe.
As he is puffing his cares away, he notices a commotion down at the shore…
A woman while crossing the river had fallen overboard. Lifeless with a growing panicked crowd the husband starts to grieve…
From the 1746 book ‘A Physical Dissertation on Drowning:’
“Whilst some of the Spectators of this melancholy Accident were advising to hang her by the Heels; and others ordering different Measures to be taken, a Soldier with his Pipe in his Mouth, came to ask the Reason of such a Concourse of People; upon being inform’d of the Accident, he desir’d the disconsolate Husband to give over weeping, because his Wife would return to Life very soon. Then giving his Pipe to the Husband, he bid him introduce the small End of it into the Anus, put a Piece of Paper perforated with a large Number of Holes upon its Mouth, and thro’ that blow. the Smoke of the Tobacco into her Intestines, as strongly as he possibly could. Accordingly at the fifth Blast, a considerable rumbling in the Woman’s Abdomen was heard, upon which she discharg’d some Water from her Mouth and in a Moment after return’d to Life.”
Tobacco Resuscitation From Hungarian Rescue Museum in Orrling
So this pipe smoking Jesus calmly walks over to a crowd surrounding a drowned wife, and suggest to the husband to stick his pipe up her ass and shotgun the smoke in…
Not only does he do it, it fucking worked….
Incredibly enough that this ‘Fonzie’ move with the pipe worked, but became the standard practice to resuscitate drowning victims up until about the 1820’s…
In 1774, The “The Institution for Affording Immediate Relief to Persons Apparently Dead From Drowning” (today’s present day ‘Royal Humane Society’) in London decided the tobacco smoke enema was indeed the best method to resuscitate after drowning. The tobacco smoke enema pipes were placed all along the boardwalk of the Thames river.
Standard protocol? Drag drowning victim ashore, turn them over, pull down their pants, stick a pipe up their ass, light & blow…
I couldn’t imagine the awkward shouts from the crowd as this is going on…
‘don’t blow smoke up my ass’
From this crazy medical treatment in time we also get a long lasting quip, ‘don’t blow smoke up my ass’…
So not only can you take away the meaning of don’t feed me shit or complimenting someone insincerely out of the old ‘don’t blow smoke up my ass’, but also the new angle, I’m not dead yet…
Honorable mention to ‘blow it out your ass’…
And no, I’m not just blowing smoke up your ass…
vintage lucky strike cigarette ad