Everybody Dance Now

Ripley's Believe It Or Not

I enjoy reading about medieval times, so, the little ditty in the Ripley’s Believe It Or Not cartoon the other day caught my attention. Imagine my delight that there is more ancient history new to me to investigate.

Brains much more disciplined than mine have researched the dancing mania of 1518 in Strasbourg, France. There are a number of articles on the internet if one is so inclined. I read one article that said it could have been a disease caused by a mold on their bread that caused hallucinations. Another stated it was the grinding poverty combined with a practice of worshipping “saints”, especially one that was a god of dance, then a mass hysteria ensued. There's probably a multitude of other theories floating around. But no one really seems to know for sure what happened except that hundreds died dancing.

It’s a fascinating read. Has anyone else ever heard of this strange event?

A Few Articles Of Note:

Dancing Plague of 1518 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Dancing Plague of 1518 - Historic Mysteries

Dancing death - BBC - Today

A Tribute To A Southern Hero

I received this in an e-mail from one of my husband's cousins in Texas. I thought y'all might enjoy the history too.


An Article by Calvin E. Johnson, Jr.
Remembering Jefferson Davis: American Patriot & Southern Hero
May 23, 2009

Let’s not forget Monday May 25th is Memorial Day!!

Once upon a time, school children were taught about great Americans like Jefferson Davis whose 201st birthday is June 3rd.

The statue of Jefferson Davis and his two sons, Joe and Jim Limber, is nearing completion and will be placed at Beauvoir, the last home of the Confederate President, on Mississippi’s Gulf Coast. Jim was the Davis’ adopted black son. Read more about this Sons of Confederate Veterans Project.

On Sunday, May 28, 1893, a few days before "Memorial Day", in New Orleans, a story began that overshadowed all other events.

This was the day when the remains of Jefferson Davis, former president of the Confederate States of America, was taken to Richmond, Virginia for final burial.

Jefferson Davis died in 1889 and over 200,000 people witnessed his temporary burial at Metairie Cemetery in New Orleans. Four years later on a rainy Saturday, on May 27, 1893, the remains of Jefferson Davis was removed and taken to Confederate Memorial Hall in New Orleans.

At 4:30PM, May 28th, a funeral service was held for Mr. Davis and a moving memorial address was delivered by Louisiana's Governor Murphy J. Foster as thousands listened. A reverent silence fell among the people as the casket was given to the commitment of veterans from Virginia.

The procession then formed for a slow march to the railroad station on Canal Street.

Train No. 69, with Engineer Frank Coffin, waited patiently as the casket was taken to the platform and passed through an open observation car to a catafalque.

Train engine No. 69, of the Louisville and Nashville Railroad slowly pulled out of New Orleans Station at 7:50PM for the 1,200 mile trip.

After a brief stop at Bay Saint Louis, and a slow-down at Pass Christian, where hundreds of people lined the tracks, the Jefferson Davis Funeral Train stopped at Gulfport, Mississippi, near Beauvoir the Southern president’s last home.

Uncle Bob Brown, a former servant of the Davis family and a passenger on the train, saw the many flowers that the children had laid on the side of the railroad tracks. Brown was so moved by this beautiful gesture that he wept uncontrollably.

In Mobile, Alabama, the train was met by a thousand mourners and the Alabama Artillery fired a 21-gun salute. Locomotive No. 69 was retired and Locomotive No. 25 was coupled to the train. The new train's Engineer was C.C. Devinney and Warren Robinson was its fireman.

The Atlanta Journal reported, quote, "The Cradle of the Confederacy is ablaze with life and light tonight. Everything is ready for honoring the memory of Jefferson Davis. Tomorrow morning with the rising of the sun the funeral train from New Orleans will reach Montgomery.” unquote.

Church bells rang in Montgomery, Alabama when the train pulled into the city at 6:00AM on May 29th. A severe rainstorm delayed the funeral procession to about 8:30AM when a caisson carried the body of Davis to Alabama's state capitol. A procession carried the casket through the portico where Jefferson Davis, in 1861, had taken the oath of office as President of the Confederacy.

The casket was placed in front of the bench of the Alabama Supreme Court. Above the right exit was a banner with the word "Monterrey" and above the left exit was a banner with the words "Buena Vista." During the War with Mexico Jefferson Davis was a hero at Monterrey and wounded at Buena Vista.

At 12:20PM the funeral train departed over the Western Railway of Alabama and Atlanta and West Point Railroad for Atlanta.

At 4:30PM the funeral train pulled into Union Station in Atlanta, Georgia. It is estimated that 20,000 people lined the streets as the funeral procession made their way to the state capitol. When Davis’ body lay in state at the Capitol, it was guarded by Atlanta’s Gate City Guard which had served as Company F, 1st Georgia (Ramsay’s).

At 7:00PM the train went north on the Richmond and Danville Railroad. The train traveled through Lula, Georgia, Greenville, South Carolina and stopped at the North Carolina capitol at Raleigh.

A brief stop was made in Danville, Virginia where a crowd of people gathered around the train and sang, "Nearer My God To Thee" as city church bells toiled.

Finally, the train reached Richmond, Virginia on Wednesday, May 31, 1893, at 3:00AM. It was Memorial Day. The casket was taken to the Virginia State House.

At 3:00PM, May 31st, the funeral procession started for Hollywood Cemetery.

With Mrs. Jefferson Davis were her daughters, Winnie and Margaret. Six state governors acted as pallbearers. It was estimated that 75,000 people attended this final salute to President Davis. The ceremony concluded with a 21-gun salute and "Taps."

Link


There is a memorial to Jefferson Davis and the Confederacy here outside of Irwinville, Georgia: Jefferson Davis Memorial Historic Site. We visited the site after moving to Georgia. It is well worth the visit.

Grandpa Tell Me 'Bout The Good 'Ol Days

I thought it would be fun to share some of the drugs that were legal in the good 'ol days.

Bayer's HeroinA bottle of Bayer's heroin. Between 1890 and 1910 heroin was sold as a non-addictive substitute for morphine. It was also used to treat children with strong cough.

[hack] [hack] "Pass the Heroin, would ya dear? I feel a cold coming on."


Metcalf Coca Wine was one of a huge variety of wines with cocaine on the market. Everybody used to say that it would make you happy and it would also work as a medicinal treatment.


Mariani wine (1875) was the most famous Coca wine of it's time. Pope Leo XIII used to carry one bottle with him all the time. He awarded Angelo Mariani (the producer) with a Vatican gold medal.


Produced by Maltine Manufacturing Company of New York. It was suggested that you should take a full glass with or after every meal. Children were supposed to take half a glass.


Here's a paper weight promoting C. F. Boehringer & Soehne (Mannheim, Germany). They were proud of being the biggest producers in the world of products containing Quinine and Cocaine.

Maybe the Columbian's should mass produce these now? They could give them to the Mexicans to pass along to the black gangs in L.A. and they give them out as souvenirs with each purchase.

Just thinking out loud here.


Opium for Asthma. Now this one mystifies me. I don't see how opium would help someone with asthma unless it helped them not to give a rats @$$.

Who needs air when you've got pink elephants dancing on the head of a pin, right? [lol]


Cocaine Tables from 1900All stage actors, singers, teachers and preachers had to have them for a maximum performance. Great to "smooth" the voice.

This explains some of the strange sermons and beliefs I've read about from that time period ...


Cocaine drops were very popular for children in 1885. Not only did they relieve the pain, they made the children happy!

No doubt.


And lastly, there was opium for newborns. I'm sure this would make them sleep well because not only is it Opium, but it's also 46% alcohol.

No comment.


And now you know why it's always called the Good 'Ol Days! They .. were .. just .. one .. big .. blur .....

A Drive Down Memory Lane

As I was surveying a local cemetery close to home recently (i.e. snapping photos of tombstones for family genealogists to use at FindAGrave) I happened to glance off into the mature pinewoods and there was another kind of graveyard. I found old abandoned 'skeletons' of vehicles and farm equipment.

When I happened upon the Chevy pickup, a flood of memories hit me. It was the memory of my father and I building an antique 1949 pickup together.


Abandoned Chevrolet Pickup
In the early 1970's, while I was still in High School, my Dad bought two 1949 Chevrolet pickup's. One was for parts and one to actually rebuild. Previously, Dad had built a large workshop on our 1 acre of land, so, there was plenty of room. We pulled motors, scavenged oil soaked parts to find something usable, spent many an hour down at NAPA Auto Parts, haunted junk yards. Finally, it was ready for the finishing touches: the paint job. Dad took it somewhere locally and cheap and had it painted the original Dark Green.

Everybody in our small town of Titusville talked about Don Ackman's truck.

I quite often drove it to school. It was a pickle to handle too. The 3 speed gear shift was on the column. The starter was on the floor ... it was quite a trick to hold down the starter and crank the motor at the same time, it took a little finesse. There was no power steering or power windows. The seats were the hard, uncomfortable, bench-style. The windshield wipers were horrible. I recall driving home from a friends house one night in one of our frog strangler Central Florida thunderstorms and the vacuum-driven windshield wipers would slow down as I applied the gas! So, in order to see, when I thought it was safe enough I would get going as fast as possible then let off the gas and coast so the wipers would speed up, then I could see well enough to proceed a little farther.

It was an experience.

Then one day Dad just up and sold the truck many years ago. Just broke my heart.

I thought I'd had a photo of it but it must be hidden in some boxes somewhere. So here's one from the Internet that is similar:


216 C.I.D. V-6, 3 speed, 5 window
Source: Larry Chapman
The only difference between the one above and Dad's truck was he had an oval window in the back. It was quaint but rendered watching traffic behind you an exercise in futility.

It wasn't comfortable or really very practical, but, oh, if that old truck could talk ... it would have such happy memories of growing up to regale.

♥ ∞

Those Where The Days My Friend

In 1969, Steve was driving to work one morning in his 442 (a 1967 Oldsmobile). He drove by the Big R Chevrolet dealership daily. But this morning he glanced over at the dealership and they were unloading an orange and white 1969 Z-28 Camaro off a car carrier. It was Lust At First Sight! He immediately stopped at Big R and my ever impulsive husband traded on the spot.


Click To Enlarge In New Window

They hammered out a deal. Then the smiling salesman loaned him a brand new demo, an Impala, while the Camaro was being prepped. He picked up his new car two days later (he had to wait on all the usual financial shuffling, etc.). Then he drove home a happy boy, uh, man.

From all the tales I've heard this Camaro was something else!

Chevy built the new Z-28 so that they could qualify it for the TransAm Series Race. It had the only 302 cubic inch V-8 that Chevy ever made. All the parts of the motor where straight from the Chevrolet racing catalog. It would only run on Sunoco 460 Premium fuel or it would knock and fuel economy was not a factor (15 highway, 10 town). It had no air conditioning or any of the now common amenities because the motor turned over 6000 rpm. Chevy wouldn't guarantee the air conditioner motor at such high RPM's. It didn't have power steering, so it was a bear to drive at slow speeds and in parking lots!

He once drove it from Jacksonville to Daytona Beach Speedway, which is approximately 90 miles one way, in under 55 minutes. By the time he got there, none of guys in the car could hear and they all felt like their insides were shaken not stirred!

It was definitely a man's car. A true muscle car.

Unfortunately, he had traded the Z-28 by the time I came along, but I get to hear all the fun stories about his shenanigans.

These old autos where uncomfortable as can be, but I miss really fast cars. They had character.


♥ ∞

Marie Antoinette Birthday Soiree

It's easy to be oh so pretty when you're living on the serfs (taxpayers) money.

So people are starving, let them eat cake!

Geez, I'm a grouch today aren't I?? Sorry. It'll pass.

Thanks for inviting me Cupids Charm. ♥ ∞

What It Was Like 100 Years Ago

The year is 1908.
One hundred years ago.
What a difference a century makes!

Here are a few interesting statistics for the Year 1908:
The average life expectancy was 47 years.
Only 14 percent of the homes had a bathtub.
Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone.
There were only 8,000 cars and only 144 miles of paved roads.
The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.

The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower.
The average wage in 1908 was 22 cents per hour.
The average worker made between $200 and $400 per year.
A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000 per year,
a dentist $2,500 per year,
a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000 per year,
and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.

More than 95 percent of all births took place at home.
90 percent of all doctors had NO FORMAL COLLEGE EDUCATION!
Instead, they attended so-called medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press and the government as 'substandard'.

Sugar cost 4 cents a pound.
Eggs were 14 cents a dozen.
Coffee was 15 cents a pound.
Most women only washed their hair once a month, and used Borax or egg yolks for shampoo.

Canada passed a law that prohibited poor people from entering into their country for any reason.

Five leading causes of death were:
1. Pneumonia and influenza
2. Tuberculosis
3. Diarrhea
4. Heart disease
5. Stroke

The American flag had only 45 stars.

The population of Las Vegas, Nevada, was only 30!

Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and ice tea hadn't been invented yet.
(No iced tea!? Kill me now ...)
There was no Mother's Day or Father's Day.

Two out of every 10 adults couldn't read or write.
Only 6 percent of all Americans had graduated from high school.
(I'll bet they were prodominately male too.)

Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were all available over the counter at the local corner drugstores. Back then pharmacists said, 'Heroin clears the complexion, gives buoyancy to the mind, regulates the stomach and bowels, and is, in fact, a perfect guardian of health.' (They just thought that because they couldn't remember anything after clearing that complexion!)

18 percent of households had at least one full-time servant or domestic help.

There were about 230 reported murders in the entire U.S.A.!

Amazing, ain't it? History is a wonderful teacher if we'll only listen. I'm so grateful to be born in this era in this country with all our modern conveniences and excellent medical care. ♥ ∞