Gordon Stables

“ If he be a person who has bathed many times and oft, he steps across the threshold of the great natural Sanatorium with a light heart and a step as springy as though he were entering a ball-room, for well he knows that all his care and trouble whether mental or bodily, will melt away in the glorious atmosphere of the calidarium or hot room, and that when he comes out again he will feel so new a man, that a giant refreshed would have no chance with him. ”

“ It is really surprising the amount of good that can be done by a well-regulated course of Turkish or other baths, combined with some carefully adapted plan of constitutional treatment and regulation in living. If this were only more generally known, thousands would soon be enjoying all the blessings of health, who are now languishing on beds of sickness, or confined to warm and stifling rooms, instead of breathing the free fresh air of heaven. ”

“ So intimate is the connection between the skin and internal organs of the body, and so constantly and incessantly do they act and re-act on each other, that the state of the former may generally be taken as a key to the condition of the whole system. If the skin be dry, harsh, hot or in any way possessed of an uncomfortable feeling, the general health is, for the time being, out of order, or if it be cold or rough and chilly, the health must be below par, even although that state of being should be but momentary. ”

“ How to Maintain the Skin in Health. If the skin then, is an emunctory of so much consequence, as we have endeavoured to shew it to be, it stands to reason, that even the impartial performance of its functions, is incompatible with healthful existence. One might go farther and boldly aver, that a person who is a stranger to the bath, is as much to be pitied as a being with only one lung ”

“ Exercise does little or no good unless enjoyed, hence work is not exercise. It should never be carried to the verge of fatigue, and if the under-clothing has been damped by perspiration, it ought to be changed before sitting or lying down. As to under-clothing, no one over thirty, who values his health and life, should neglect to wear it in some form, wool is warmer than cotton, silk better than either. The best form of exercise is that which maintains the largest number of muscles in play, and does not over-sweat the body, nor over-heat the head. ”

“ But it is not merely as a luxury that, in this little work of ours, we venture to recommend the Anglo-Turkish bath to our readers although taken simply for the sake of enjoyment, a man never fails to cherish the memory of his first bath, as does a maiden that of her first ball. ”

“ And that the dark venous blood, containing the effete matter, rushes through the lungs, therein to be spread out, and chemically united to the oxygen of the air that we breathe, before it is again pumped out towards the tissues to supply them with heat and life. But it must not be forgotten, that not the lungs only, but the kidneys, the liver, and the spleen have each and all of them their duties to perform towards the blood; and last, but not least, that the skin, when in a state of health, assists them in no small degree in performing their several functions. ”

“ But he who lives judiciously in the matter of diet, possesses a truly marvellous advantage over his fellows who do not. A man in health should begin the day early. He ought to have his morning tub by half-past seven at the latest. He ought to dress leisurely, and have, if possible, a five or ten minutes’ walk in the open air, before he sits down to breakfast.
Well-made tea is probably the best beverage for breakfast, and if between meals a man requires some refreshment, a cup of coffee or tea will be found more sustaining and less dangerous than either beer or wine. ”

“ It is the custom in England, and a terribly wrong and fatal one it is, to fly to stimulants for the relief of temporary-exhaustion; that is, at the very time when our bodies are tired, and nature courts a brief rest, we dig in the spur, we wield the whip, and keep her at it invariably to her detriment. The very fact that the amount of stimulant taken requires to be increased after a time proves how deleterious is this plan, the modest glass of sherry, or mildest ale, needs after a time to be replaced by fiery brandy or heart-corroding gin. ”

“ Nevertheless, did these same persons make a practice of constantly using some form of bath, they would throw far less strain upon their internal organs, their blood would be purer, and their minds consequently lighter, and they would stand far less chance of catching cold, and succumbing to inflammation of some vital part. A person whose skin is not in easy working order, and who depends upon exertion and exercise alone, for keeping it up to the mark, must, if thrown on a bed of sickness, have a harder struggle for life than one whose skin is, in every sense of the word, a healthy one. ”

“ The use of the skin as an organ of touch is equally apparent. Being supplied with a most intricate network of blood vessels and nerves, the skin is all over a most sensitive organ, and thus serves to warn us in time of the approach of anything likely to be detrimental to our health. If we sit in a draught, the skin of the body chills almost at once; it begins to creep, as it were, warning us that it is time to move, time to seek shelter, or protect ourselves by an extra garment. Some portions of the skin are far more sensitive than others ”

“ On the other hand, it cannot be denied that there are thousands of men and women in these islands, who seem to enjoy a large share of robust health, and who possess what assurance companies would call, “good lives,” but who never indulge in the luxury of either a bath or a bedroom tub. But it will generally be found, that these people belong to the out-door working classes, who take abundant exercise in the open air, people whose pores are kept patent by the toil they undergo, and who, moreover, possess capacious lungs, substantial livers and healthy kidneys. ”

“ As a prophylactic against innumerable diseases, we have recommended the use of the Anglo-Turkish Bath. It is almost unnecessary to enlarge upon this head, but a word or two may not be thrown away. Two, then, of the great causae norborum, or disease inducers in this country are cold and indigestion. Now, so long as the skin is a healthy one, and in good working order, it is next to impossible for any one to catch cold through it, if he only takes care to clothe it not heavily but judiciously in warm woollens or light soft silks. ”

“ Many poisons are generated in the system, to which if free vent be not given by means of the pores of a healthily acting skin, mischief is sure sooner or later to arise, such mischief for instance as gout and rheumatism, to which reference has already been made. But the condition of the kidneys is seldom or never studied by anyone and yet if they do not act sufficiently well to expel urea from the blood, a more or less injurious effect is caused upon the brain and nerve centres. This the periodical use of the Anglo-Turkish bath, would tend to remove. ”

“ And the mind should feel as light and buoyant as the body, a healthy man should feel a pleasure in merely living, he should be capable of taking an interest in everything that goes on around him, in all he sees, in all he hears, in all he reads, and in all that concerns the well-being of his fellow creatures, and honest toil itself should be an enjoyment to him, and not a worry, not a penance. ”

“ It stands to reason that an organ, an instrument or machine—call it what we may—which is perfect in workings, is not so easily thrown out of gear or out of order as one not so perfect. We could fill a volume with cases of people who are constantly in the habit of using Baths, who can stand exposure to both cold and wet with but little inconvenience; and we also know a vast number of votaries of the Bath who do at times catch cold like other people, being probably constitutionally susceptible to its influence—but who get clear of their colds in quite a remarkably short time. ”

“ In the cool room he will remain reclining and enwrapped in his sheet for about a quarter of an hour and probably the attendant will come and knead every muscle of the body getting back the lagging blood, if indeed it does lag, heart-wards and rendering the whole body as supple and pliant and elastic as life. ”

“ And here we may remark that, whenever the elasticity of the skin is impaired, as it is in the bodies of those who do not accustom themselves to the bath and perfect ablution, loathsome diseases are apt to be the result, which not only interfere with the actions of the skin itself, but lower the vitality of the whole system. ”

“ By means of, or through, the medium of its vast number of sweat glands, the skin regulates the amount of heat in our bodies. This is a function which is much more important than most people might at first imagine. The temperature of the body in health is about 99 degrees Fahrenheit, if it rises much above this—even a few degrees, indeed—or if it falls much below it, severe illness is indicated, danger is apparent, danger even to life itself. ”

“ The morning tub is a bath that people in ordinary health should take every morning. It is not only invigorating but it so tones the skin and nerves as to render catching cold all but impossible. A far better tonic for those who can bear it, is the shower bath. ”

“ If a man be really healthy, he is reasonably happy, if he does not feel reasonably happy, he is not in a condition of health. In health there is a complete freedom from ache or pain, from bruise or blemish, from heat or cold ”

“ It is a means of banishing fatigue, and also of producing refreshing sleep. And this fact may be turned to good account on many occasions. A person may have been out all day on the hill, or hunting, or he may have been on the river or lake rowing, or by its banks fishing. He returns tired and weary, and very probably, wet.
A wash and change of clothes, followed by a stimulant, are the usual remedies for such fatigues. How much better is it both for the comfort and health if he can spare a short half-hour, and enjoy the advantageous comforts of the Turkish Bath. ”

“ In bathing at home, after lathering the whole body with warm water and soap, a cold sponge bath containing a handful or two of either Tidman’s or Brill’s Sea Salt will be found very invigorating.
We have before us a splendidly got up work entitled “Luxurious Bathing,” published by Messrs Field and Tuer, Leadenhall Street, E.C. The book is beyond praise, its well-executed etchings entitle it to a place on the drawing-room table, and its advice to those who value health, is simply invaluable. ”

“ An equable temperature of the body it is therefore evident is alone compatible with perfect health, but if it were not for the perspiratory system, when any extra strain is put upon the body, as by hard work, or hard exercise, heat would accumulate in the system, and the temperature of the body would be raised, to our discomfort, detriment, and danger. But the pores of the skin are our safety valves ”

“ The bath is a preventative of disease, by hardening the individual against the effects of variations and vicissitudes of temperature, by giving him power to resist miasmatic and zymotic affections, and by strengthening his system against scrofula, consumption, gout, rheumatism ”

“ In hot weather, a great deal of heat is thus expended through the skin; in cold weather the kidneys are more active, and they excrete the water which otherwise would have passed through the pores, and by storing it for a time in a reservoir designed for the purpose, conserve the heat of the system, and prevent lowering of the animal temperature. ”

“ That condition of body and mind generally caused by indiscretion of some kind, and usually known by the expression “out of sorts,” or “out of condition,” when weariness and depression are predominant, when sleep is unrest, and every duty of life is performed with a feeling of extreme irksomeness, and when the nerves seem given as a punishment, is almost invariably cured by a course of Turkish Bathing taken in conjunction with some nervine tonic, and an occasional well-chosen aperient. ”

“ We, ourselves, perspire freely, and therefore use only the hot air, but as Sir Erasmus says: “The great purpose to be arrived at, so far as temperature is concerned, is to obtain one which shall be agreeable to the sensations.” ”

“ THE PEAT WATER Bath is a German invention, and seems to be of great value to sufferers from gout and rheumatism, swelling of the joints, congestion of the liver, etc. Why the peat of this country should not be as efficacious as that from German bogs we fail to understand. ”

“ The errors in diet which should be avoided are:—First, eating too fast; second, taking stimulants of any kind to provoke an appetite; third, the use of rich sauces and peppers; fourth, eating too much; and fifth, partaking of too many varieties at one meal. A man should eat with regularity and moderation, and frequently change his diet.
DRINK.—Pure water is the best, but water that will not wash is unfit for drinking or making food, withal. Cocoa, coffee, tea, and milk in moderation, and in summer whey and buttermilk are healthful drinks. ”

“ Everything seems to point to the conclusion that the health of the skin is a matter of paramount importance to the individual, we cannot therefore be wrong if we devote this chapter to the consideration of the best means within our reach, of maintaining it in a sound and vigorous condition. ”

“ The bath must not be taken on a full stomach, about three hours after a meal is the best time. But those who dine about six or seven in the evening should take the bath before dinner. People who are engaged all day, may with advantage use it either before retiring for the night, or after getting up in the morning, following it by the usual cold sponge. If the cold bath is forbidden, then the best time is going to bed. ”

“ The diseases which the Turkish bath may be the means of curing or alleviating, are really too numerous to mention. Among them may be enumerated gout, rheumatic gout, rheumatism, acute and chronic, colds and coughs, indigestion in some of its worst forms, bowel affections, piles, chronic liver and spleen ailments, kidney complaints, incipient delirium tremens, melancholy and depression of spirits, nervousness, irritability of temper, sleeplessness, ennui, the diseases of sedentary and also of fashionable life, adiposity, etc. ”