The Eastern or Turkish Bath

CHAPTER I.. The Bath, an Animal Instinct; Coeval With the Earliest Existence

THE BATH, an animal instinct; coeval with the earliest existence of man; common to every rank; a ceremony of his birth, and a funereal rite; discovery of thermal springs; the Scamander; commemoration of the hot-bath by Homer; the hot-baths of Hercules; estimation of hot-baths by the Phœdrians; frequency of thermal springs; Hamâms of the East, Hamâm Ali, near ancient Nineveh; Hamâm Meskhoutin in Algeria; Baths of Nero in Italy; German thermal springs, Carlsbad, Wiesbaden, Ems, Aix-la-Chapelle; the Geysers of Iceland; thermal springs of Amsterdam Island; of America; of England, Bath, Bristol, Buxton, Matlock pp. 1-5

Primitive idea of the artificial hot-vapour bath; Bath of the American Indians; ancient Irish Bath, or sweating-house, the Tig Allui; Mexican Bath; Moorish Bath; the Hypocaust pp. 5-9

Eastern origin of the bath; Mr. Urquhart's discovery of the vestiges of the Phœnician Bath among the ruins of Baalbeck; Syrian Bath; Gazul, its nature and properties; Gazul and the Strigil derived from Mauritania; probable irradiation of the knowledge of the bath from Phœnicia pp. 9-12

Hypocaust of the Moorish, Mexican, Greek, and Roman Bath; the only method of heating houses in Greece and Rome; the common practice in China; Chinese vapour bath, pp. 12-13

Baths of Greece; Gymnasia; Gymnasium or Palæstra; Lyceum Academia; Cynosarges pp. 14-18

Thermæ and Balneæ of Rome; Baths of Agrippa, Titus, Paulus Æmilius, Diocletian, and Caracalla; magnificence of the Roman Thermæ; Roman Baths of England; decline of the bath in Rome; construction of the Roman Bath; excessive indulgence in the bath by the Romans; Pliny's description of his own bath; Seneca's reproof of the luxury and wanton extravagance of the Romans pp. 18-29

Roman Baths of England; Uriconium; Chester pp. 29-33

The bath lost by the Romans; preserved by the Turks; the Turkish Hamâm; construction of the Hamâm; costume of the bath; mode of taking the bath; the outer Hall, or Mustaby, the middle room, the inner room; shampooing; rolling and peeling the scarf-skin; soaping and rinsing; return to the Mustaby; the couch of repose; special characteristics of the Turkish Hamâm--vapoury atmosphere, low temperature; the Turkish process contrasted with the Roman; the order, the decorum, the dignity of the Turkish Bath; Lady Mary Wortley Montagu's description of the Women's Bath in Turkey pp. 33-46

The Egyptian Bath; the Bath of Siout; the Bath at Cairo; Mr. Thackeray's experiences; Egyptian shampooing; M. Savary's description of the Egyptian Bath and Egyptian shampooing; its intellectual and medicative properties; Tournefort's experience pp. 46-50

Introduction of the Turkish Bath to Britain; Mr. Urquhart and the "Pillars of Hercules"; Mr. Urquhart's advocacy of the Bath; Mr. Urquhart erects a bath at Blarney for Dr. Richard Barter; spread of the Turkish Bath in Ireland pp. 50-52

Pioneers of the Bath in England, Mr. Urquhart, Mr. George Crawshay, Sir John Fife, Mr. George Witt, Mr. Stewart Rolland; private Turkish Baths in England; Mr. Witt's Bath; construction; process of the bath; costume of the bath; "Companions of the Bath;" first impressions; effect of the Bath in the removal of pain pp. 52-55

The delights of free perspiration; differences between the practised bather and the neophyte; thirst; beads upon the rose; counting our beads; freedom of perspiration in labourers exposed to high temperatures; a nutritive drink pp. 55-58

Temperature of the bath; mutual relations between temperature, size of apartment, moisture of atmosphere, and number of bathers; temperature relative to these conditions; effects of temperature in water, vapour, and air; man's capability of supporting temperatures of remarkable altitude in dry air; Mr. Urquhart's Laconicum; Sir Charles Blagden's experiments; Sir Francis Chantrey's oven; Chabert, the Fire King pp. 58-61

The best temperature for the purposes of Health; practice of the Romans, who lost the bath, compared with that of the Turks, who have preserved it; philosophy of the bath; talking and thinking to be avoided in the bath; inconveniences of the bath to the novitiate; the cause and its remedy; advice; peculiarities or idiosyncrasies of constitution; wisdom of the Turks pp. 61, 63

Duration of the bath; influenced by temperature and idiosyncrasy, pp. 63-64

Second operation of the bath; shampooing; proper moment for the process; the Turkish process; the Moorish process; Captain Clark Kennedy's description of the Moorish Bath, and the operation of shampooing; the British shampooer, pp. 64-72

Third operation of the bath; the peeling of the scarf-skin; manner of performance; the camel's-hair or goat's-hair glove pp. 72-74

Fourth operation of the bath; soaping; the wisp of lyf; the warm shower; the cold douche; alternate hot and cold douche; closure of the pores; restoration of the warmth of the skin pp. 74-76

The Frigidarium; the process of cooling; the purified skin; sensations after the bath; the ordinary dress resumed; illustration of the use and effects of the bath in dispelling the cravings of hunger and fatigue pp. 77-79

Mr. Urquhart's bath; the Laconicum; the spiracle of sweet perfumes; the Lavatrina; the cold pool; the hot and cold douche; breakfast; kuscoussoo; the chemistry of the preparation of food; its value to man pp. 79-87

My own bath at Richmond Hill pp. 88-89

CHAPTER II.. Revival and Sanitary Purposes of the

REVIVAL AND SANITARY PURPOSES OF THE EASTERN BATH.

General idea of the bath; and of its sanitary application; its popularity with the working classes pp. 90-92

Construction of the bath, illustrated by the description of Mr. Witt's bath; the Calidarium; the heating apparatus; materials of construction; the flue; the dureta; Mr. Stewart Rolland's bath; the Lavatorium; the Frigidarium, pp. 93-102

Operation of the bath; costume of the bath; sensations of the bath; perspiration; the body washed in its own moisture; unpleasant sensations; contrast of the uneducated and educated skin; object of the bath; use of the cold douche; the cooling and drying process pp. 103-110

Sanitary purposes of the bath; importance of the skin in the animal economy; structure and functions of the skin; exposure of the skin to the air; resistance of cold; costume of ancient Britons; defensive powers of the bath against catarrh; weakening of the skin by clothing; comparison of physical qualities of healthy and unhealthy skin; sensibility of the skin; hardening of the skin; nutritive properties of the skin; training; influence of the bath in the prevention of disease; curative powers of the bath pp. 111-127

CHAPTER III.. Rational Use of the Bath.

RATIONAL USE OF THE BATH.

Proper employment of the bath; proper temperature; proper time for taking the bath; duration and frequency of taking the bath; customs of the Moslem; unfounded apprehension of taking "cold;" the bath cannot give cold; disturbance of nutritive function occasioned by the bath; strengthening and restoring properties of the bath: Mr. Urquhart's evidence; Sir Alexander Burnes's evidence; health of shampooers pp. 128-141

Medical properties of the bath; on what principles founded; its chemical and electrical powers; its preservation of the balance of the nutritive functions; it supersedes the necessity for exercise; estimation of the medical powers of the bath in Turkey; its influence in producing longevity; it removes fat; gives power of exercise; removes rheumatism, and cures spasm and cramp; example of cure of wry-neck, pp. 141-152

CHAPTER IV.. Application of the Bath to Horses and Cattle,

APPLICATION OF THE BATH TO HORSES AND CATTLE, FOR TRAINING AND THE CURE OF DISEASE.

Adaptation of the Turkish Bath to the horse, dog, oxen, cows, sheep, swine, &c.; its application to the purpose of training; Mr. Goodwin's management of horses after severe exercise; his remarks on the use of the bath in the stable, pp. 153-159

The skin a respiratory organ; ventilation of the skin; clipping and singeing horses pp. 159-161

Dr. Barter's application of the bath to the treatment of the diseases of animals; report of a committee appointed to inquire into the utility of Dr. Barter's bath for the cure of distemper in cattle pp. 162-164

Observations on the use of the bath; and rules to be followed in taking it pp. 165-167

a a. The portico. b. The Ephebeum, the room of the Ephebi or youths, c. The Apodyterium and Gymnasterium. d. The Elaiothesium, or anointing room. e. The Konisterium, or dusting room. f f. The hot baths. g. The stove or Laconicum. h. The cold bath. i. The Peristylium or Piazza, which includes the Sphæristerium, and Palestra. k k. Xysti. l l. Xysticus silvis. m. The Stadium.]

a. The Frigidarium, or cool room. b. The Tepidarium, or room of middle temperature. c. The Calidarium, sudatorium, or concamerata sudatio; around this apartment are seen several ranges of platforms of marble. d. A vaulted stove, covered by an arched cover, clipeus: this stove gave additional heat to the part of the room wherein it was situated, and constituted the Laconicum. e. The Lavatorium or Balneum; there are marble platforms in this apartment, and in its centre is an open bath, called, from its large everted lip upon which the bather sat, labrum. g g. The Hypocaustum. h. The room in which the water is stored and heated. In the uppermost vase the water is cold, as is indicated by the absence of fire beneath it. In the second vase the water is warm, being placed at a considerable height above the fire. In the lowest vase the water is hot. i. The Elaiothesium, or anointing room, from which the bather passes to the Vestiarium or Spoliatorium.]

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