[Sca-cooks] Interesting facts of life

[Barbara Sall]

This was e-mailed to me by a friend who knows my interests.  It may or may
not be true, but it is fun to read.  The author is unknown.
Facts of life in the 1500's
1. Most people got married in June, because they took their yearly bath in
May and still smelled pretty good by June.  However, they were starting to
smell so the brides carried a bouquet of flowers to hide the smell.
Baths consisted of a big tub filled with hot water.  The man of the house
had the privilege of nice clean water, then all of the other sons and men,
then the women and finally the children-last of all the babies.  By then the
water was so dirty you could actually lose someone in it - hence the saying
"Don't throw the baby out with the bath water."

2. Houses had thatched roofs-thick straw piled high, with no wood
underneath.  It was the only place for the animals to get
Warm, so all the dogs, cats and other small animals (mice, rats and bugs)
lived in the roof.  When it rained it became slippery and sometimes the
animals would slip and fall off the roof-hence the saying "Its raining cats
and dogs."

3. There was nothing to stop things from falling into the house.  This posed
a real problem in the bedroom where bugs and
other droppings could really mess up your nice clean bed.  Hence a bed with
big posts and a sheet hung over the top afforded some protection.  That is
how a canopy bed came to be.

There are 11 facts in total, some dealing with food and others dealing with
coffins, the kind they buried people in.  If you want the rest e-mail me
privately and I will send them to you.  I am not going to tie up the cooks
list with all of them.
Kirsten of Blak Rose