Ernest asked: Has Pipe Smoking Changed With Time? | Dottle Diggers, Ember Chasing And Slow Smoking

Ernest asked: Has Pipe Smoking Changed With Time? September 9th, 2010

As many of you know, I tend to look upon History from a slightly different perspective than what is generally found in text books. And that I have heretofore touched on the differences between the “modern pipe smoker” and those “old school pipe smokers”. In this incarnation of my humble blog, I have collected some old forum posts and some new musings from varied sources. While it may seem disjointed in context and style, I think I will manage to convey my thoughts.

A question was posed by one of PipesMagazine.com’s newest members, Ernest. He started the string: Serious question: Has pipe smoking changed with time? I think that the “old school” has had at least 8 very different incarnations, but there is something at the heart of each, and I don’t mean nicotine.

As something of a History buff, I felt that if I posted to Ernest’s string, I would simply be responding with an anecdote and not truly answering his question. I feel that Rod’s screen name is both self-defining and a challenge to us to contemplate and expound, even though it is spelled differently than the word defined below. So, light your pipe, and read my attempt at allowing us to think beyond what we can see.

ear·nest¹ (ûrnst)

adj.

1. Marked by or showing deep sincerity or seriousness: an earnest gesture of goodwill.

2. Of an important or weighty nature; grave. See Synonyms at serious.

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/earnest

Bearing the above in mind, the following may seem somewhat disjointed, so bear with me.

1) Our European perspectives and ignorance have attached the moniker of “Peace Pipe” on that which is at the foundation of our shared passion… the conveyance of prayers to and the contemplation of, their venerated spirits, and the creator of all things through the burning of tobacco by the indigenous peoples of the Americas.

2) Upon the acquisition of tobacco from the New World, Sir Walter Raleigh brought it first to England, where it spread across Europe and the rest of the world. The earliest depiction of pipe smoking (I have seen) is of Sir Walter Raleigh smoking a long pipe and reading a parchment document at his desk. Being a poet, I can imagine him deep in the contemplation of his writings. This depiction of Raleigh’s relaxed demeanor demonstrates to me that deep thinking and relaxation are inherent to the nature of pipe smoking. I might add that the wood block print shows a servant or Paige about to douse Raleigh with a jug of water; because he thinks Raleigh is on fire. So, there was humor in the 16^th Century.

3) From: http://pipesmagazine.com/forums/topic/archeologists-in-new-york-uncover-tobacco-pipes-dating-back-to-the-17th-century#post-8260

Yes, we are members of an old and venerable fraternity.
Thanks Bob,
I love the history that one cannot find in text books.
The day to day inconveniences, struggles, prejudices and wider realities of life in our progenitor’s past.
The implication that the “Colonies” were given ’seconds’ and flawed merchandise is illuminating. Makes one contemplate the world’s unconscious perceptions of our nations place in the larger world at that time.
OR, is that all they could afford?
It depends on the context of the find, the social status of the owners. The article said the fragments were found in trash. What type of trash? Was this the contents from a fireplace? If so, were they discarded from a public house (a pub or restaurant) or a home, or a place of business? How did their former owners make their living? Were they aristocrats, restaurateurs, carpenters, tinkers… thieves…… slaves? Romanticizing here: If from a pub; were these pipe smokers discussing taxation by the crown or Suzy Rotten Crotch’s ankles over on Wall Street over a pint of ale or porter? Were they Dutch, or English subjects? Did they smoke their pipes by candle light or oil lantern?
Damn… I love history.

4) After a fill from a draw-string tobacco pouch hung from his belt; I see the air cured Red Virginia tobacco being smoked in long clay churchwarden next to a stone hearth, by one of our Founding Fathers with his feet on the fender and a pint at his elbow on a cold winter’s night, engrossed by the fire, while blissfully unaware of the hubbub of the Public House going on around him in the monochromatic light from the flames and candles filtered through a smoky haze. (Private forum: Paraphrased from a description of an impression provided by a unique and excellent tobacco blend.)

5) In the Clint Eastwood movie “The Outlaw Jose Wales”, there is a scene with a character called Granny. While I could expound on the gritty reality depicted in the great movie, I will restrict my observations to the person of Granny in that one scene. Granny is “Up to the store”. She is earthy, hates the “Red Legs”, knows what Josey Wales represents to the Red Legs, finds humor in the boastings of the Captain of the Red Legs, is generous in providing aid to the Outlaw Josey Wales and the kid with a “you can pay me when ya see me Josey Wales”. She speaks her mind, afraid of no consequence for those words, and smokes a homemade corn cob pipe probably packed with home grown and cured tobacco. Granny see’s things for what they really are, and not what they seem to be. In short, she’s a thinker.

6) From: http://pipesmagazine.com/forums/topic/memorable-pipe-smokers-from-your-past#post-3902

One of our newest members Patriotfirst got me to thinking back to my early days of pipe smoking and my curiosity about my new passion, way back when….
Woodlawn Hardware Store was a dusty relic of the old style Mom and Pop Hardware stores where you could find things that you couldn’t find anywhere else. (After a bit of rummaging of course.) (You know the type.) Even the hours were antiquated. 6 to 6 Mon. - Sat. except Wednesdays when we closed at noon because of an old blue-law. (So people could go to church.) Well there was an old WWI veteran that would come in to buy a couple of nails or screws or just to shoot the breeze. He smoked a pipe with a Rum Soaked Crook cigar in it. I always found this amusing, but practical. He told me he had been smoking that way since “Ma momma give me dis pipe fo my 6′d birt-day. Mah re-ward for bein’ a good boy-n stayin’ in school”.

7) During the 1950’s the epitome of the American Dream was realized. The War to End All Wars was over; Vietnam was a country somewhere on the kid’s globe. There was inexpensive housing with running water, showers in the bathrooms, the inevitable child of the Great Depression wife wearing an apron, spoiled children (of which many of us are included), she always had a fresh Permanent, and she would always have dinner waiting for her husband when he returned home. The husband… worked 9 to 5, had perfect hair, and easy chair, a shiny new car (with fins), an immaculate lawn that was mown every Saturday, three channels on the tube, a clenched Dr. Graybow stuffed with Prince Albert and a big smile on his face while reading, and thinking about the news of the day…. Life was good.

8 ) Over the last 40 years the world has changed. Maybe no more than in other times, our concerns have definitely changed. Baby Boomers now outnumber the young. We have 400 channels on the satellite, and instant information on the internet. Pipe smokers are more highly educated and sophisticated than at any point in history. We know what type of pipe we prefer, what tobacco goes with our morning coffee or that smooooooth nightcap. We wonder about what we tasted in that last bowl; was that raisins or apricots. Is Short Cut to Mushrooms an English mix or an aromatic with a touch of Latakia? Now when I light up my pipe, I read a book, post my musings on the internet, listen to music, or think about the musings and ideas of others.

So, from my own historical perceptions; I have to say, from the earliest incarnations the of stone, clay, and wooden pipes of the early Native Americans, to the latest in high tech carbon fiber pipes with stainless steel bowls manufactured in sophisticated factories, there is but one constant… It’s what we do while smoking those pipes that counts. While the subjects have varied greatly over time, and from person to person, the smoking of a pipe has always facilitated contemplation, and therefore hasn’t changed.

5 Responses to “Ernest asked: Has Pipe Smoking Changed With Time?”

classicgeek said:

Good stuff!

The pipe smoker does lean towards the contemplative side. Just look at the number of videos on YouTube of people who are doing nothing but smoking their pipe and either pondering the blend or ruminating on some subject or other. If you’re going to smoke a pipe, you need to pay attention and that from that attention springs forth contemplation. Although the pipe night at the tobacconist is a social experience, the fact is that more people are listening than talking.

Maybe that’s something critical that is missing these days.

Simon

September 10th, 2010 at 9:18 am
ernest said:

I also am a fanatic of our history,the problem is I like it served to me in a manner where I can follow a narrator and camera on the television.Only a few times have I went on a hunt through other means to dig up what I needed to sooth my craving at the time.With that being said,I have learned a lot of history in regard to this question, from the answers I(we)have received.I found myself wanting the response from above to go on and on, simply because it was filling my appetite for what is interesting to me at this time.Plus,if you throw -”the outlaw Jose Wales” in there,now that is just the icing on the cake.Really enjoyed it!Ernest is my middle name,and what a difference when you add a letter to something.

September 10th, 2010 at 12:01 pm
cortezattic said:

Thanks for the article. I liked the sense of temporal flow it evokes; and the connectedness we have with what has passed, and what is carrying us along on the continuing current.

September 10th, 2010 at 2:03 pm
pstlpkr said:

Thank all of you Gentlemen for the kind words.

And thank you Rod for that great question.

September 10th, 2010 at 8:27 pm
whitebriar said:

good article pstlpkr–history is intriguing to say the least–the only thing better that drawing history out of dusty old books is digging it out of the dusty old earth–

September 10th, 2010 at 11:44 pm

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