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[VANITY]: Now that we are approaching the end of the Toilet Paper era, perhaps we should consider other options, such as those described in Chapter 13 of Rabelais' famous book: "Gargantua and Pentagruel"
Wikisource ^ | 1532-1564 | François Rabelais

Posted on 03/16/2020 10:09:43 AM PDT by Maceman

How Gargantua's wonderful understanding became known to his father Grangousier, by the invention of a torchecul or wipebreech.

=========================

About the end of the fifth year, Grangousier returning from the conquest of the Canarians, went by the way to see his son Gargantua. There was he filled with joy, as such a father might be at the sight of such a child of his: and whilst he kissed and embraced him, he asked many childish questions of him about divers matters, and drank very freely with him and with his governesses, of whom in great earnest he asked, amongst other things, whether they had been careful to keep him clean and sweet. I have, answered Gargantua, by a long and curious experience, found out a means to wipe my bum, the most lordly, the most excellent, and the most convenient that ever was seen. What is that? said Grangousier, how is it? I will tell you by-and-by, said Gargantua. Once I did wipe me with a gentle-woman's velvet mask, and found it to be good; for the softness of the silk was very voluptuous and pleasant to my fundament. Another time with one of their hoods, and in like manner that was comfortable.

At another time with a lady's neckerchief, and after that I wiped me with some ear-pieces of hers made of crimson satin, but there was such a number of golden spangles in them (turdy round things, a pox take them) that they fetched away all the skin of my tail with a vengeance.

Now I wish St. Antony's fire burn the bum-gut of the goldsmith that made them, and of her that wore them! This hurt I cured by wiping myself with a page's cap, garnished with a feather after the Switzers' fashion.

Afterwards, in dunging behind a bush, I found a March-cat, and with it I wiped my breech, but her claws were so sharp that they scratched and exulcerated all my perinee. Of this I recovered the next morning thereafter, by wiping myself with my mother's gloves, of a most excellent perfume and scent of the Arabian Benin.

After that I wiped me with sage, with fennel, with anet, with marjoram, with roses, with gourd-leaves, with beets, with colewort, with leaves of the vine-tree, with mallows, wool-blade, which is a tail-scarlet, with lettuce, and with spinach leaves. All this did very great good to my leg. Then with mercury, with parsley, with nettles, with comfrey, but that gave me the bloody flux of Lombardy, which I healed by wiping me with my braguette.

Then I wiped my tail in the sheets, in the coverlet, in the curtains, with a cushion, with arras hangings, with a green carpet, with a table-cloth, with a napkin, with a handkerchief, with a combing-cloth; in all which I found more pleasure than do the mangy dogs when you rub them.

Yea, but, said Grangousier, which torchecul did you find to be the best? I was coming to it, said Gargantua, and by-and-by shall you hear the tu autem, and know the whole mystery and knot of the matter. I wiped myself with hay, with straw, with thatch-rushes, with flax, with wool, with paper, but,

Who his foul tail with paper wipes,
Shall at his ballocks leave some chips.

What, said Grangousier, my little rogue, hast thou been at the pot, that thou dost rhyme already? Yes, yes, my lord the king, answered Gargantua, I can rhyme gallantly, and rhyme till I become hoarse with rheum. Hark, what our privy says to the skiters:

Shittard,
Squirtard,
Crackard,
Turdous,
Thy bung
Hath flung
Some dung

On us:
Filthard,
Cackard,
Stinkard,
St. Antony's fire seize on thy toane (bone?),
If thy
Dirty
Dounby
Thou do not wipe, ere thou be gone.

Will you have any more of it? Yes, yes, answered Grangousier. Then, said Gargantua,

A Roundelay.
In shitting yes'day I did know
The sess I to my arse did owe:
The smell was such came from that slunk,
That I was with it all bestunk:
O had but then some brave Signor
Brought her to me I waited for,
In shitting!


I would have cleft her watergap,
And join'd it close to my flipflap,
Whilst she had with her fingers guarded
My foul nockandrow, all bemerded
In shitting.

Now say that I can do nothing! By the Merdi, they are not of my making, but I heard them of this good old grandam, that you see here, and ever since have retained them in the budget of my memory.

Let us return to our purpose, said Grangousier. What, said Gargantua, to skite? No, said Grangousier, but to wipe our tail. But, said Gargantua, will not you be content to pay a puncheon of Breton wine, if I do not blank and gravel you in this matter, and put you to a non-plus? Yes, truly, said Grangousier.

There is no need of wiping one's tail, said Gargantua, but when it is foul; foul it cannot be, unless one have been a-skiting; skite then we must before we wipe our tails. O my pretty little waggish boy, said Grangousier, what an excellent wit thou hast? I will make thee very shortly proceed doctor in the jovial quirks of gay learning, and that, by God, for thou hast more wit than age. Now, I prithee, go on in this torcheculative, or wipe-bummatory discourse, and by my beard I swear, for one puncheon, thou shalt have threescore pipes, I mean of the good Breton wine, not that which grows in Britain, but in the good country of Verron.

Afterwards I wiped my bum, said Gargantua, with a kerchief, with a pillow, with a pantoufle, with a pouch, with a pannier, but that was a wicked and unpleasant torchecul; then with a hat. Of hats, note that some are shorn, and others shaggy, some velveted, others covered with taffeties, and others with satin. The best of all these is the shaggy hat, for it makes a very neat abstersion of the fecal matter.

Afterwards I wiped my tail with a hen, with a cock, with a pullet, with a calf's skin, with a hare, with a pigeon, with a cormorant, with an attorney's bag, with a montero, with a coif, with a falconer's lure. But, to conclude, I say and maintain, that of all torcheculs, arsewisps, bumfodders, tail-napkins, bunghole cleansers, and wipe-breeches, there is none in the world comparable to the neck of a goose, that is well downed, if you hold her head betwixt your legs.

And believe me therein upon mine honour, for you will thereby feel in your nockhole a most wonderful pleasure, both in regard of the softness of the said down and of the temporate heat of the goose, which is easily communicated to the bum-gut and the rest of the inwards, in so far as to come even to the regions of the heart and brains.

And think not that the felicity of the heroes and demigods in the Elysian fields consisteth either in their asphodel, ambrosia, or nectar, as our old women here used to say; but in this, according to my judgment, that they wipe their tails with the neck of a goose, holding her head betwixt their legs, and such is the opinion of Master John of Scotland, alias Scotus.


TOPICS: Chit/Chat; Education; Humor
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I hope the moderators do not delete this historical literary work by one of the most famous writers of the 14th century, to which I was first introduced in a college literature class.

But given the pending toilet paper famine, I thought we might all benefit from reading the above in considering some of the other available alternatives that have been tried in centuries past.

1 posted on 03/16/2020 10:09:43 AM PDT by Maceman
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To: Maceman

I sugggest everyone purchase a copy of Atlas Shrugged. A book that length will supply a family of 4 with TP for at least 30 days.


2 posted on 03/16/2020 10:13:52 AM PDT by GSWarrior
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To: Maceman
Ooops! I meant to say: "One of the most famous writers of the 16th century."
3 posted on 03/16/2020 10:15:20 AM PDT by Maceman (PeopleExho vote Democrat sell their lives (and ours) to the government and their souls to the Devil.)
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To: GSWarrior

After it’s read, of course. That way, one will obtain a 100% correct prediction of what any progressive excuse for gubmit will do for the next ten years.


4 posted on 03/16/2020 10:15:39 AM PDT by Da Coyote
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To: Maceman

5 posted on 03/16/2020 10:18:17 AM PDT by Bratch (“If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.)
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To: Maceman
I knew we should have kept that Diaper Genie. We could use wet washcloths to throw in the washer and never need TP again!!! /s
6 posted on 03/16/2020 10:18:34 AM PDT by jeffc (The U.S. media are our enemy)
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To: Maceman

Someone suggested we put bumper stickers which say:
“I survived the Great TP Shortage of 2020”


7 posted on 03/16/2020 10:18:41 AM PDT by Zathras
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To: GSWarrior

If you have a washing machine you don’t need toilet paper.


8 posted on 03/16/2020 10:19:17 AM PDT by Uncle Sham
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To: Maceman

I’ve been quoting these Gargantua verses a the last few days on FR and FB. Still up and FB has not rushed me to FB prison.

“’I have’, answered Gargantua, ‘by a long and curious experience found out a means to wipe my bum.
The most lordly, the most excellent, the most convenient that was ever seen. I have wiped my tail with a hen, with a cock, with a pullet, with a calf’s skin, with a hare, with a pigeon, with a cormorant, with an attorney’s bag, with a Montero, with a falconer’s lure. But to conclude, I say and maintain that of all the torcheculs, arsewisps, bumfodders, tail-napkins, bunghole cleansers, and wipe-breeches, there is none in the world comparable to the neck of a goose, that is well downed, if you hold her head betwixt your legs.
And believe me therein upon mine honour, for you will thereby feel in your nockhole a most wonderful pleasure, both in regard of the softness of the said down and of the temporate heat of the goose, which is easily communicated to the bum-gut and the rest of the inwards, in so far as to come even to the regions of the heart and brains.’”—Rabelais


9 posted on 03/16/2020 10:19:24 AM PDT by Ruy Dias de Bivar
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To: Maceman

Nobody needs or receives those gigantic issues of the Yellow Pages Phone Book anymore. Remember how thick they could be?
That would have been a sure way to make certain that ‘your fingers DO NOT do the walking’.


10 posted on 03/16/2020 10:20:45 AM PDT by lee martell
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To: Zathras

HERE IN LA THERE IS N O FOOD EITHER. I have bee n making the founds this morning. all of the stores are h=jammed. but there is almost no food. today I bought canned sardines.


11 posted on 03/16/2020 10:21:41 AM PDT by BunnySlippers (I LOVE BULL MARKETS)
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To: Uncle Sham

Now is not the time for common sense.


12 posted on 03/16/2020 10:22:33 AM PDT by GSWarrior
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To: lee martell

At the store yesterday, the toilet paper aisle was wiped (chuckle) clean but so was the cheese. People are choosing constipation as an option.


13 posted on 03/16/2020 10:26:47 AM PDT by MisterArtery
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To: GSWarrior
I sugggest everyone purchase a copy of Atlas Shrugged.

Have you tried The Stand? Topical and huge. The Plague by Camus is much shorter and way too hard.

14 posted on 03/16/2020 10:28:50 AM PDT by KarlInOhio (Newton invented calculus when the plague shut down Cambridge. What will you do with your time off?)
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To: KarlInOhio

That might make a thread: what books to use for TP substitute, and why.


15 posted on 03/16/2020 10:32:02 AM PDT by HartleyMBaldwin
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To: Maceman

Now that we are approaching the end of the Toilet Paper era...


Meh. I just use the three shells.


16 posted on 03/16/2020 10:32:27 AM PDT by cuban leaf (The political war playing out in every country now: Globalists vs Nationalists)
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To: Maceman

You have done a good service both to literature and the general edification of the FR readers in these dark days.


17 posted on 03/16/2020 10:35:05 AM PDT by babble-on
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Rabelais forgot to mention the air dry method.

As necessity is the mother of invention, underwear must have been developed as a measure keep ones trousers clean and free of skid marks.


18 posted on 03/16/2020 10:35:52 AM PDT by Clutch Martin (The trouble ain't that there is too many fools, but that the lightning ain't distributed right.)
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To: Maceman

A copy of the Koran will work for me.


19 posted on 03/16/2020 10:37:03 AM PDT by forgotten man
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To: Uncle Sham

Someone, somewhere, is now designing a redneck bidet.


20 posted on 03/16/2020 10:42:11 AM PDT by lastchance (Credo.)
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