Tar-water was a medieval medicine consisting of pine tar and

water Water is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is a transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance. It is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known liv ...

. As it was foul-tasting, it slowly dropped in popularity, but was revived in the

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the reign of Queen Victoria, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. Slightly different definitions are sometimes used. The era followed the ...

. It is used both as a tonic and as a substitute to get rid of "strong spirits". Both these uses were originally advocated by the philosopher

George Berkeley George Berkeley ( ; 12 March 168514 January 1753), known as Bishop Berkeley (Bishop of Cloyne of the Anglican Church of Ireland), was an Anglo-Irish philosopher, writer, and clergyman who is regarded as the founder of "immaterialism", a philos ...

(1685–1753), who lauded it in his tract ''Siris: A Chain of Philosophical Reflections and Inquiries, Concerning the Virtues of Tar Water'' (1744). It was regarded by medical experts to be

quackery Quackery, often synonymous with health fraud, is the promotion of fraudulent or Ignorance, ignorant medicine, medical practices. A quack is a "fraudulent or ignorant pretender to medical skill" or "a person who pretends, professionally or public ...

History

The use of tar water is mentioned in the second chapter of

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English novelist, journalist, short story writer and Social criticism, social critic. He created some of literature's best-known fictional characters, and is regarded by ...

's (1812–1870) ''

Great Expectations ''Great Expectations'' is the thirteenth novel by English author Charles Dickens and his penultimate completed novel. The novel is a bildungsroman and depicts the education of an orphan nicknamed Pip. It is Dickens' second novel, after ''Dav ...

'' (1861). Young Pip and his brother-in-law, Joe, were often force fed it by Mrs. Joe, Pip's elder sister, whether they were ill or not, as a sort of cruel punishment. The physician Cadwallader Colden (1688–1776) extolled the virtues of pine resin steeped in water. This concoction also was called "tar water". George Berkeley suggested that tar from

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. ''World Flora Online'' accepts 134 species-rank taxa (119 species and 15 nothospecies) of pines as cu ...

fir Firs are evergreen coniferous trees belonging to the genus ''Abies'' () in the family Pinaceae. There are approximately 48–65 extant species, found on mountains throughout much of North and Central America, Eurasia, and North Africa. The genu ...

be stirred for three or four minutes with an equal quantity of water and the mixture allowed to stand for 48 hours. At this time, the separated water is drawn off to be drunk, at the rate of one half-pint night and morning "on an empty stomach". Fresh water is added to the unused portion and again stirred to provide more of the preparation, until the mixture becomes too weak. Explorer Henry Ellis (1721–1806) praises tar water as "the only powerful and prevailing medicine" against

scurvy Scurvy is a deficiency disease (state of malnutrition) resulting from a lack of vitamin C (ascorbic acid). Early symptoms of deficiency include weakness, fatigue, and sore arms and legs. Without treatment, anemia, decreased red blood cells, gum d ...

during his 1746 voyage to Hudson's Bay (although his editor,

James Lind James Lind (4 October 1716 – 13 July 1794) was a Scottish physician. He was a pioneer of naval hygiene in the Royal Navy. By conducting one of the first ever clinical trials, he developed the theory that citrus fruits cured scurvy. Lind ...

, notes that "a want of greens and herbage" was the chief cause of the outbreak). Fleuriot the lieutenant, who suffers from

consumption Consumption may refer to: * Eating *Resource consumption *Tuberculosis, an infectious disease, historically known as consumption * Consumer (food chain), receipt of energy by consuming other organisms * Consumption (economics), the purchasing of n ...

in second degree, is mentioned to have been advised to take tar water in aid of his battle against the ailment, by Sarrazin the general in ''Memoirs of Vidocq'' (1828) by

Eugène François Vidocq Eugene is a common male given name that comes from the Greek εὐγενής (''eugenēs''), "noble", literally "well-born", from εὖ (''eu''), "well" and γένος (''genos''), "race, stock, kin".jalaps, and gruels, and messe." At the same time, he stretched out his arm, he seized a large pitcher, which was near him, and filled a can, which he offered to me, and all refusal was in vain. I was compelled to swallow some of the nauseous stuff, as was also the aide-de-camp., Eugène François Vidocq, p. 144 Chapter XIX In the introduction of his ''Journal of A Voyage to Lisbon'' (1749), English author

Henry Fielding Henry Fielding (22 April 1707 – 8 October 1754) was an English writer and magistrate known for the use of humour and satire in his works. His 1749 comic novel ''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'' was a seminal work in the genre. Along wi ...

(1707–1754) briefly tries tar-water as a panacea for treating dropsy: "But even such a panacea one of the greatest scholars and best of men did lately apprehend he had discovered .. The reader, I think, will scarce need to be informed that the writer I mean is the late

bishop of Cloyne The Bishop of Cloyne is an episcopal title that takes its name after the small town of Cloyne in County Cork, Ireland. In the Roman Catholic Church, it is a separate title; but, in the Church of Ireland, it has been united with other bishopri ...

, in Ireland, and the discovery that of the virtues of tar-water".Henry Fielding: ''Journal of A Voyage to Lisbon'' By the Bishop of Cloyne, Fielding refers to the above-mentioned philosopher George Berkeley.

History

References

Further reading