The benefits of nicotine

Research suggests that nicotine may help alleviate or delay the onset of Alzheimer's.

Professor Ian Stolerman, from King's College in London, who led the studies, said that such treatments could offer "relief" to dementia patients, tens of thousands of whom are diagnosed in Britain every year.

Prof Stolerman said: "The substances we call drugs, in the majority of cases, actually do have a mixture of beneficial and harmful effects and nicotine is no exception in this."

Prof Stolerman started his research more than 10 years ago, initially not expecting to find that nicotine would have much effect on the brain's ability to concentrate.

His studies prove that the nicotine is more effective than other popular stimulants like caffeine at enhancing the brain's attention span.

His research suggests that the relatively small effect that nicotine has on healthy people would be greatly magnified in dementia sufferers.

The effect of the treatments could allow Alzheimer's sufferers to delay the onset of the disease for months, he believes.

Read the whole article. It wouldn't surprise me if Stolerman gets slammed for suggesting that nicotine might have beneficial effects, but we should be grasping at every straw we can find when it comes to Alzheimer's (in my opinion).

Featured Pipe Smoker (Fictional): Gimli, son of Gloín

Brer once remarked that when he saw this picture, he thought that was how I must feel sometimes. I have many fictional characters in my collection of pipe-smokers, several from LotR. In this still from one of the Peter Jackson movies, John Rhys-Davies portrays the dwarf Gimli, son of Gloín. After a hard day of hewing orcs, he finds a quiet respite to smoke a pipe while seated comfortably on the corpse of a convenient orc, the orc's head having provided a handy place to rest his battle axe.

Gimli was a Dwarf of the race of Durin. His father, Gloín joined Thorin Oakenshield on the journey to Erebor. Gimli was born 2879 Third Age and spent most of his youth in the Ered Luin, till he went to Erebor with his father in 2941. From there Dáin II Ironfoot sent them both to Rivendell to take part in the Council of Elrond in 3018. Like usual for Dwarves, Gimli mistrusted Elves with the Naugrim's proverbial stubbornness, an attitude he changed soon after meeting Gladriel in Lorien. On the council Gimli was chosen to be a member of the Fellowship of the Ring and to join Frodo, Sam, Merry, Pippin, Aragorn, Boromir, Gandalf and Legolas on their journey to Mordor.

Gimli turned out to be a great leader and courageous fighter in the mines of Moria. Since the times of Durin, Gimli was the first Dwarf to set his foot on the ground of the realm of the Wood Elves in Lothlórien. He requested and received a strand of Galadriel's hair, as a symbol for the unbreakable friendship between the wood and the mountain. From this moment on everybody had to fear Gimli's axe, who showed even the shadow of a reservation against the Elven-Queen.

After the breaking of the Fellowship at the falls of Rauros, Gimli fought together with Aragorn and Legolas in the war in Rohan and afterwards took part in the ride on the Paths of the Dead. Defending the Hornburg, he beheaded 42 enemies with his broad-bladed battle-axe.

In the years after the end of the War of the Ring Gimli settled together with a group of Dwarves of the Erebor in Aglarond; and was called "Master of the Glittering Caves" since. The smiths and masons of Aglarond did a lot of workmanship for the Kings of Rohan and Gondor.

Gimli was said to be the only Dwarf who traveled with his friend Legolas to the Old West.

Thanks to Khazad-Dum.com for the biography.

He appears to be smoking a clay pipe.

Vintage Ad (date unknown): Union Leader

Based on the style of this ad, I'd say this is from the early 1900s, probably before The Great War, but I can't be much more specific than that. Union Leader used Uncle Sam as a recurring feature in their ads.

Visitor Maps

I was just checking Statcounter and thought I'd take a look at the most recent visitor maps. Here's the map for Blogonomicon. (Click to enlarge for both).

Typical, I'd say. Most hits from the United States. Understandable, since most traffic here comes from people who originally started coming here for gun-related posts.

The map for The Briar Files is interesting.

There are more hits from Europe than there are from the United States. The number two country after the U.S. is France, thanks to Pipes et tabacs and Fumers de Pipe.

Thanks for all the traffic! Or should I say--merci!

Tonka live-blogging

Not the toy cars.

The tonka bean is the seed of Dipteryx odorata, a legume tree in the neotropics, of the Fabaceae family. The seed is black and wrinkled in appearance, with a smooth brown interior. It is known mostly for its fragrance, which is reminiscent of vanilla, almonds, cinnamon, and cloves: it has sometimes been used commercially as a substitute for vanilla. It is also sometimes used in perfume and was commonly used in tobacco before being banned.

--Wikipedia

Banned? Then how does it come to still be used in pipe tobacco? Or perhaps it's only a flavoring extract that is used in the tobacco, not the bean itself? Perhaps someone can clarify this for me.

Anyway, we have a relatively rainy day here today, so I've taken the opportunity to lock myself in my Sanctum and finally crack the tin of 1792 Flake that has been lurking in my cabinet for some weeks now. Lurking, I say, leering at me mockingly, daring me to smoke. This is a tobacco that has been in my mind to try for many years. I often rely very well on tobaccoreviews.com for information on prospective blends; the reviews on this one, as well as remarks made some years ago on a.s.p. have always intrigued me.

I have never read a middle-of-the-road, so-so opinion on 1792. Every reviewer I've read either declared that he hated it and would never smoke it again, or that it was fantastic and would be a regular part of his cellar. Such extreme reviews, coupled with the mention of a flavor I had never heard of (tonquin, or tonka bean) and was described with widely varying characteristics by different smokers, drove me to eventually try it myself.

This is only my first bowl, and I've loaded it up in my try-out pipe (the Kirsten). The description of flavors of the bean from Wikipedia is not inaccurate, but is inadequate. All of the characteristics are there, and more. Since this is only my first bowl, I do not feel qualified to comment on it yet, but there are shades of scents that fire inexact memories of places and people from the past, in much the way Bullseye Flake did. The aftertaste left behind puts me in mind most of lightly flavored chocolate coffee.

Samuel Gawith’s 1792 Flake is truly not for the faint-hearted. The Tonquin extract used to flavor the flake is quite heady and strong. Nonetheless, the first time with this can be an eye-opening experience as the intense flavor can easily overwhelm if smoked too quickly. Pierre’s advise is to set aside some quality time to spend with 1792, and you will come to love this unusual offering as much as he.

--from Pierre's Tobacco Reviews

I believe that I have somewhat anesthetized myself against this "overwhelmingness" by smoking lots of strong Perique blends, but it may not set in until the pipe is nearly finished, or even for a few minutes after it's completely finished. For now I can only say that this tobacco warrants further experimentation.

This is definitely a tobacco that deserves attention and gradualness. To hurry would be to cheat this tobacco, and yourself.

UPDATE: Finished. Wow. It made me thirsty. Very mild head-swimmingness. I will have to decide on a regular briar pipe to dedicate only to this blend.

Featured Pipe Smoker: Aloysius Smith (a.k.a. Trader Horn)

Aloysius Smith (Trader Horn) 1861-1931

Aloysius Smith was a true character: adventurer, hero, villain, and just about everything in between. Two movies were made about him, but they were probably heavily fictionalized and inaccurate. When I included him on my old website several years ago, a cousin of his--John Robert Smith of Preston, England--discovered my entry and sent me some information about him. Here is most of what he sent me.

* * * * *

Trader was born in York Street, Preston, in 1861 and shortly after his birth the family moved to St. Ignatius' Square and it is here that Trader was brought up. Aloysius was the fourth child of Robert Smith and Sarah Broughton. He had 3 brothers (two of them, Thomas & John, became priests) and 5 sisters (one of them, Trinita becoming an abbess in the south of Ireland).

He was educated at St Edward's School, Liverpool. I presume he went here as he was probably following in his brothers' footsteps. Although his brothers joined the priesthood, the impact on Trader was not such as to follow them into the ministry, but rather his education was to stand him in good stead as to his ability to travel and stand on his own two feet.A great influence in his life were his grandfather John Smith (my great great grandfather) who hailed from Myerscough but who died at Raikes Farm, Lea--and his Uncle Edward (Miser Ned) who inherited Raikes Farm but built Raikes House nearby and died there. Ned is buried in a "common grave bought out" with no head stone in St Mary's RC churchyard at Lea, just down the road from Raikes House, as is grandfather John whose grave does have a headstone.

Young Aloysius spent time at the farm at Lea in the company of grandfather John (my grandfather Horn was always fond o' me. Aye, he always encouraged my notions about leaving school and going to sea) and an old family friend, Tommy Bamber, who was a ex-seafairer with a wooden leg. Aloysius sat many hours at the fireside listening to the old people talking of deeds past and adventures undertaken. He also spent time with uncle Ned, fishing and shooting and gaining knowledge of the countryside. It can only be surmised that young Aloysius preferred the adventure and country life to strict Catholic schooling, and for his rebellion he was expelled from St Edwards before he took his final examinations.

So he left St Edward's College, Liverpool in February 1878.

He first worked for Hatton & Cookson of 1-3 Mersey St, Liverpool and was assigned to Equatorial West Africa. So at the age of 17 years, Aloysius embarked upon his career of adventure and started his love affair with Africa. His first tour of duty was mainly undertaken in Gaboon (Gabon).

When Trader returned to England and his beloved Lea, it was with sadness that he discovered the empty chair by the fireside, for his granddad (John Smith) had died in January 1882 and he dearly wished he could have told the old man his tales of adventure and daringdo experienced in his own travels.

Aloysius headed for London and started a new career, in that he became a political correspondent, but he returned to Preston in June 1883, eloped and married his "under-age" wife, Amy Knowles, "his lass from Lancashire," at St George's RC Church, St George's Rd, London on 13th June 1883. Following their marriage, Trader for a time continued as a political correspondent and Marie their daughter was born 9 months later. He worked with George Bussy, to whom he referred often in his conversations with Etheldreda Lewis whilst writing his books in the later years of his life. Aloysius and his young wife and child then made a short trip to the USA but returned and in October 1884 when he joined the London police force, warrant number 69890 and later passed exams to become a detective.

He resigned from the police force on 16 April 1887 and set off for America for a second time and joined up with Buffalo Bill's (William Cody) Wild West Show. Trader's son William was born (circa 1886) and was in fact delivered by Mrs. Cody.

Buffalo Bill's Travelling Circus visited Preston on numerous occassions. "The last visit was in 1904 with a circus which stayed on Penwortham Holme. Cody died in 1917." (From Evening Post Supplement, October 29, 1997). One must wonder weither it was Trader's influence or involvement which led to these visits to Preston.

When Trader left the circus and went to live in Pittsburgh is not certain, but what was certain is that his still young wife had failing health. Amy came home several times to Meadow Street, Preston but eventually grieving for the loss of their 2 year old daughter, Annie, her health had the last say and she died on 28th November 1894 (aged 27) and is buried in an unmarked paupers grave in St Mary's churchyard in Pittsburgh. Just prior to her death, Robert (Trader's brother) went to the States to bring Marie and William home to Preston, no doubt due to Amy's inability to cope due to her sickness.

After Amy's death Aloysius spent sometime in Morocco and then it becomes vague as to exactly where he was and when. However he certainly visited Madagascar and spent considerable time in Africa. He certainly fought in the Boer War and he met Cecil Rhodes, the founder of Rhodesia. He met up with Mrs. Ethelreda Lewis when he was in his mid 60's. He was in an impoverished state selling gridirons door to door, and living in a doss house in Johannesburg. Aloysius was near to death from malnutrition. I think he welcomed the attention of the Lewis family as life at his lodgings were pretty awful and a friendly fire, a dram of whisky and a square meal were an incentive to write and visit her on a weekly basis.

Trader Horn was the name given to Aloysius Smith to hide his identity and "protect the innocent." Also in the books, relationships have been changed and this makes it confusing to put together the members of the Smith family. We should also remember that the stories told by Trader were no doubt added to, and some were confused by his age and the age of the stories. Trader wrote three books: The Ivory Coast in the Earlies, Harold the Webbed and Waters of Africa. Although these books were written by Trader, Mrs Lewis put them in order and unbeknown to the old man she made copious notes during his visits of everything he said. Much of this is incorporated in the novels and for the genealogist is invaluable as it also tells the life story of Aloysius Smith.

Bearing in mind that his books started to be published in 1927, his fame and acclamation were short-lived in that he died only four years later in 1931. Whether the Old Traveller recognised that his days were numbered, he did return to England to join his daughter, Marie, at Whitstable. Father and daughter knew not of each other's whereabouts and it was only by publication of his books and the publicity that Marie even became aware that he was still alive.

However his return to his family did not slow the old villain down, as with money to spend he regularly went to London and did various tours around the country. On one of these trips to Cornwall his portrait was painted in St Ives by John A. Park and although it languished in the "Golden Lion" in St Ives for some time, it was later acquired and is still owned by the Preston Museum.

He went to America again to publicise his books and there was also a film made about his exploits. He did in fact see the film. I wonder how many people get the opportunity to see the story of their life on film. Normally such credits are reserved posthumously.

The film "TRADER HORN" was made by MGM starring Harry Carey, Edwina Booth and Duncan Renaldo and was released early in 1931 and became a blockbuster of its day. Many people in America flocked to it. When the film opened in Australia police had to be called in to control the crowds and quell riots by the film-goers. In Stockholm, Prince Carl of Sweden, Prince Axel of Denmark, the Crown Prince of Norway and the Crown Princess of Belgium all made sure that they were seen at the premiere. Crown Princess Astrid of Belgium requested a private showing of the film for herself and the Royal Family in Belgium. In India there was rioting in the crowds trying to get in to see the film and two Indians died from stab wounds and the police had to fire shots over the heads of the crowds to calm them.

Normal costs of an MGM production were $350,000, "Trader Horn" cost $3 million . By the end of 1931 the film had grossed $1.7 million. In the end the film just broke even.

In 1973 a second Trader Horn was made by MGM starring Rod Taylor, Anne Heywood and Jean Soel and was directed by Reza Badiyi. Whilst he used Lorreto, Joy Lane at Whitstable (Marie's home) as his base, with not infrequent visits to the local pubs, he eventually became ill and died on 26th June 1931 at St Helier Nursing Home in Tankerton and was buried in Millstrood Lane Cemetery, Whitstable.

In the past when asked to complete a biographical questionnaire as to the jobs held in his lifetime he replied: trader, entertainer, artist, auctioneer, bricklayer, fish-monger, pedler, furniture dealer, hunter, grave digger, detective, miner, sheriff, diamond prospector, light weight boxer, cotton picker, soldier, tobacco dealer, sailor (before the mast), soap merchant, clothier, optician, horse dealer, dental surgeon, horse stealer, quack doctor, cattle ranger, author, house decorator, monumental mason, street musician, circus trainer with Bill Cody, and to this he might also have added, traveller, story teller, hero, villain and history maker.

Also when asked which countries he had lived or travelled in he replied "Never lived in China or Russia." True or false, it shows the scope of his horizons which he encompassed in a mere 70 years which would require lesser mortals several lifetimes.

At his funeral a Zulu shield rested against the coffin and his beloved rifle and stetson lay on top. There were wreaths from the Savage Club, MGM and the Gaumont-British Picture Corporation. His death was acknowledged in leading newspapers all over the world, from Canada to Australia, India to Tangayika, The Times, the Guardian, Abbeville Chronicle, Manchester Guardian, Simla Times, Devon & Exeter Gazette, London Morning Post, New York Times, Literary Digest, Daily Express, & the Catholic Times. The inscription on his grave stone is very apt. Whether it was Marie's creativity or a final wish of the old traveller, I know not.

PRAY FOR THE SOUL OF
ALOYSIUS SMITH
(TRADER HORN)
DIED 26TH JUNE 1931

"Home is the sailor, home from the sea,
and the hunter home from the hill."

R.I.P.

Oops

I didn't realize the graphic link to last week's pipe smoker was broken. It's fixed now. You can scroll down if you're on the main page, or go directly to the post here.

The Mayor's Vice

I first began reading Cameron Bailey's blog when he focused on matters relating to the loss of liberty here in the United States. He has now turned to writing about pipes and pipe smoking. As expected, his posts are eloquent and thoughtful, and he occasionally lists for sale some very beautiful pipes. I recommend it. Follow the link to The Mayor's Vice.

Vintage Ad (1944): Lord Davenport pipes

This is one of my favorite old pipe ads. The gimmick here is not how the pipe is made, but how well it goes with your face.

It didn't matter what you looked like: Clark Gable, Ward Cleaver, that big guy from "All in the Family" who turned out to be gay, the guy from the Dos Equis commercials, Uncle Ben Parker, or a vaguely evil and militant Jason Robards; Lord Davenport had a pipe for you.

Living Dead Pipe

While watching one of my favorite old badfilms (Return of the Living Dead) last night, I noticed the mortuary guy smoking this unusual pipe.

Well, not actually smoking. As Joe Bob Briggs might say, "stunt smoking." Here's another angle.

Interesting pipe, and appropriate for someone who often works with his hands (such as embalming a corpse), because unlike most sitters that would require the pipe be put down with at least a small amount of care, this one could just be slapped down on any flat surface and it probably wouldn't fall over. The bowl was carved intact with a sort of "rocking horse" bottom and front. Put it down on the bottom, it sits. Put it down on the front, it still sits after rocking back to center the mass. An interesting pipe, although it seems to me that it would be quite heavy and uncomfortable to grip with the teeth for very long because of all that extra weight. There is a white mark of some sort on the stem, but it goes by too fast for me to see any detail. I've played it in slow motion and taken numerous screen caps, but just can't make it out. Can anyone identify it? Does this particular design have a specific name?

It seems a shame that such a nice pipe was relegated to being only a b-movie prop. Leave a comment if you have any information or even an educated guess.

A little house-keeping

I tried an over-the-counter allergy pill this morning that I'd never tried before. Good thing I did it on a Sunday. I have been completely out of it all day.

However, I did manage to clean up some pipes today, which I had been putting off. I still have a few pipes in the truck that need cleaning, but today's work got the old Wellington back in smoking shape.

As you can see above, I also printed up some nice labels for all my tobacco jars. Not all of them contain tobacco yet, but I got them ready for when I open the tins. It looks like I could fit 5 of those half-pint jars in one stack in my cabinet. Lots of room for cellaring leaf with the Pump & Seal. I didn't buy the half-pints locally; my step-mother gave them to me. I did buy some very squat full pint jars from Ball's "Elite" line, but they don't stack well. I think I'll just give them to her and call it a trade, and meanwhile keep my eye open for more of these half-pint jars.

The white plastic dish at front right is my loading dish. I hold my pipe in it or over it when I'm loading it to catch the leaf that falls.


Here's another overhead shelf and as you can see, it isn't a very efficient use of space. But I did want to keep several of my most frequently used pipes near at hand. I think I will re-arrange it to put tobacco jars on the top shelf. The bale jar on top contains only a few dregs of something. The other jars on top are empty since they don't have any kind of air-tight(ish) seal. I just use them for pipe racks.


Here is the bookshelf to the right of my computer desk that I am planning on dedicating to pipes & accessories. Most of my Kaywoodies in the rack on the right, along with several pipes that I don't smoke very often and one pipe that I do smoke often but simply won't fit on any other rack, cleaning stuff on the bottom and some miscellaneous bits & pieces in the middle. Empty tins up on top.

Oh yes, and the owls. But the owls are not what they seem.

Featured Pipe Smoker: François Gros Louis

François Gros Louis

When I began building my collection of pictures like this several years ago, I found many that came with little or no information, such as this one. You won't find an entry for this person on Wikipedia, but it is very picturesque and worthy of inclusion.

My notes on this photo, taken from whatever book I scanned it from (I think it was one of those Time Life Old West books) are that it was taken in the early 1800's in Canada. This photo is of a Huron-Wendat trapper named François Gros Louis who posed for this portrait with all the accoutrements of his trade: steel traps, furs, his rifle (held in his left hand, wrapped in fur) and his pipe. I don't know anything else about him. His pipe was most likely made from antler or bone.

From comments:

François Gros-Louis alias Tekionde was a Huron-Wendat ( Québec native person ) father of François Gros-Louis alias La Plume father of Francis Gros-Louis alias Sassennio who married Rosalie Picard Huron-Wendat. Francis and Rosalie had many children which follows another 5 generations which most of them married native people. So Mr. François Gros-Louis is a pure native from Québec and not a French-Canadian trapper, a real Huron-Wendat! This is a message from his from his great-great-great-great-great grand son Huron-Wendat Québec.

UPDATE: A reader has sent me another interesting graphic and some information. First, the picture.


The photo was taken by William Notman in1866, and the painting recreated from the photo was also by Notman, made in 1882. Notman was born in Scotland in 1826 and moved to Montreal in 1856. He was an amateur photographer whose talent turned him professional. He was, according to Wikipedia, "the first Canadian photographer with an international reputation," and some of his photos, which he sent as a gift to Queen Victoria, earned him the title of "Photographer to the Queen."

Vintage Ad (pre WWII): The Underboar

Here is another great example of an oddball gimmick pipe.

My cursory internet research has revealed that the Underboar was part of the Charatan line, and production of the Underboar stopped after World War II. It has a plunger in the shank which scoops out goop when you pull out the stem. This is a guaranteed way to make a mess and in my opinion would be inferior to a simple, standard cleaning with a pipe cleaner.

Maybe the Underboar was a good pipe. I don't know. But when a well-known maker like Charatan has to resort some gimmick like this, it probably means they're trying to move some inferior pipes.

Charatans of that era were made from Algerian briar, which is considered inferior to Mediterranean briar by many, and requires a very careful and prolonged curing process to prepare the briar for pipe making (or so I have read).

I can't date this ad exactly, but it had to be sometime between 1920 and the end of World War II.

P.S. Sorry for the lateness of this post. I tried to post it early this morning but just kept getting error messages from Blogger.

It's been a while...

Since I've had Blockade Runner by Cornell & Diehl. I ordered a sample of it recently to be included in my 8-sample pack. A straight Virginia that has been soaked in rum, then pressed and sliced. Very smooth, although the rum is not noticeable--to me, anyway. This small sample won't be enough. I'll have to add this to the list for bulk ordering sometime soon.

Featured Pipe Smoker: Tex Ritter

Maurice Woodward "Tex" Ritter (1905-1974)

Tex Ritter was probably famous enough that I don't have to say much about him. He was born in the small east Texas town of Murvaul and became famous as a cowboy singer, later becoming a radio actor and eventually a movie actor. He was the first artist ever to sign with the newly-formed Capitol Records in 1942, and had his own television music series in the late 50's and early 60's. In 1970, he entered the Republican primary for U.S. Senate (Tennessee) but was defeated. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, and posthumously into the Western Performers Hall of Fame. He was also the father of the late actor John Ritter.

Vintage Ad (1941): Half and Half

Here's an old H&H ad that somebody cropped a little bit too much.

This is another of those old traditional American blends that I can't stand. I usually leave it just at that. However, with Half & Half I must go further.

This stuff is absolutely disgusting. If some kind of temporal accident were to happen that sent me back in time so that I met the man who invented this, I would have to ask him to step outside. This is stuff is ao bad, if I ever am unfortunate enough to find myself downwind of someone smoking it, I should have to have some harsh words with him.

For several months after trying this, anything with Burley in it would give me Half & Half flashbacks. I was able to only gag my way through about 1/3 of a bowl before I gave up and dumped it out. Fortunately, I was only using a cheap corncob so it didn't permanently contaminate one of my good pipes.

This is still one of those standard drugstore concoctions that somehow has managed to be sold decade after decade, so I guess someone likes it, but I have no idea why.

It is called Half & Half because it is supposed to be a simple mixture of 1/2 Virginia and 1/2 Burley. I'm pretty sure there's at least 5% goat urine in there somewhere.

Now. In the future, if I ever go into a mini-Half-&-Half rant or refer to "the Half & Half incident," you'll know what I'm referring to.

I get the willies just writing about it.

Featured Pipe Smoker: Joseph Stalin

There probably isn't much I can say about Stalin. If you don't already know about him, you're probably not from this planet. Both pictures are video captures emailed to me by a reader of my old "pictures of people with pipes" blog several years ago.

Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (1878-1953)

Pictured here in 1932 with Anastas Mikoyan (left) and Sergey Kirov (center). Mikoyan had a long career in Soviet politics and lived to the ripe old age of 83 before dying in 1978. Kirov was not so lucky. Although a loyal supporter of Stalin, he eventually came to be more popular than Uncle Joe, and about two years after this picture was taken, Stalin had him...(ahem)..."purged."

In this photo Stalin smokes his pipe in the background while poring over numerous documents, probably lists of people who were "next." In the foreground is Lavrenty Beria, one of the primary executors (no pun intended--well maybe a little) of the Great Purge, happily bouncing Stalin's daughter Svetlana on his knee.

As far as his pipe-smoking habits, well, I have read some about this, but I have no way to verify what I have read. Most of it is bad, which may be just because Stalin is so generally disliked. So with that caveat, this is what I have read.

Stalin allegedly never cleaned his pipes. Any respectable pipe smoker will tell you that this is bad. The frequency of cleaning varies from person to person, and often from pipe to pipe, but every pipe must be cleaned periodically. It may involve some minor reaming to remove excess cake, but often all that is required is that a pipe cleaner be moistened with a bit of cleaning fluid--which can be some expensive "real" pipe cleaning fluid or any liquid high in alcohol. I assume Stalin had plenty of vodka at his disposal; it would have made an excellent pipe cleaning fluid (I prefer Everclear, myself). The moistened pipe cleaner is run through the stem once or twice, followed by a dry cleaner. The same moistened cleaner (or a new one, if you prefer) is then inserted into the shank of the bowl and scrubbed in and out several times, followed by another dry cleaner. Then you put the pipe up for a day and let it rest. That's all there is to it, but apparently this was too much trouble for Uncle Joe. He was reported to have the foulest smelling cloud of mundungus around him when he lit his pipe, because he never bothered to clean them.

Item two on the list, which may be related to the previous item, is that he liked to smoke Dunhill's Royal Yacht. RY is a famous, or infamous, blend of various Virginias, but with a "unique flavor" added. It is this "unique flavor" which some find horrendously offensive, but others enjoy. I guess RY is about as controversial as a pipe tobacco can get. For an idea of what I'm talking about, you can check the Royal Yacht reviews at tobaccoreviews.com. I have never tried it myself, so I can't comment on it personally. One thing I can say for certain: tobaccos with flavor added (known as "aromatics") are about a million times worse at gunking up a pipe than natural, non-flavored tobaccos. This means your pipes will require even more frequent cleaning than if you only smoked natural tobaccos.

Vintage Ad: Faron Young and Prince Albert

A sad one here but I'll post it anyway. Faron Young left the Grand Ole Opry in 1965, so this ad must have been before that time. Prince Albert is another of those old traditional American pipe tobaccos that I can't stand. The shape of the pipe in this ad is, appropriately enough, called a "prince."

This one is sad because Faron Young was stricken with severe emphysema in the mid 90s and between very poor health and bad depression, he committed suicide in 1996 at the age of 64.

Stream-of-consciousness tobacco review: Peter Stokkebye's Luxury Bullseye Flake

Here and here are thoughts:
memories I did not live,
and dreams forgotten.

I am on a journey of discovery. A discovery of the senses, where taste and smell intertwine and tease each other with flirting hints of rare spices and guilty, candy-like pleasures. To put this sense into words is like trying to pick up honey with my bare hands. An impossible task, it flows away in thick skeins, some of it sticks, but is it enough?

Blue smoke rolls on the palate like cinnamon dust. But there is more: nutmeg perhaps, fresh hay, sandalwood, hickory leaves baking in the hot summer sun. A spice never meant to be eaten, but only experienced. Breathe it. See how it fills the night? Somewhere a small forgotten god has smelled this pleasing aroma and smiled briefly in his sleep.

Breathe it. Let the tendrils drift around you. Let them touch your nostrils. Does it remind you of food? Of drink? Of a woman? Or does it remind you of that which you have never known, never known but suspected, suspected only in forgotten dreams of alien lands where strange small people harvest hidden fruits beneath a waning moon.

I need not know the answers. Only know that this is a tiny moment of now suspended in the swift transition of the ages. Like all things, it will soon pass.

This small, finite censer I hold in my teeth, it burns only briefly. Soon it will extinguish itself. Someday there will be another. But will it ever be like this again? Should it ever be like this again?

Only dream your forgotten dreams, and remember these things that were or may have been, and let the smoke lie on the back of your tongue for an instant before it dissipates. At this moment, nothing else matters.

crossposted at Blogonomicon

P.S. Now you see why I rarely write tobacco reviews.

The Tobacco Cellar

So you should be able to tell from the previous post that I finally placed what I've been calling my "big tobacco order." I was waiting until I could get moved into our new house and bring some slight semblance of order to my "office," which I usually refer to as my Sanctum. When I get things more orderly in here, I will try posting a photo or two, but for now I'll just describe it. Directly overhead at my computer desk are two cabinets at left and center and one double shelf at right. The shelves are for pipes and other pipe paraphernalia (there is also part of a bookshelf in this room dedicated to holding pipes, plus cleaning and pipe-working tools and gear). The overhead cabinet at left holds various important computer-related items, but the center cabinet built into the corner of the wall is deep and spacious and will be my cellar. It will be able to hold a lot of tobacco, and I will probably eventually store larger bulk quantities in our big bedroom walk-in closet. But enough of that. Here is my current tobacco inventory. All of these are in quantities of 2 ounces or less except where noted.

Cornell & Diehl
Bayou Morning -- 4 oz bulk (although I've misplaced it at the moment, but I know it's in this room somewhere).
Perique -- straight for blending
Gray Ghost
Haunted Bookshop
Stanhope
Bayou Night
Oriental Silk
Exclusive
Blockade Runner

Various makers ordered from Cup o' Joes.
Balkan Sasieni -- bulk. I just had a pipe of this--my first time for this blend. I thought I had lost my love for latakia, but I was wrong.
Escudo -- tin. Ah! Escudo!
Dunhill Early Morning Pipe -- bulk. An old favorite from my early years of pipe smoking which I haven't had in a long time.
Pease Maltese Falcon -- tin. This will be another new one for me when I get around to popping the tin.
McClelland St. James Woods -- tin. Another new one that I'm sure I'll love, from what I've heard about it.
Stokkebye Luxury Bullseye Flake -- bulk. 'Scuse me while I kiss the sky!
Gawith Balkan Flake -- tin. Another new one that I haven't popped open yet.
1792 Flake -- tin. The famous--or infamous--flake that I've been wanting to try for a long time, and will soon.

I almost forgot, I also have a tin of Robert McConnell straight latakia that was graciously given to me by a reader of my other blog. I have had it for a while now, but was putting off popping it until I had a good means to preserve it.

I had also wanted to order McClelland's Blackhills Flake and Dunhill's Nightcap (both old favorites) but they were not in stock at the time I ordered. I'll probably order some Blackhills if possible with my next order before too long. I think I can get the Nightcap locally.

I haven't popped any of the tins yet because I need to get more Mason jars. I'm going to keep everything sealed up at all times if possible for preservation. And I probably will delay getting any large bulk quantities of anything until I can find the box where I stored the Tilia Food Saver during the move. There are 3 or 4 C&D blends that I have ordered by the pound in the past, and certainly will again.