Basic washing
was by no means always so natural as it
is today. Two hundred to 300 years ago
many princes still did not have bathing
equipment, especially wash basins to use
which were often as small as a salad
bowl. The distinguished ladies formerly
frequently covered up the dirt with
powder and then ignored the fermentation
and spread a terrible smell. From that
time comes the term “stink vornehm”
(distinguished stink). About the
soldier king Friedrich Wilhelm I (time
of rule 1713 to 1740) as was already
mentioned, did not suffer from the often
bad smelling wig which was usual in his
time and he washed himself daily at the
well without a shirt. One must take
into consideration, if one asks, why I
keep bringing it up, digressing a few
words about the care of the body in
Beschka.
Very few
people in Beschka had a bathroom.
Instead many had a portable bathtub.
However, at least a washtub existed in
every German house, and with this aid
the whole body was regularly washed.
Infants were regularly bathed daily.
For soap they used soap they cooked at
home themselves from inferior pig fat.
Essentially only the well-to-do used
factory made soap. In an emergency
potash was also used which one made by
pouring water over wood ash and after a
few times it filtered off.
At the time
of the settlement the men wore plaits.
So today’s ‘Beatles’ hairstyle is by no
means something essentially new. The
beard was at the time of settlement not
generally customary, but by no means
infrequent. Later a mustache was
generally customary in Beschka.
These styles
lasted until the people fled. The
“Herrschen” (men) had their mustaches
shaved three times a week by the
“Barbier” (barber) after World War I.
Few shaved themselves. Up until World
War I full beards were still
occasionally in style.
The women in
Beschka formerly braided their hair in
braids which they wore in the “Gretchen”
hairstyle or in knots. The married
women formerly wore a bonnet. Around
the year 1925 the bob cut was
fashionable with the “imperious” women.
The critics were devastated at first.
However the “bob” cut generally caught
on with the women artisans up until
1935. Also permanent waves were in
style at this time. Before that the
girls curled their hair with the curling
iron. The German women in Beschka used
no lipstick. By comparison the Serbian
girls used lipstick masterfully. They
used a mercury based hair cream which
caused the teeth to turn black and the
skin aged early. Tooth polish was
generally not used in Beschka, but there
were already some people in Beschka who
always used toothpaste and mouthwash.
Many washed their teeth with water and
cooking salt. The teeth were not as a
rule polished for health reasons.
Nevertheless, most had good teeth, which
is good and can be especially attributed
to the vitamin-rich nutrition. When my
father died at age 56, he still had all
his teeth. My mother, on the other
hand, had only one tooth when she died
at age 62. Dr. Renner was also active
as the dentist in Beschka until 1939.
Every German
in Beschka, whether rich or poor,
changed his laundry at least once per
week. The laundry was cooked, which was
also good against typhus. In addition
rainwater was used, that was collected
in a large cistern. The best clothes
were carefully cared for. At the time
before World War I the shoes were
polished, which one had to add water
(often also only spit). It was
difficult at the time to bring the shoes
at the time to a high gloss, but one
brushed the shoes so long that they
shined like a “precious stone.”
