Where to Take the Waters

On the very night of his arrival at the resort of Warm Springs, Virginia, Presbyterian Minister Philip Fithian witnessed "a fray between Mr. Fleming and Mr. Hall. Mr. Hall wrung Mr. Fleming's nose." The next morning, after "drinking early and freely of the waters," Fithian sortied out among the wooden cabins in the village to see if he had any acquaintances among the crowds gathered for the season. That night he observed "a splendid ball," as well as games of whist, five-and-forty and calico Betty. When he sought some night air out among the bushes, he was a little surprised to see "amusements in all shapes ... constantly taking place among so promiscuous a company." Fithian went to bed soon after midnight, but he could still hear "soft and continual serenades" outside "different houses where the ladies lodge."

Such was life last week in Warm Springs, which has become the most fashionable watering spot in the southern colonies. The frivolity of these resorts sometimes comes in for criticism. Said the South Carolina Gazette: "Although there is a great want of money to procure the necessities of life, yet large sums are weekly laid out for amusements." Nonetheless, the new trend toward medicinal use of mineral waters has become as popular in America as at Bath in Britain or Spa near Liege, and the social quadrille is considered part of the treatment. Among the most celebrated spots:

Stafford Springs, Connecticut, was originally discovered by the Mohegan and Narraganset Indians, who said the waters made them feel lively. The springs contain iron held in solution by carbonic acid, native alkali, marine salt and sulfur. These chemicals, according to a local expert, give the spring waters "a strong ferruginous taste and when first drunk frequently occasion nausea, even to puking," but they are "best for skin afflictions and ulcers of all kinds, dropsies in the first stages, debility, weakness of eyes and several kinds of fits." The springs can be reached by a stagecoach that leaves from The Sign of the Lamb tavern in Boston every few days and makes the 70-mile trip for 5 dollars per person (baggage allowance: 20 pounds). Among the homes with rooms for rent: Child's, John Green's. Bristol Springs, Pennsylvania, was

developed by Dr. John de Normandie, who first analyzed the waters. He persuaded local authorities to brighten the town and drain some nearby marshes. His pump room is 40 feet long, and the baths can be refilled every five minutes. Philadelphia Physician Benjamin Rush recommends the treatment for "hysteria, palsy, epilepsy, certain stages of the gout, diseases of kidneys or bladder, all female obstructions [and] worms in children." Bristol is a market town on the Delaware River, about 20 miles northeast of Philadelphia, and the New York-Philadelphia stage (30 shillings) passes through daily except Sundays. Accommodations are available in townspeople's homes.

Augusta County Hot Springs, Virginia, produces bubbling waters (112DEG Fahrenheit) that can be used to treat rheumatism. Says one visitor: "It smells and tastes strongly like the washings of a foul gun." Located in inaccessible mountains near the sources of the James River, the springs could once be reached only by an Indian trail, but the authorities recently raised -L-900 by a lottery and cleared a coach road to nearby Jennings Gap.

But it is the Warm Springs in Virginia's Berkeley County that draw the most notable visitors (500 to 600 at once). General Washington has gone there to seek relief from rheumatic fever. Washington originally surveyed this area when it belonged to Lord Fairfax, who later donated the springs to the province "so that these healing waters might be forever free to the publick, for the welfare of suffering humanity." Next fall, however, the Virginia legislature is expected to establish a town of Bath at Warm Springs and to sell off 50 acres in building lots to anyone who wants to build houses "for infirm persons."

These lots will be valuable, for the town is filled to overflowing every summer. The public amusements during what is known as the "genteel season" include horse racing, theatricals and dances (at which, says a recent visitor, "one or two blacks supply the company with woful horn-pipespipes and jigs").

As for the Reverend Mr. Fithian, he recalls that the serenaders "were hearty" and one of them later was accused of "breaking, and in the warmth of his heart... entering the lodging room of buxom Kate [not further identified]." Fithian attributes this assault to "a plentiful use of these vigor-giving waters." As a result, the young man "was urged, he was compelled, by the irresistible call of renewed nature."

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