Reddit is one of those websites that just has everything . From news, to entertainment, to threads that can have people from all over the world answering your questions about life, Reddit is the place for it all.
Many Reddit users know that they can turn to the site and its users for just about anything. And, people on Reddit love to show and discuss old, ” historic ” things.
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Reddit users love “old” and obscure things.
Many Reddit users love a good mystery and trying to solve things from the past.
Many times, people will come across older items in thrift stores or even antique shops and share them online. Then, Reddit users will try to “decode” or figure out what it is.
Some people find things all the way back from the early 1800s.
Sometimes, people are left things from grandparents and great-grandparents but are unsure what the items are or what they mean.
So, they turn to the Internet to figure it out because the Internet almost always delivers. Trust on that!
One postcard was a hit on Reddit this week.
Reddit user u/Then-Attempt2511 shared the photo online alongside the caption:
“A postcard from 1913 I came into possession of. What the hell does this mean?”
The Reddit user was unsure of the riddle that was written across the ancient-looking card.
The postcard is a bit confusing.
Thinking about it, it’s a clever riddle but unsure what the answer could truly be. It says that if “water rots your rubbers,” which in itself, is quite confusing. What water is rotting what rubbers? Also, what kind of rubbers?
People online began to ponder and try to solve what it could be.
One Reddit user said the riddle was a “pro-alcohol” rhyme.
“Rubbers” are galoshes – rain boots. This is meant as a dis against drinking water. Presumably in favor of drinking alcohol instead,” said Reddit user, A-3Jammer.
Another user agreed, saying it’s off of an “old quote.”
One Reddit user shared a quote that W.C. Fields shared about never drinking water and only drinking alcohol. “I never drink water! That’s the stuff that rusts pipes,” the Reddit user said.
This quote was another reason many believed the postcard was about alcohol.
Others chimed in saying back then, water was even “frowned upon.”
“Back then many people rejected the germ theory of disease in favour of bad water or bad air.
Beer was known to not spread disease, for example, so was good water.
They knew bad water was linked to cholera, which helped this rejection, and early capitalists wanted to sell their drinks, so spreading doubt about water was a good way to do that,” said user Hattix.
However, one user pointed out that it could be something else.
One Reddit user said that it may not be alcohol at all. Instead, they thought that it could possibly be an ad for a dairy farmer.
Instead of drinking water, the farmer was probably pushing for them to drink milk, to push their dairy products.
The vast majority, however, agreed with alcohol.
Overall, the vast majority of people online agreed the postcard meant that you should avoid drinking water and instead, switch to beer and alcohol. If you ever need a talking piece for your home bar, this is it!
