1 00:00:03,360 --> 00:00:06,399 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff to Blow Your Mind, a production of iHeartRadio. 2 00:00:10,039 --> 00:00:12,800 Speaker 2: Hi. My name is Robert Lamb and this is the artifact, 3 00:00:13,280 --> 00:00:15,800 Speaker 2: a short form series from Stuff to Blow Your Mind, 4 00:00:15,880 --> 00:00:23,560 Speaker 2: focusing on particular objects, ideas, and moments in time. In 5 00:00:23,600 --> 00:00:26,119 Speaker 2: our recent Stuff to Blow Your Mind series, Oil and 6 00:00:26,160 --> 00:00:31,360 Speaker 2: Troubled Water, we discussed eighteenth century American polymath Benjamin Franklin's 7 00:00:31,480 --> 00:00:35,800 Speaker 2: experiments with oil, experiments which inspired him to carry a 8 00:00:35,880 --> 00:00:39,720 Speaker 2: small quantity of oil on him at all times, hidden 9 00:00:39,760 --> 00:00:43,800 Speaker 2: in a special compartment of his bamboo walking stick. This 10 00:00:43,960 --> 00:00:47,480 Speaker 2: detail can't help but add to the mystique of America's 11 00:00:47,520 --> 00:00:51,120 Speaker 2: weirdest founding father, and it ties directly into the larger 12 00:00:51,200 --> 00:00:55,960 Speaker 2: topic of special items hidden in canes or walking sticks. 13 00:00:57,080 --> 00:01:01,200 Speaker 2: As Michelle Debjek explored in a twenty seventeen Mental Floss article, 14 00:01:01,480 --> 00:01:04,640 Speaker 2: one can find various antique walking sticks and canes with 15 00:01:04,680 --> 00:01:09,800 Speaker 2: all manner of special gadgety features, ranging from the possibly 16 00:01:09,840 --> 00:01:14,480 Speaker 2: practical to these somewhat ridiculous. There's a nineteenth century cane 17 00:01:14,560 --> 00:01:17,960 Speaker 2: with a coin weighing gadget built into the handle. There's 18 00:01:18,000 --> 00:01:22,000 Speaker 2: a magic lantern projector cane, a cider pressed walking stick, 19 00:01:22,240 --> 00:01:26,319 Speaker 2: an architect's cane with drafting tools hidden inside, a spy 20 00:01:26,360 --> 00:01:30,199 Speaker 2: camera cane from the nineteen eighties, a nineteenth century cane 21 00:01:30,200 --> 00:01:34,160 Speaker 2: containing a miniature croquet set, a microscope cane, and a 22 00:01:34,280 --> 00:01:39,000 Speaker 2: nineteenth century eagle headed crossbow cane. There's even a spitting 23 00:01:39,080 --> 00:01:43,680 Speaker 2: cane that naturally reminds one of the gimmicked weapon umbrellas 24 00:01:43,760 --> 00:01:48,280 Speaker 2: favored by Batman villain the Penguin. All of these gadget 25 00:01:48,320 --> 00:01:52,120 Speaker 2: canes clear novelties extend from the popularity of cane swords 26 00:01:52,200 --> 00:01:56,240 Speaker 2: or sword sticks in eighteenth and nineteenth century Europe. Now, 27 00:01:56,240 --> 00:02:00,200 Speaker 2: the basic appeal of a hidden blade is understandable. I 28 00:02:00,240 --> 00:02:02,880 Speaker 2: remember when I was a child and I first saw 29 00:02:03,200 --> 00:02:07,720 Speaker 2: Jeremy Brett as Sherlock Holmes in the Granada television series. 30 00:02:07,920 --> 00:02:10,760 Speaker 2: I watched him whip out a cane sword and I 31 00:02:10,840 --> 00:02:13,240 Speaker 2: was totally won over by the coolness of the thing. 32 00:02:13,840 --> 00:02:18,320 Speaker 2: But the popularity of this sort of concealed weapon actually 33 00:02:18,360 --> 00:02:22,160 Speaker 2: had to do with how uncool openly carrying a sword 34 00:02:22,280 --> 00:02:27,239 Speaker 2: had become in polite society. Then, as sword canes became fashionable, 35 00:02:27,480 --> 00:02:30,560 Speaker 2: the idea of hiding other various things such as gadgets 36 00:02:30,560 --> 00:02:33,640 Speaker 2: and curios in a cane or walking stick became the 37 00:02:33,680 --> 00:02:38,080 Speaker 2: new fat Now to be clear, sword canes are weapons. 38 00:02:38,440 --> 00:02:41,600 Speaker 2: Murderers have used them in committing their crimes, and they 39 00:02:41,600 --> 00:02:44,560 Speaker 2: are often banned by local or federal laws as they 40 00:02:44,560 --> 00:02:49,120 Speaker 2: are in essence concealed weapons. They also sometimes factor into 41 00:02:49,280 --> 00:02:54,040 Speaker 2: historical mysteries, including the death of nineteenth century American author 42 00:02:54,600 --> 00:02:59,000 Speaker 2: Edgar Allan Poe. Poe's cause of death remains a matter 43 00:02:59,040 --> 00:03:02,360 Speaker 2: of dispute, and the theories range from illness to murder 44 00:03:02,400 --> 00:03:06,280 Speaker 2: and even cooping election fraud. Will likely never know for 45 00:03:06,320 --> 00:03:09,040 Speaker 2: sure what happened, but some theorists have latched onto the 46 00:03:09,040 --> 00:03:12,720 Speaker 2: fact that shortly before his death he managed to borrow 47 00:03:12,840 --> 00:03:16,520 Speaker 2: a sword cane from his friend, doctor John Carter, perhaps 48 00:03:16,600 --> 00:03:20,920 Speaker 2: by accident or perhaps intentionally, and left his own cane 49 00:03:21,160 --> 00:03:24,400 Speaker 2: in its place. If his borrowing of the sword cane 50 00:03:24,639 --> 00:03:27,360 Speaker 2: was intentional, then this could help prop up arguments that 51 00:03:27,440 --> 00:03:31,720 Speaker 2: he anticipated foul play or violence of some sort. However, 52 00:03:32,040 --> 00:03:35,240 Speaker 2: if his death was due to rabies, lead poisoning, or 53 00:03:35,280 --> 00:03:37,600 Speaker 2: any of the other dozen or so maladies that have 54 00:03:37,680 --> 00:03:41,400 Speaker 2: been suggested, then the sword cane doesn't really get us anywhere. 55 00:03:42,200 --> 00:03:46,480 Speaker 2: The hidden blade remains an enigmatic artifact, though for in it, 56 00:03:46,520 --> 00:03:50,240 Speaker 2: we see that old and symbolic human weapon, the sword 57 00:03:50,640 --> 00:03:55,880 Speaker 2: hidden within a walking aid or fashion accessory, hiding murderous 58 00:03:55,920 --> 00:04:01,400 Speaker 2: intent or awareness of some violence in the world when 59 00:04:01,440 --> 00:04:04,600 Speaker 2: we read about it, when we find it among one's possessions, 60 00:04:04,840 --> 00:04:09,800 Speaker 2: we can't help but speculate. Tune in for additional editions 61 00:04:09,840 --> 00:04:12,920 Speaker 2: of the Artifact each week. As always, You can email 62 00:04:13,040 --> 00:04:24,120 Speaker 2: us at contact at stuff to Blow your Mind dot com. 63 00:04:24,240 --> 00:04:27,200 Speaker 1: Stuff to Blow Your Mind is production of iHeartRadio. For 64 00:04:27,279 --> 00:04:30,080 Speaker 1: more podcasts from my heart Radio, visit the iHeartRadio app, 65 00:04:30,200 --> 00:04:32,960 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.