Casanova's pipe

The Pipe Club, October 1969.

Leafing through old books, I came across the now ancient original French edition of Casanova's memoirs and I caught my eye on that chapter which tells how, in 1744 from Corfu, where he banner of the troops in the pay of Venice, the author made a trip to Constantinople in the wake of Knight Venier, bailo (consul) of the Serenissima at the Sublime Porte.
Among stories of the parties, dances, games and shows, the multifaceted adventurer also spreads in the narration of the frequent dinners with the old Joussuff Ali, a rich and wise Turkish lord, who suffocated him with philosophical reasoning, but who treated him like a pasha.

I faithfully translate a passage:

After dinner – Casanova narrates – the pipes were brought which we loaded ourselves. I smoked with pleasure, but I expel saliva. Joussuff, who smoked from the Turk, that is, without blunt, told me: "the tobacco you smoke is excellent gingé and you would do badly not to swallow the balsamic part that mixes with the saliva."
“I believe so, because the pleasure of the pipe cannot be such if the tobacco is not perfect.”
“Such perfection is certainly necessary for the pleasure of smoking, but this pleasure is not the main one, since it comes from the senses: the true pleasures are those that are reflected on the soul, independently of the senses.”
“Dear Joussuff, I cannot imagine pleasure that the soul can enjoy without the medium of the senses.”
"Listen to me. Don't you feel pleasure when you load your pipe?”
"Yes."
“What meaning do you attribute it to, if not to the soul?”
Let's follow. Isn't it true that you feel satisfied when you leave your pipe only after having completely consumed it? Aren't you happy when the residue is but ashes?”
"It is true."
“Here are two pleasures in which the senses certainly have no part; but please guess the third, which is the essential.”
"The essential? It's the perfume!”
"Not at all. It's a pleasure of smell, it's sensual.”
“Then I don't know.”
"Listen. The main pleasure of smoking lies in the smoke trail. You must never see it coming out of the pipe, but from the corner of your mouth. At measured intervals and never too frequent. So much so that this is the main pleasure, which you will never see smoking in Czech. Even tried smoking at night, without light; a moment after lighting your pipe you will wail away.”
“You speak the truth, but forgive me if I find many pleasures that interest the senses preferable to those that interest only the soul.”
“Forty years ago I thought like you; in forty years, if you reach wisdom, you will think like me..."

And the good Joussuff continued for the duration of several pipes, but well I'll thank you.

Luigi Bosco
(piper from 1920)