Distilled Water. At the present day, most sea-going vessels are provided with apparatus for distilling the water of the ocean, and so producing a pure and wholesome but insipid water, which can be rendered, however, more palatable by agitation with plenty of fresh air. Hence, the horrible agony of death by thirst among sailors is now much less frequent than formerly, although mariners in open boats, or cast upon small uninhabited islands, still sometimes scan with anxious eyes the briny waste around them, beholding

“Water, water every where, but not a drop to drink.”

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This article tells me something that I had never heard of before as they mention that sea going vessels at the turn of the last century had water distilling devices that they could use to generate water.  Today, we tend to think of swimming pools and home theater seating and tennis and buffets.  Definitely a difference in culture and technology and what you can do with it all.