The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1884-02-20
WORTH MORE THAN GOLD.
AND YET oHH or THE cHEAPEsT
ARTIuLEs IN DAILY USE.
The Ancient md Modern History OF
Snlt--Hts Many Uses and Where It
A. Obtafned-A Great Industrvs


The history of the salt Of the
earth" is coeval with the earliest evo-
lutions. Elisha with salt, healeth the
unwholesome waters; and to this day
the cultured Israelite of Europe
blesses salt at the last meal on the eve
of his Sabbath, and then distributes it
among his guests and family. He
uses it freely at the celebration of the.
Rosh. Hashana, or New Year, JON
Kipur, or the Feast of Reconciliation,
and Louthos, or Feast of Tabernacles.
1t is a strict requirement of the Jewish
religion that any slaughtered meat be
soaked in brine for an hour.
Salt was used by the earlier Egypti-
ans in fertilizing the famous soil Of
the Nile lands. 1t entered largely
into the religious ceremonies of many
people, and we find it mentioned in
the hymn Rig Veda OF the Brahmins,
the Dhammapada of the Buddhists, the
zend Avesta of Zoroaster, the Ana
lycts Of Confucius, the Koran of the
Mussulman, the Talmud of the Israel
ite, and the Divine Pymander of the
Egyptians.
The Arabs have always regarded
the giving of salt to their guests as
the first and greatest requisite of hos
pitality Give a grain of salt to
Mohammedan, and for the twenty. four
hours that it remains in his body your
person and property are sacred in his
sight, though you be his deadliest
enemy.
At the late grand Oriental ceremony
of crowning the emperor of Russia.
the blessing and distribution of salt
were marked features.
In the works of all the classical
writers frequent mention is made of
salt and its many uses. The "Attic
salt" of Greece is historical as the
synonym of wit. Cicero said of q
statement of dubious correctness, that
it was to be taken cum grano sails
"with grain of salt" Pliny COM
pares precious stone to scintillating
grain of salt. Cornelius Nepos uses
salt as synonym for good taste.
The Romans regarded a salt mine as
giving extra value to a conquered
territory, and in Hungary, even to the
present day, the very mines opened by
the Romans are still in working order
The mines at Chester, England, were
also discovered and worked by the
Roman conquerors. Livy speaks of
the salt works founded by ANGUS
Martius at Ostia, and Caesar also men,
tions them.
Horace writes of the Salinum or
salt cellar as an heirloom, one of the
sacred Lares and Penates or household
gods, and Livy refers to it as being used
at all sacrifices.
In the feudal period the salt cellar
on the table was the line of demarca-
tion between the patrician and plebeian,
the former being seated above and the
latter below it.
Among all races the spilling of the
salt cellar is ominous of quarrel OF
other misfortune In cases of such
accidents the French invariably throw
three pinches over the left shoulder OF
sprinkle little on fire to avert the
i'll omen.
The ancient laws of the Spartan:
forbade the giving of salt to criminals
deeming this one of the greatest
punishments to which they could b,
subjected; and the judges of Athens
by whom the almost inspired Socrates
was condemned. and who were after
ward censured for their action, wer,
debarred the use of salt during tn,
remainder of their lives.
All the diamonds that ever cam,
from the mines of Golconda-all tn
gold, silver, coal, iron and other metal
that lie hidden in the bowels of tn
earth--all can be dispensed with il
the extreme necessities of nations ant
people; but not so salt 1t is thei
superior in that it is an absolute neces
sity, without which existence woult
be difficult and many of the dainties
viands that ever tempted the palate 0
a gourmand would lose their flavor.
The London Lancet, in a recen
issue, says; "Salt is the most widel
distributed substance in the body. l
exists in every fluid and in every solid
and not only is it everywhere present
but in almost every part it constitute
the largest part of the ash when an
tissue is burned. In particular, it is
constant constituent of the blood, an
it maintains in it proportion that
almost wholly independent of tn
quantity that is consumed with tn
food-the blood will take up so muc
and no more, however much we ma
take with the food; and, on the othe
hand, if none be given, the blood part
with its natural quantity slowly an
unwillingly
Salt is used as a curative for dyspeI
sia. 1t is an emetic, stypticsand
spoonful of dry salt will sometime
stop hemorrhage. 1t is effectuall
applied to sprains and bruises, and
often used in cases of intermitter
fever. In small doses il is a stimular
tonic, and in larger quantities purgt
tive and emetic.
So great Is the desire of amin ole fl