The Middlebury register and Addison County journal. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1883-1885, 1885-07-24
Something About Salt.

A writer in the New York Tribune
gives the following interesting and valua-
BILE information about one of the COM
moncst articles of use in the household
salt: Zine salt, such as is used in
preserving and havoring butter and
cheese, for curing meats, and for the
table, is made from pure brine, found in
immense quantities in several parts of
the world. Probably the best known
salt works are those Of Cheshire, near
Liverpool, and of Syracuse. In both of
these districts the process OF manufac-
ture, while differing somewhat in details,
is essentially the same. The brine. found
from 100 to 400 feet below the surface, is
pumped into watts or cisterns, from which
it passes by different stages into large
iron pans. Here the water is cvaEorated
by boiling, and the crystals of salt are
formed. This rcsidum is drawn off into
mods, which are subjected to a high
temperature in ovens or drying rooms
The cakes are then crushed, and the
refined product of all this manipulation
is ready for the bags and for the market.
Frequently the salt is silied after the
crushing, 20 rid it of the coarser par'i-
clcs, which are not easily soluble.
The English salt is undoubtedly superior
to the American. They seem to exercise
more care in their work on the other side
and turn out an article that gives better
satisfaction; ard we are told that the
receipts of English fine salt at the port
of New York alone in 1884 were not
less than 300 600 sacks, or 80, coo tons,
we can form an estimate of the popu-
larity of the foreign article in this coun-
try. Coarse salt is made by the solar
evaporation of sea water. The places
chosen for its production are selected on
account of the extraordinary saline
strength of the water there. THIS or.
IRENE saltness has been observed in the
West Indies and Along the coast and
about the islhuds of the Mediterranean.
Tie water is allowed to run into shallow
ponds direct from the ocean, and when a
proper depth has been obtained, gen
orally two or three fe9t, the entrance to
the pond is closed an1 the water is cvap-
Grated by the sun and winds, and de;
post of salt is left. 1t requires about
four months to evaporatc three feet Of
water. The salt is then gathered into
piles ready FOR delivery. Its quality de-
ponds almost entirely upon the caprices
of nature. A dry and windy season
will produce large and har d
crystals, the most desirable
characteristics of coarse salt, while if
little wind blows the salt is fine grained
and poor. The West India salts are
from Turks Island, Ragged Island, St.
Martins and Curaco's. Trapani, Tor
rcvicja, Cadiz and Lisbon, each furnish
salt of different grades and quality.
There is still another kind of salt, called
rock salt. The name describes it. 1t is
found in Austria, Russia, Algeria, Ire
land, Santo Domingo, England and
Louisiana. In Wieliczka, Austria, the
rock salt is absolutely pure, an analysis
of it showing 100 parts of chloride of
sodium. The Louisiana salt is also clear
and pure, containing as it does, 9S So
per cent. chloride of sodium. We put
fine salt in our butter and cheese, pre-
serving and flavoting them; with Cura-
Goa, st. Martins and other heavy grained
salts that dissolve slowly, we pack meat
for export. We freeze ice cream with
Turks Island, and salt our car tracks
with Lisbon or Cadiz. The household
uses for salt need not be mentioned in
detail. The finest salt enters into the
preparation of chewing tobacco. Salt
imparts grateful ilavor to nearly every
thing we eat. Without salt everything
is insipid."