Richmond daily palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1876-1904, 1885-08-21
COMM0l
A LITTLE LIGHT ON 4
OF ITS MANUFAc164ZI
The Best Salt Works in the World Solar
Evaporation of Sea Water
West India and Rock
SaIt-wieIicxka
Boston Bndgetl

Sait Is sucl q common lll14s saiQ an
importer TO a reporter. : so easily obtained
and so cheap. that curiosity is seldom
aroused concerning the details OF its man
ufacture or the places where it is found
A great many take it for granted that
table salt is produced by crushing ordi-
nary coarse salt Some think, again, that
salt of every description is mined from
the rock. after the manner of metals.
Both of these ideas are erroneous. and
purely imaginative They are simply the
result of guessing at what peop.e do not
care to trouble themselves to inquire
after.
perhaps you are willing to throw some
light on the subject, suggested the re
porter.
"Fine salt, such as is used in preserving
and iiavoring butter and cheese, for cur
ing 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
manufacture, while differing somewhat
in detail, is essentially the same The
brine, found from so to 400 feet below
the surface, is pumped into watts or els
terms, from which il passes by different
stages into large iron pans Here the
water is evaporated by boiling. and the
crystals of salt are formed The re-
siduum is drawn off into moulds which
are sub ected to 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 lie
sifted after crushing to rid it of the
coarser particles, which are not easily
soluble
lis the quality of the products here
and in England of equal excellence?"
The English salt is undoubtedly su-
perior 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; and when L tell
you that the receipts of English fine salt
at the port of New York alone. in 1854,
were not less than 800, 600 sacks, or 30
900 tons, you can form an estimate of the
popularity of the foreign article III this
country.
How is coarse salt nader"
@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
extreme sadness had been observed in the
West Indies and along the coast and about
the islands of the Mediterranean. The
water is allowed to run into shallow ponds
direct from the ocean, and when a proper
depth has been obtained, generally two or
three feet, the entrance to the pond is
closed and the water is evaporated by
the sun and winds, and a deposit of salt is
left 1t requires about four months to
evaporate three feet of water. The salt
is then gathered into piles ready for de
livery. Its quality depends almost en-
tirely upon the caprices of nature. dry
and windy season will produce large and
hard crystals, the most desirable charac-
terstics of coarse salt, while if little wind
blows the salt is fine grained and poor.
The West India salts are from Turk g
island, Ragged island. St Martins and
Curacao Trapani, Torrevie;a, Cadiz and
other KIM OF salts cnss-ei rooh salt Tl.e
name describes it. 1t is found in Austria,
Russia. Algeria, Ireland, 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. of chloride of so
dunn.
.Do we compete with foreigners in the
so called coarse salts
Not to any appreciable extent SYRIA
cuse does turn out solar salt of different
grades, corresponding in some degree
with that of Turks island. but compe-
sitioh 10 ~ eAAAs ~ NoiA
be said TO exist
us salt put to many uses not com
monty known?"
1T would be impossible for me to emu
merate a tenth part of them We put fine
salt in our butter and cheese, preserving
and tiavoring them; with Curacao, St
Martins and other heavy grained salts
that dissolve slowly, We pack meats for
export We freeze ice cream with Turk S
tracks L.
bon 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 a CRATE
full favor to nearly everything we eat
Without salt everything is insipid. We
have scriptural assurance that salt is good
and even Plato is enthusiastic over it
when he says in the 'Timcus.' Salt.
which harmonizes so well in the combina-
tons of the palate, and is. as the law ties
titles. a substance dear to the gods.