The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1893-12-15
A WONDERFUL QUERN
HOW THE NORWEGlANS EXPLAIN
WHY THE SEA is SALT.

WHY THE SEA is SALT.
A Magic Mill That Ground Out Riches Fol
the Poor Brother, While 1t Frightened
the Rich One = The Old Sailor Who
Wanted the Quern to Grind Salt.
There is an old fashioned Norwegian
folktale that accounts in very curious
way for the salt in the sea. According
TO the story, the waters of the ocean were
not always salt. But long ago, before
Columbus sailed in his little caravels, be-
fore the Vikings crossed over to Iceland
and Martha's Vineyard, even before st.
Brendan rowed his boat made of skins
sewed together across from Ireland to
the mouth Of the Chesapeake there were
two brothers living away up in the
northland. One was very rich, and the
other was very poor. One brother had
herds of cattle and hocks of fat noun
tain sheep, while the poor one had just
about nothing at all except a wife and
ever so many children.
One Christmas eve there was nothing
h the house for them to eat, and the
poor mans wife said to her husband:
IF had rich brother as you have,
would go and ask him for something
for these poor children to eat. Tomor-
row will be Christmas day, and there is
not crust of bread in the house."
So he went to his brother and told him
how much they needed his help. The
rich man gave him nice fitch of bacon
and told him to go to an old magician
who lived somewhere in the mountains.
do not know why he sent the poor man
to the magician, for the latter did not
bear very good name in the neighbor-
hood. However, when he came to the
magician's stronghold everybody about
the place wanted to buy his fitch of ba-
con- He could not understand why it
was, but he thoughtif there was so much
demand for the bacon he would at least
make the best bargain he could for it.
"Well," he said, 81 ought by rights to
take this bacon home to my good dame
for our dinner tomorrow, but since you
all seem to have set your hearts on it /
suppose you must have it. If sell it,
however, l want good price for it."
They offered him good round sum,
but that would not do.
81 will let you have it," he said, eff
you will give me that quern yonder be-
hind the door,"
A quern is one of the things that it
would be very hard to find nowadays be-
cause they have gone out of fashion, but
If you will look in the dictionary, as did
when | first heard this story, you will
see that quern is mill for grinding
corn by hand, and that it consists of two
large stones, an upper and lower one,
the upper one having handle by which
it may be turned around on the lower
stone, grinding the corn or grain between
them.
The old magician at first laughed out
right at the idea of any ones thinking
that he would part with his quern, but
the owner of the bacon insisted that he
would be satisfied with nothing less than
that, so he finally got it.
When he reached his own door, the
clock was striking 12 and his wife was
waiting for him, ready to scold him for
staying so long.
"What in the world kept you so long?'
she asked. "And what are we going to
do with that old quern when we have no
corn to grind"
Then he told her of his trading the ba-
con for the quern. She was dreadfully
put out about it, and especially at the
loss of the bacon, which would have
made them good hot dinner and then
would have lasted them a week, sliced
cold
''Just wait a minute" said her hus-
band, 'before you begin to complain,
and see if did not do right this time"
And putting the quern on the table he
told it to grind enough good things to
make first rate dinner for 10 hungry
mouths. His wife could hardly believe
her eyes as she stood there and watched
the quern grinding out dainties enough
to last week.
The rich brother CHANGED to hear how
well his poor brothers family was liv-
ing, and when he came and saw what an
elegant table they kept he was envious
and wanted to know where they got the
money to buy the things. For long
time they kept the secret of the old
quern, but somehow it got out at last.
They were so proud of it that they could
not help telling all about it, and the rich
brother insisted on buying the quern
Finally they let him have it for $500.
1t kept on grinding for its new owner,
but he was afraid of it, never feeling
sure of what it would do next, so he
made his brother take it back at the
same price. The poor man was glad to
get it back again. and it ground out I'M
told riches for himself and his family
They had everything they desired, among
other things a golden house to live in,
and the people came from every land to
see the magnifcence of the family that
owned the wonderful quern.
One day a stranger, an old seaman who
had been all around the then known
world, came to see the quern, and want
ed it to grind salt
1t is supposed that the owner of the
quern was rich enough by this time, for
he let it go for moderate sum, and
fearing that he might repent of having
sold it the old sailor put to sea at