The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1893-12-22
A WONDERFUL QUERN
HOW THE NoRWEGlANS EXPLAIN
Why THE SEA is SALT.

the Poor Brother. while IL Rraghtsned
the Rich One - The Old Sailor who
Wanted the Ouern TO Grind salt. s
There il an old fashioned Norwegian
folktale that accounts in a 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 carayels, be-
fore the Vikings crossed over I'd Iceland
and Martha's Vineyard, even before ST.
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 fiocks 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
in the house for them to eat, and the
poor mans wife said to her husband:
IF | had a 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 a 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 a nice fitch OF bacon
and told him to go to an old magician
~ 1.,ol -o~,.xL,-o - 49, re---A~~
/ do not know why he sent the poor man
to the magician, for the latter did not
bear y 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 somuch
demand for the bacon he would at least
make the best bargain he could for it.
well" he said, ~ ought by rights to
take this bacon home to my good dame
for our dinner tomorrow, but since you
all seem to nave set your hearts ON it ]
suppose you must have it. II I.sell it,
however, l want a good price for it"
!, They offered him q good round SUM
but that would not do.
~ will let you have it," he said, .ii
you will give me that qnern yonder be
hind the door," 80 ae
A quern is one Of the things that il
would be very hard to find nowadays be-
| cause they have gone out of fashion, but
: il you will look in the dictionary, as I did
when / first heard this story, You will
see that a quern is a mill for grinding
corn by hand, and that it consists of two
large stones, an upper and a lower one
the upper one having a handle by which
l 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 h,
would be satisfied with nothing less thar
T that, SO he finally got it.
When he reached his own door. tn
clock was striking 10 and his wife wa
waiting for him, ready to scold him TO
: staying 80 long.
I Whats in the world kept you so long?
, she asked. "And what are we going Il
4 do with that old quern when we have N
s corn to grindr'
4 Then he told her of his trading the ba
con for the quern. She was dreadful,
put out about it, and especially at th
4 loss of the bacon, which would hav
made them a good hot dinner and the
would have lasted them q week, slice,
cold. ee
"Just wait a minute" said her hus
4 band, before you begin to complain
and see If ! did not do right this time"
8 And putting the quern on the table b
told it to grind enough good things {
make q first rate dinner for 10 hungr
mouths. His wife could hardly believ
her eyes as she stood there and watche
the quern grinding out dainties enoug
to last q week.
The rich brother CHANGED to hear no,
well his poor brothers family was liy
ing, and when he came and saw what q
elegant table they kept he was enviou
e and wanted to know where they got til
e money to buy the things. For a Ion
: time they kept the secret of the Of
quern, but somehow it got out at las
I They were so proud of it that they coul
o not help telling all about it, and the ric
brother insisted On buying the querr
Finally they let him have it for $500.
Is kept on grinding for its new ownel
but he was afraid of it, never feelin
: sure of what it would do next, so b
made his brother take it back ait til
same price. The poor man was glad |
d get il back again. and il ground out vi