The San Mateo item. (San Mateo City, Putnam County, Fla) 189?-19??, 1909-08-07
SOapand Other DetsTgentS
Of Antiquity
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or o. BEcHsTErN

DoVsfOhiahs' anu Otner ancient ma.
lions of high culture form only An.
parent exception to the rule that the
civilization OF a people Is propor.
tional to It's consumption OF soap. for
although these nations used little
soap In the strict sense OF the word,
they employed several other sub
stances of similar properties.
Two OF these cleansing agents arc
mentioned In the Bible. "borlth" in
Jeremiah II, 20, and Malachi III. 2 and
neither" in the same passage OF Jere.
miah and in several OF the Proverbs
OF Solomon. In the English Bible
these Hebrew words are translated
by soap" and inter"
Borith was an alkall obtained from
the ashes OF plants, in other words,
crude potash. The neither OF the Bible
was probably the native sodium car.
Donate, or natron, the ntrum OF the
Romans, which is found in Egypt,
around the Caspian Sea, and in 9th
er desert regions and which is still
collected for laundry use in Egypt.
"Alkali," the Arabian equivalent OF
neither, appears also to have been i'm
pure soda for, although II was OBJ
tanned from the ashes of a plant, this
plant was probably the samphire or
saltwort (Salicornia) which like
many other seashore plants, contains
soda but not potash.
The ancients also used as a cleans
Ing agent the mucilaginous sap OF GER
tain plants, probably species OF
soapwort (Saponaria).
Another ancient detergent was pill
trid urine, which owes its cleansing
properties to the ammonia which it
contains. At the commencement OF
the Christian era the Roman laundry
men (fullones) possessed the privl-
lege of maintaining public urinals in
the streets, and, two centuries later,
their business was so lucrative thlt
1t was subjected to a special tax. In
Roman laundries the garments were
first washed with I've and then laid
In shallow earthen vessels, sprinkled
with urine and trodden with the feet.
They were afterward rinsed In water
and exposed to the air to remove the
odor OF urine. The laundries were
so offensive that they were placed
outside of the city or in outlying quar-
ters. Putrid urine is still used in
washing in many parts OF the world
Soap made by combining grease and
alkall appears to have been first men,
toned by Pliny in the first century
1t is described, not as a detergent,
but as a pomade employed by the
Gauls to give the hair a fine gloss
and a reddish tint. Both hard and
soft soap were made from goats fat
and beech ashes. The soap must also
have contained coloring matter, but
.his is not mentioned. The Romans
adopted from the Gauls the use OF
soap, and employed 1t extensively on
the hair. PlIny says that the Gauls
invented soap, but 1t is more prob
able that they adopted 1t from the
Germans, who, in turn. may have OBJ
tanned the knowledge OF 1t from the
Levant
The use of soap In washing Is first
mentioned, in the second century, by |
Galen. who adds, however that the
Romans used various earths in wash
ing the face. Probably soap remained
an article of luxury, employed as a |
cosmetic and occasionally as a medi-
cine, during the second and third cen.
turtles, while the older cleansing |
agents were generally used In the
laundry and toilet. II is even doubt
ful whether the sapOnaril OF the
fourth century were soapmakers. or
manufacturers OF cosmetics In gem
eral. In Germany the use OF soap has
been traced back to the reign OF Char
Iemagne, about 500 A. d.. but soap
was at first household art,