The Coolidge examiner., 1934-07-13

rsegars-i b1 Natl 7a' cerra &C. se-ie'g.
WaHr.~E E'er. N ttf Service
"HE stoy o. silver Is very
Old one. For ages IL has bccu
n popular among coin and orna
mcui makers. ycl today its name
nares 10 the news headlines 10 an
even greater extent than that of lts
fellow prcc.ous metal. gold.
Less costly than gold or plat
luum. almost plastic lu the hands
% clever s.lFersmlihs. silyer's every.
day uses are legion.
Not every one Is born wlih a Sd
yer spoon In his mouth. set the
spoon. Ia some form. Is almost as
o!d as man. or AZ least. as one witty
Freuchman said. certainly as old as
soup
one Greek example lu the British
museum has stem ending In q
goats hoof. Pliny speaks ~ spoons
whose handles were shaped llke
spikes 10 perforaie eggs The "a.
nous Apostle spoons. usually In
sets of IS (the additional one wilh
the agure of Chrlsi). were once
popular gifts To a new born child
Made IN 1910. rs handle an Image
of 81. Peter. one such spoon Is on
ylew now AZ wanAmakerS IN New
York
Knives and forks came much
later That the head % the fam
ily should carve al table may have
come from the fact that In old days
men carried knives for defense.
Forks were not generally used an.
til the early Sixteenth century. when
Italian nobility started tie fashion.
The practice. though some thought
Il eaeminate. gradually spread 10
other countries The English nov
ellsl James Payne wrote of ''the
culture Of the silverfork school
without their afIectaiion.- The
'Lyiyi keporie of How Young Peo-
pie should Behave" gives these
guides 10 correct table manners:
"YouF knife Is to be kept clean and
sharp. Eat your broth with a
spoon. not sip IL. You are not
10 leave your spoon In Jour dish
nor dip your meat Ia the salere
tsalil.-
old beliefs cling 10 some silver
articles. Maiays make a betrothal
cup II Is nlled with slrth tbetel
pepperl leaf. and sent By a man
10 the girl he wishes as wife. II
she is agreeable. she accepts the
cup aud eats some OF the leaf
Malays also use a silver box.
rounded Ike an apple, for cere
monies at the lirst shaving OF little
boys heads and AZ ear plercinEs-
Sometimes this box Is brought 10
= wedding when a lock OF the brides
hair Is buried In II under banana
tree for good luck.
ODD Uses OF Silver Articles.
In tsarist Russia the proposer OF
n toast stood an the center OF the
room. drained his silver bratina. or
drinking cup. and then. to prove
his sincerity, turned IL upside down
over his head The sumptuousness
of the tSars' plate was proverblal.
In this collection was a famous Eng
lish wine cIstern weighing 5000
ounces, with a bathtub capacity.
How this vessel. rafTled OF in 1875.
when funds were sought for a bridge
over the Thames. finally came TO
the winter palace al Petrosrad tnow
I.eninEradl has long been n mys-
terry
barcelona. Spain. used 10 present
each visiting member OF royalty
with magnificent silver service.
remindful of a similar courtesy
sometimes extended by one OF our
states when new ship has been
named In .ts honor.
On dining tables Of the rich from
the Fifteenth TO the Seventeenth
centuries. silver ships. originally de-
signed to hold the knives and nap
kins. and sometimes the wine. made
striking center pieces In Toledo,
Spain. Is one such vessel which be-
longed TO the daughter OF Isabella
and Ferdinand. Nefs. these ships
were called. As early rs 1892 Italy
records a silver nef on wheels, p
foreshadow % the popular German
and Dutch models Of later years.
After the conquest OF Mexico and
Peru. silver flooded the markets OF