[eevilspock]

He writes,

Here is Havildar Hirram Singh writing to his family in India from the sodden trenches of northern France in the same year:

We must honor him who gives us our salt. Our dear government’s rule is very good and gracious.

If you know anything about Britain's salt monopoly, Gandhi and the Salt March 15 years after Singh's letter above, you'd see how messed up this article is.

[alexeisadeski3]

If you knew anything about the etymology of the word salary, you'd not have bothered writing that.

Here's a hint: Salary = salt given as payment for services rendered.

[asimov42]

You coudnt be more wrong. Read more about it here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_British_salt_tax...

[eevilspock]

Interesting. Let's say you are right and Singh means "salary" (It's not clear). Here's something from Wikipedia about that:

By the time of the Hebrew Book of Ezra (550 to 450 BCE), salt from a person was synonymous with drawing sustenance, taking pay, or being in that person's service. At that time, salt production was strictly controlled by the monarchy or ruling elite. Depending on the translation of Ezra 4:14, the servants of King Artaxerxes I of Persia explain their loyalty variously as "because we are salted with the salt of the palace" or "because we have maintenance from the king" or "because we are responsible to the king".

Somehow my point stands.

[alexeisadeski3]

I'm glad that you've researched the history of salt as payment from monarchs to their soldiers.

I'm not sure how that's supposed to support your point. Pretty sure it supports mine.