What Does Silver Do?

Several years ago at an auction a friend of mine bought a large silver milk pail. It was well used and had many dents. Over time I began wondering why a farmer would have a silver milk pail. Farming is a difficult business with narrow and uncertain margins. Because of this, farmers never spend frivolously. A silver milk pail appeared to be a frivolous expenditure. Why not steel or aluminum? Only recently did I learn the answer. If you leave milk out on a warm day it will spoil quickly. The bacteria that naturally exist in milk thrive in the warm . temperature and multiply rapidly, causing the milk to sour. However, silver is a potent bactericide and kills those bacteria, so that the raw milk can remain unrefrigerated for hours without spoiling. Similarly, our early settlers would often throw silver dollars into their wells or water barrels in order to kill bacteria and keep the water potable. During plagues in Europe, wealthy families gave their children silver spoons to suck on, hence the saying "Born with a silver spoon in his mouth." Even in ancient Greece and Rome, people used silver containers to keep liquids fresh. Before World War II, silver solutions were often used as a topical antiseptic, and also as an oral, or even injected, antibiotic. One can find the same thinking today in firms that produce silver-plated Foley catheters. The silver kills the bacteria that could cause urinary tract infections. The prevention of infection is well worth the cost of the silver.