Jonathan > Jonathan's Quotes

“When Ludwig Nobel died in April 1888, French newspapers incorrectly reported the death of Alfred, who was in fact alive and well. Alfred then read his own obituary, which was a scathing critique of his life and work. The obituary named Alfred a “merchant of death” and declared that his invention, dynamite, “killed more people faster than ever before.” Alfred was so disturbed at this potential posthumous reputation that he later changed his last will and testament to bequeath his entire fortune to a new foundation that would award a series of prizes to “those who, during the preceding year, shall have conferred the greatest benefit on mankind.”
― Douglas Brunt, The Mysterious Case of Rudolf Diesel: Genius, Power, and Deception on the Eve of World War I

“East India Company could not formally or explicitly acknowledge that its opium was intended for the Chinese market: doing so would have meant the loss of its trading rights and the end of its immensely lucrative tea business. So, in order to preserve its commercial privileges, the Company created an ingenious subterfuge. Opium from the Ghazipur and Patna factories was loaded on to heavily guarded fleets and sent to Calcutta, where it was auctioned to ‘private traders’.”
― Amitav Ghosh, Smoke and Ashes: Opium's Hidden Histories

“The brute fact is that it was a flower that defeated the mightiest military power in human history: the opium poppy may be humble in appearance, but it is one of the most powerful Beings that humans have encountered in their time on earth. To be sure, tea, sugarcane, tobacco, rubber, cotton, Yersinia pestis, and many other plants and pathogens have played major roles in human history, some of them over several centuries. But today they are all much diminished in their influence, while the opium poppy is mightier than ever.”
― Amitav Ghosh, Smoke and Ashes: Opium's Hidden Histories

“To make great onion sandwiches Beard gave this recipe for oatmeal bread: Dissolve 2 packages active dry yeast and 2 teaspoons sugar in 1 cup lukewarm water—110 to 115 degrees. Let stand for ten minutes, then stir very well. Cream ⅓ cup butter in a large mixing bowl, add 1 cup boiling water, and stir until completely melted. Add 1 cup rolled oats, ⅓ cup molasses, and 1 tablespoon salt. Blend thoroughly and cool to lukewarm. Add the yeast, then fold in 5 ½ cups sifted flour. Add 1 egg and beat well. Put the dough in a buttered mixing bowl, turning it so it is well-greased on all sides, then refrigerate for at least two hours—you can leave it for 3 or 4 hours and it won’t hurt. Turn out the chilled dough on a floured board and shape into two loaves. Place in well-buttered 9 by 5 inch loaf pans, and let rise in a warm, draft free spot until double in bulk, about 2 hours. Bake in a 350 degree oven for approximately 1 hour, or until the loaves are nicely browned and sound hollow when you rap the bottom with your knuckles. Remove from the pans and cool on a rack. This makes excellent sandwiches and the best toast ever.”
― Mark Kurlansky, The Core of an Onion: Peeling the Rarest Common Food—Featuring More Than 100 Historical Recipes