The saying “It’s raining, thieving government!” mocks the tendency to blame the government for anything bad that happens. The hypotheses on the origin of this saying, attested for the first time in 1861 in a cartoon by the caricaturist Casimiro Tejaare different: it could just be a satirical expression, but the history of this saying probably dates back to Middle Ages or toancient Rome. In any case, the origin of the expression may have to do with the salta very precious asset during antiquity (it is no coincidence that we still speak of “salary” to indicate the economic remuneration of a worker). Since salt absorbs moisture very well, on rainy days it tends to weigh more and this could increase duties or reduce workers’ wages.
“It’s raining, a thieving government”: the first attestation of the saying
The first testimony of the use of this expression is attributed to the cartoonist Casimiro Teja, director of the Turin satirical newspaper The Pasquino, he used the expression “It’s raining, thieving government!” in a humorous cartoon from 1861 which depicted the failure of a demonstration by Mazzini supporters in Turin, ruined by the rain that day. In the cartoon there were three demonstrators sheltered under an umbrella, one of whom exclaimed the motto that later became famous, “accusing” the government of having caused the rain in order to prevent the political demonstration.
Teja’s cartoon is certainly the first written attestation of this saying, but its origins could be even older and linked to salt!
The hypothesis of the medieval origin of the saying: the increase in duties on goods
We now come to the first of the hypotheses that have salt as the protagonist. In the Middle Ages the transporters of goods – including the precious salt – had to pay taxes to the officials who presided over the various trade routes.
It is said that the officials were waiting for the rain before passing the goods, so as to charge a higher duty to transporters. This is because of a known property of salt called hygroscopythat is, the ability to absorb the humidity contained in the air.
As a result, when it rained the weight of the bags of salt transported increased. Since the duty to be paid depended on the weight of the goods transported, for the same goods the transporters found themselves at pay higher taxes to officials due to the weight gain of salt.
In this way officials increased duties without having to do anything, but just waiting for the rain. Hence the saying “It’s raining, a thieving government”.
The origin hypothesis in ancient Rome: the decrease in wages
Another hypothesis derives fromancient Rome. In ancient times, salt was used as pay for officials in the army and judiciary. Obviously the value of the pay depended on the quantity of salt supplied and, therefore, on its weight.
According to the same mechanism explained above, if the pay of soldiers and magistrates was carried out during a rainy day, the salt gained weight thanks to its hygroscopy. This meant that the “government” was able to pay less its officials: thanks to the humidity, a bag of salt increased in weight, but not in quantity!
