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Cato the Elder insisted on bathing children in warm urine

This post is also available in: Polish (polski)

Bust of an older man – the so-called patrician Torlonia. Considered to be a likeness of Cato the Elder
Cato the Elder

The Roman statesman, Cato the Elder insisted that children should be bathed in warm urine, made by adults who have eaten cabbage before. On the other hand, if the child does not feel like falling asleep, put goat fertilizer in the diaper.

Moreover, he was supposed to say: “Well done, for when shameful lust has swollen the veins, it is suitable that young men should come down here rather than fool around with other men’s wives”, When he saw young men leaving the brothel.

Sources
  • McKeown J. C., A Cabinet of Roman Curiosities: Strange Tales and Surprising Facts from the World's Greatest Empire, 2010

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