bless vs salute

bless

verb
  • To honor as holy, glorify; to extol for excellence. 

  • To make something holy by religious rite, sanctify. 

  • To make the sign of the cross upon, so as to sanctify. 

  • To esteem or account happy; to felicitate. 

  • To invoke divine favor upon. 

  • To turn (a reference) into an object. 

intj
  • Used as an expression of endearment, gratitude, or (ironically) belittlement. 

salute

verb
  • To act in thanks, honor, or tribute; to thank or extend gratitude; to praise. 

  • To make a gesture in honor of (someone or something). 

  • to wave, to acknowledge an acquaintance. 

  • To address, as with expressions of kind wishes and courtesy; to greet; to hail. 

  • To promote the welfare and safety of; to benefit; to gratify. 

noun
  • A discharge of cannon or similar arms, as a mark of honour or respect. 

  • An utterance or gesture expressing greeting or honor towards someone, now especially a formal, non-verbal gesture made with the arms or hands in any of various specific positions. 

  • A kiss, offered in salutation. 

  • A pyrotechnic device primarily designed to produce a loud bang. 

How often have the words bless and salute occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )