Demoine courier., 1855-12-13
Not a Drap More, 'Theut It's Sweet
cncd

words and phrases become incorporated
in U vernacular by The chance telling oil
an anecdcte. or anything Of that Sort
A very common metaphoricai expression
is contained in the woods "ge,ting the
hang" Il il OF universal application
and convenience. and became populss
from the day of its '.firsl appearance in
the New Orleans Picsyune, ten years
ago. as the nab OF . story Of western
gambler on q steamboat who refused 10
refund certain monies fsaaculenely OBJ
tanned. although made fast to : pie.on rod
of the machinery, and compelled. every
second, alternately TO plunge and Jump
back wards. 10 prevent, in The one case,
his head from being jerked of, and in
the other. his bssins from being dashed
out by the regular powerful stroke.
.Let me alone, I'm just getting the
hang Of the machinery" he exclaimed.
when j, was demanded, "Won't you pay
back. now!"
And so in Law, politics. ~'eligion. and
morals, science, ard arr, the American
people have been T THE HANG
ever since.
"Not a drop more, Mouf It's sweef-
ened." is q household phrase ia a part of
Georgia and Alabama. A man declines
with il, 10 new q game Of cards at which
he has been unsuccessiul; a rustic ex-
presses. by the elegant periphrasis his
determination to drop the acquaintance
OF some cruel beauty; the little politi-
iician VOWS. in these terms, to abstain. in
future, from some particular course which
has proven unpro6la5le; end so on,
through q thousand phases and cases or
commonplace life. il answer lis purpo-
ses Of . playful. but decided negaiion or
declensior Tor the party using il. In fact.
is isa rather liberal rendering Of the
Shakspearean No more of that Hal.
and thou louesf me- though mostly by
those who never read Shakspeare.
We believe that our friend, Col. l.
Haralson, formerly Of Georgia, il en,i-
tleG TO the credit If the story out OF
which grew the expression. He ,ells i,
about thus:
twenty years sgo, il was...he custom
in north western Georgia, AZ indeed il
was throughout lhe southwest. for dry
goods dealers 10 keep q barrel Of .sper-
rets'' in the back room. aud 10 .,reat lib
eral cust,mer's TO a glass whenever de-
sired
Fillens and Devberry wers such dea-
lers in n of The small towns indicated.
and they bad for q customer clever, rol
licking old fellow, named Joe Denny,
who drank whisky 10 preference 10 wat
OF. always, and whose wife was sfeeh
of he flesh" in that p~ar,iculsr. The
old couple would come 10 town. trade
quise freely and quite az freely imbibe
he spirits in the back room OF The deal
ers we have named.
On n occasion bo,h the old man and
old woman continued their p~ota,ions in
ordinaiely; and az Fillens observed tina,
his goods went better the drunken lie
old woman became, he pressed her TO
drink.
Atisst she refused unless be awould
sweesen Il with . little siore sugar
The amiabie shop keeper INDUCED, her,
and when the old people started home in
the evening late, the old man could scarce.
~ mount his horse. and lie good wife
had actually 10 be lifted and Placed on
the pillion behind him. Happily. she
leaned n way, and her husband the
other. % thai The Crawling point was be-
tween ,hem; and a. she chung to him in
s'inchvely, they passed put of the vii.
lage safely.
Before reaching their home, however.
they he'd to cross a email creek. and
when ,heir horse stepped in TO drink.
the old lady having reached
ousness. released her hold, and quietly
lapsed in the stream below. Occupied
with his thoughts, the old man did 40,
perceive his loss. but logged slowly
homo ward. Arrived there, The children
inquired a~nxiously for "mamy." bus the
old. man could only say that che had
been on the "criler," aad tbs "~critter
haden't kicked up nary time; 90 he
couldn't say where she mou BEL" and
threw himself stupid oc . bee.
Girls and boys llew along the road
the cd man had come, yelling MANY!
ma NEE! but Of course no many res
bonded.
When they arrived Al The creek, The
Oldest girl shouted "yonder she is, set
ting down in the creek!" And there
she wa.. seated comfortably 10 Tho water.
which came nearly up to her mouth
As she swsyed back and forth, nov
yielding 10 the impe,uo.ity Of the stream.
and now resisting il With some success,
the muddy fluid would occasionally wet
her lips. and each time il did 90, she
would family exelaim viii q grim effor,
10 emile:
"Nos q drap more Nj. Fillens, thou,
|i's sweetensd." And i 10 to This 10.
mantle little Incident 10 The life of the
venerable Mrs. Joe Denny, that We are
indebted for one of our most popular
colloquial phrases.-Montgomery Mail.