Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1880-03-03
SAYINGS, AND WHO FIRST
SAID THEM

| trlte and plthy, are used without the
| least idea from whose mouth or pen
they first originated. Probably the
words of Shakespeare furnish us with
more of these familiar maxims than
any other writer, for to him we owe
"All is not gold that glitters," Make
a virtue of necessity Screw your
courage to a sticking-place" (not
point They laugh that win, - 'This
is the long and short of it, "Compari-
sons are odious," CAS- merry as the
day is long "a Daniel came to
judgment" ''Frailty, thy name in
Women" and hosts of others
Washington Irving gives us 1.-The
Almighty Dollar" Thomas Norton
queried long ago "What will Mrs.
Grundy say?" while Goldsmith ans
wers, ASK me no questions and I'll
tell you no fbs" Charles G.. Picknev
Millions for defence but not one cent
for tribute" First in war, first in
peace and first in the hearts of his fell
low-citizens" (not countrymen,) ap-
peared in the resolutions presented to
the House of Representatives in De-
cember, 1880, prepared by Gen. Henry
Lee.
From the same we Gull make as
surance doubly sure" christmas
comes but once year." Count their
chickens ere they are hatched," and
Look before you leap"
Thomas Tasser, writer of the six
teenth century, gives US, Its an i'll
wind turns no good, "ssBetter late than
never" Look ere thou leap" and
1.-THE stone that is rolling can gather
no moss" "All cry and no WOOL" is
found in Buffers "Hubibras.'
Dryden SAYS: "None but the brave
deserve the fair, "Men are but chill
dren of larger growth" Through
thick and thin" mo pent-up Utica
contracts our power" declared Jona-
than Sewell."
when Greeks join Greeks then
was the tug of war" Nathaniel Lee,
1892.
"Of two evils | have chosen the
least" and ''The end must justify the
MEANS" are from Matthew Prior.
We are indebted to Colley for the
agreeable intelligence that "Richard
is himself again" johnson tells US
of "a good hater," and Macintosh,
in 1871, the phrase often attributed to
John Randolph, "Wise and mastery
inactivity"
''Variety's the very spice of life,"
and Not much the worse for wear"
Cowper. "Man proposes, but God
disposes," Thomas A. Kempis.
Christopher Marlowe gave forth
the invitation so often repeated by his
brothers in less public way, "Love
me little, love me long" Edward
Cooke was of the opinion that "a
mans house is his castle" To Milton
we owe "The paradise of fools.'' "a
wilderness of sweets" and "Moping
melancholy and moonstruck madness"
Edward Young tells us death
loves shining mark" "A fool at
forty is fool indeed" but, alas, for
his knowledge of human nature when
he tells US "Man wants but little, nor
that little long"
From Bacon comes knowledge is
power" and Thomas Southerne re-
minds US that "Pity's akin TO love-"
Dean Swift thought that Bread is
the staff of life" Campbell found that
"Coming events cast their shadows
before" and THAT distance lends en-
chantment to the viewn "a thing of
beauty is joy forever" is from Keats.
Franklin said, "God helps them who
help themselves" and Lawrence
Sterne comforts US with the thought,
Good tempers the wind to the shorn
lamb"
Even some of the "slang" phrases
of the day have legitimate origin.
Putting your foot in it'' is certainly
not very elegant mode of expression,
but, according to the Asiatic re-
Searches" it is quite point of law;
when the title to land is disputed in
Hindostan, two holes are dug in the
ground and used to incase limb of
each lawyer (?,) and the one who
cried first lost his clients case Fancy,
if you can, some of our famous climbs
of the law" pleading in such man.
ner 1t is generally the client who
"puts his foot in it"
When things are in disorder they
are often said to be turned topsy-
turvy; this expression is derived
from the way in which turf used for
fuel is placed to dry, the turf being
turned downward, and the expression
then means top-side turfway
Plutarch, in his life of Argesileus,
King of Sparta, gives us the origin of
quite familiar expression.
On certain occasion an ambassador
from Epirus, on diplomatic mission,
was shown by the king over his capi
tai. The ambassador knew of the
monarch's fame-knew that though
only nominally King of Sparta, he
was yet ruler of Greece-and he had
looked to see massive walls rearing
aloft their embattled towers for the de-
fence of the town; but he found moth
ing of the kind He marvelled much
at this, and spoke of it to the king.
"Sire," said he, 81 have visited
most of the principal towns, and | find
no walls reared for defence Why is
this 2"
Indeed, Sir Ambassador" replied
Argesileus, "thou canst not have
looked carefully. Come with me to-
morrow morning, and | will show you
the walls of Sparta"
Accordingly on the following morn
ing the King led his guest out upon
the plains where his army was drawn
up in full battle array, and pointing
proudly to the seried hosts, he said
''There, thou beholdest the walls Of
Sparta-ten thousand men, and every
man brick -
ABOUT four years ago Congress