Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1881-08-12
Origin of Familiar Phrases.

THE HoRsE's BAcK.-This phrase ,
was first written by Bramhall in
1864, in consequence Of a converse
ton between Hobbies and himself, !
but was not published until 1855.
The paragraph in which it appears
(Alp. Bramhall's ''Nindication of
True Liberty Against Mr.. Hobbies, ID
is as follows: The last dictate of
the judgment concerning the good
or bad that may follow on any ac-
ton is not properly the whole cause,
but the last part of it, and yet may
be said to produce the effect neces-
sarily in such manner as the last
feather may be said to break the
horses back, when there were so
many laid on before as there wanted
but that to do it.
DURANGO NILE.-This literary
will-o'- the-wisp has been traced to
Burns and Smollett. 1t originally
appeared, however, in Johnes' "Frois-
sart." Describing the capture of
St. Veneaut, by the troops I'M
der the command of the Bishop
Of Norwich, Froissart says that Sir
VIM. dc NELLIE, who defended the
place, was permitted by his captor
to return to France rs a prisoner on
parole, according to the manner in
which all French and English gen
4lemen behave to one another; but
not so the Germans, who, whenever
they take a prisoner, throw him Tito
d,rance cae, loaded with chains, in
order to gain more considerable
ransom
THUG-The word thug" now 50
generally used to denote the "shoul-
der-hitters' and thieves of our cities,
is derived from the Hindoo Hugna,
to deceive ....
MASON AND DIxoN's LINE.-On
the 18th Of August, 1863, Thomas
and Richard Penn and Lord Balti-
more, being together in London,
agreed with Charles Mason and Jere-
miah Dixon, two surveyors, to mark,
run and settle and fix the boundary
line between Maryland on one hand
and Delaware and Pennsylvania on
the other. They accomplished their
work to within 36 miles, chains
and 80 links, when they were told
by their Indian escorts that it was
the will Of the Sioux nation that the
surveys should cease, and they ter
minated accordingly. Mason died
in Pennsylvania in 1887; Dixon died
at Durham, England, in UT.
EMERALD IsLE.-The epithet, as
applied to Ireland, was first used by
DR.. William brennan, author Of
"Glendalloch, and other poems, who
was born at Belfast May %, 1854.
The phrase occurs in his beautiful
poem entitled Erin" from which
stanza is quoted below:
Arm Of Erin, prove strong; but be gentle as brave
And, uplifted 10 strike, still be ready to save:
! Nor one feeling of vengeance presume to defle
The cause. or the men, of the Emerald Isle
To the words Emerald Isle" Dr.
brennan has added the following
note: 1t may be puerile to lay
claim to priority Of application in
/ the use Of an epithet; but poets, like
bees, have a very strong sense of
propriety, and both are of that irrit-
able kind as TO be extremely jealous
of any one who robs them of their
boarded sweets. The sublime cpl
thet which Milton used in his poem
on the Nativity, written at fifteen
years of age, His Misunderstanding
hand, would have been claimed by
him as his own even after he had
finished Paradise Lost. And GRAY
would prosecute as a literary poacher
the daring hand that would presume
to break into his orchard and appro-
pirate single epithet in that line,
the most beautifully descriptive
which ever was written:
I The breezy call Of incense breathing morn.
JUsT THE CHEEsE.-This familiar
vulgarism, used in commentator of
a thing, is mere orientalism, mean
ing lust the thing" from cheez,
Hindostanee for "a thing"
] PETERS PENcE.-Ofa, a Saxon
I prince. to ingratiate himself in favor
OF the sovereign pontih, engaged to
pay him a yearly donation TOR the
support of an English college at
Rome; and, in order to raise the
sum, he imposed a tax of penny
on each house possessed of god
year. This imposition, being after
ward levied on all England, was
commonly denoininated Peters
pence.
TRUE BLUE---The first assumption
of this phrase was led by the Cove
nanters, in opposition TO the scarlet
badge of Charles i, and hence it was
taken up by the troops of Leslie and
Montrose in 1889. The adoption of
4bo r.aIoy rrac o,,a of fLnoa rol50;or,,