Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1882-12-06
SELECT.
Origin Of Popular Phrases.

| FROM tne St. LOUIS dlODe-DeuOcrdt.
"a Bird in Hand is Worth Two in
The Bush. This saying originated
from the following circumstances
Will Somers, the celebrated jester to
Henry VII, happening to call at Lord
Surveys, whom he had often, by q
well-timed jest, saved from the dis
pleasure of his royal master, and who
consequently vas always glad to see
him, was oh this occasion ushered in.
to the aviary where he found my lord
anu sing himself with his birds. Som
ers happened to admire the plumage
of kingfsher.
"By my lady" said Surrey, "my
prince of wits, I will give it to you"
Will skipped ABOUT with delight, end
swore by the great Harry be was q
most noble gentleman. Away went
Will with his kingfsher, telling all his
acquaintances whom he met that his
friend Surrey had just presented him
with it.
Now, it so happened that Lord
Northampton, who had seen this bird
the day previous, arrived at Lord Sur
rey's Just as Will Somers had left,
with the intention of asking it of Sur
rey for present to a lady friend.
Great was his chagrin on finding the
bird gone. Surrey consoled him, how
ever, with saying that he knew Som
ers would restore it to him if he (Sur-
rey) promised him two another day
Away went a messenger to the
prince of wits, whom he found in rap
lures with his bird, and to whom he
delivered his lords message. Great
was Willis surprise, but he was not to
be bamboozled by even the monarch
himself.
"Sirrah," he said, "tell your master
that / am obliged for his liberal offer
of two for one, but that / prefer one
bird in the hand to two in the BUSH"
Hence originated this oft-repeated
saying.
Name of Countries"-The Ph9ni-
clans, who were great commercial
people in the young days of the world,
are thought to have given the present
names to most the countries around the
Mediterranean Sea. The Phenician
language contained the words Europe,
Asia, Africa. Italy, Spain, Gaul, Brit
ain, Etna, Sardinia and Siberia, as
we'll as many others now used as the
names of minor places. Europe, in
Phenician, meant white complexion, +"
and was applied to the country north
of the Mediterranean because they were
of lighter complexion than those of
Asia and Africa. Africa signiied the
Gland of corn," and Asia meant "the
middle land" being so named because
it was between Europe and Africa.
Italy was "the country of black pitch;"
Spain was "the land of rabbits" Gaul
or France, the Gland Of yellow hair"
Britain "the country of TIM" Aetna,
"the smoky furnace" Sardinia, "a
mans foot" and Siberia, Thirsty
land" because it is so dry.
"To talk like dutch Uncle DR.
Brewer, in his Dictionary of Phrase
and Fable" says the significance OF
this saying Is to offer 'severe reproof,"
and quotes from the Latin classics to
prove the awe in which an uncle's re.
buke is held. He does not treat the
word Dutch" under this head but in a
neighboring paragraph declares that
during the rivalry between England
and Holland the word Dutch was
synonymous with all that was false
and hateful.n So Dutch uncle may
be regarded as more caustic than one
of any other country. According to
Hotten, Dutch uncle is "a parsonage
often introduced into conversation, but
exceedingly difficult to describe. III
talk to him like a Dutch uncle conveys
the notion of anything but desirable
relation Dutch is slang term fol
any language which is unintelligible to
the hearer To talk double Dutch
backward signifies extreme quickness
to the use of gibberish. This may tend
to explain the above.
80. Kit has been asserted that
these letters were first used by Andrew
Jackson, as an abbreviation of all cor
rect One of Old Hickory's' friends,
however, came to the front with the
declaration that from close and intimate
acquaintance and connection with Jack
son during bis whole Presidency from
1929 to 1887, he knows that Jackson
never used such an expression. He
was very courteous and gentlcmanly
person, and retained his military habit
! Of devolvipg ell his epistolary matters