The record-union., 1894-01-27
COMMON BUT BLIND SAYINGS.
Tracing the Origin of Everyday Prov.
erbs and Comparisons.

tracing the Or1Sln OF EFGfyuay PfOV-
erbs and Comparisons.
"He was mad as a hatter'' is a phrase
often used to indicate that a person has
been very angry, says the indianapolis
Jou9l0t. The original phrase was Mad
as an AFTER" the last word being the
Saxon for adder" which gives it sense,
as the adder is supposed TO be always
mad and ready to sting. Mad as u
March hare" is another much-used
phrase. The hare is not reputed to DE
terocious at any time. Those who have
given information respecting the hare
assert that in March the animal is par
ticularly wild and shy. Consequently
the phrase can have no meaning except
as a sarcastic allusion TO ones lack of
spirit and courage. One often hears,
| He's as dead as a dOOr-nail," yet it is
probable that most of those who use the
phrase cannot tell why q door-nail should
be any deader than any other nail that is
made of metal. 1t is explained, how
ever, that the door-nail in earlier times
was the plate on the door upon which the
old-fashioned and now unused 'knocker"
struck to arouse the inmates of the house
AS the plate or nail was struck many
more times than any other nail, it was
assumed to be deader than nails struck
only when driven into wood.
II acknowledge the cOrn," meaning to
retract. to take back, has number OF ex-
plantations, the most plausible of which
is that in 1898 one Stewart OF Ohio made
speech in Congress in which he declared
that 'Ohio. Indiana and Kentucky sent
their haystacks and cornfields to New
York and Philadelphia for market
Wicklitfe of Kentucky questioned the
statement. "W hat do they send ?'' asked
Stewart. "Why, horses, mules. cattle
and hogs" "What makes your horses
mules, cattle and hogs?" continued the
Ohio man; you feed 800 worth of hay to
a horse; you just animate and get on top
of your haystack and ride Oft to market.
! How is it with your cattle? You make
one of them carry $50 worth OF grass and
hay to the Eastern market. How much
corn does it take at 80 cents bushel to
fatten hog. Why, thirty bushels. Then
you put thirty in the shape of a hog ana
make it walk off to the Eastern Market"
81 acknowledge the corn," shouted the
kentucky member.
"a little bird told me' is an almost
universal adage based upon the idea that
this ubiquitous wanderer from the want
age of the upper air spies out all strange
and secret things and tells them TO those
VINO can understand. Thus is Ecclesi-
astes x, 20: Curse not the King, no, not
in thy thought; and curse not the rich
in thy bedchamber; for the bird of the
air shall carry the voice, and that which
hath wings shall tell the matter"
Let us return TO our muttonS,o - mean
ing let us return TO the subject matter
from which we have wandered. The
phrase comes from an old French play
in which a draper who had been cheated
by lawyer of six ellis of cloth appears
in court TO defend a shepherd who had
stolen twenty eight sheep OF the draper.
The pre.ense of the thievish lawyer
| causes the draper 10 wander from the
sheep thief to his swindling LAWYER con-
tusing the two misdeIueanors, which
caused the Judge to frequently exelaim:
Let US return to our muttons" tsheep.)
mot worth tinker's damn is really
not profane in itself, as the last word
should be spelled without IN" A
tinker's dam is wall of dough or clay
raised around a spot which the plumber
is repairing, just as he desires it, fixed
with solder The material can be used
but once, consequently after being used
is worthless. Hence the force of the
adage for comparison of worthless
things.
Everything is lovely and the goose
hangs high' is a much-used expression
and turns on a misapprehension of the
word. "honks," the cry of the wild goose
| as it flies. On clear days wild geese fly
high, hence they 'honk'' high. Conse-
quently the adage means everything is
lovely and the weather is fair.
"I'll put spoke in his wheel" had its
origin many years ago when wheels were
solid except three holes to receive a
spoke" or pin when going down hill,
which acted as brake. In 1889, in me-
mortal, two measures designed to inter-
fere with the arbitrary government of
James Ii. are spoken of ''as such spokes
in their chariot wheels that made them
drive much heavier"