Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1896-03-27
POPULAR PHRASES.
origin OF SOME OF THE CATCH
WORDS THAT EVERYBODY USES.

WORDS THAT EVERYBODY USES.
We Have Taken Some From the English
and Invented Very Many Ourselves-How
| We Came to Adopt Some of the Phrases
Which Are In General Use.
Mention has been recently made of
the disputed origin of the word ''tee
total" claimed by two inventors, one
living in England and the other in
! America, and each Of whom may have
hit upon the word independently and
for the different reasons assigned. To
curious minded persons who like to
know the why's, whens and wherefores
| Of everything the origin of popular
| catchwords and figures of speech is an
| interesting subject.
The word "machine, as we use it po-
! litically, is another which, like 'tee
| total" is CT doubtful parentage. In the
days Of the old volunteer fire companies,
| which in largo cities were potent factors
in local politics, the phrase ''to run
with the machine came into common
use, and it meant that man SO spoken
of was identified with the political CO,
| terie of the fire company with which he
| trained. The famous Boss Tweed began
his career in New York running with
| the machine'' as volunteer fireman
Yet the term as we now employ it was
used in England long before. The Duke
{ of Wellington, in a letter to friend in
| lS45 deploring the increasing influence
Of popular agitation on the action Of the
houses of parliament, said: "Such is the
operation of the machine as now estab-
lished that no individual, be his char
acter, conduct in antecedent circum-
stances and his abilities what they may,
can have any personal influence in gen.
eral." We may have derived our term
"the machine from cur old volunteer
fire company days, but in the England
of Wellington's time there were no fire
companies exerting any political infiu-
ence.
That much. overworked word "crank"
gained universal vogue in connection
with Guiteau's assassination of Presi-
dent G arfield, but it was long before
that applied by the late Don Piatt, who
claimed to be its inventor, to Horace
Greeley, the purpose of it being to l.ken
the famous editor to the crank Of hand
organ, which is forever grinding out the
same old tunes. The word, as we have
now come to apply it, means much more
and worse. IS implies condition Of
mind versiGg upon insanity, and this
has given rise to the erroneous notion
that it has its origin in the German
word "kranl.'
The word "dago," now commonly
applied to Italians all over the country,
came originally from Louisiana, where
it as first referred only to people Of
Spanish origin. but was later applied to
Italians and Portuguese as we'll. The
word is corruption Of Diego
(JaInes), which is a common Spanish |
name, San Diego being the patron saint |
Of the epaniards.
Another word Of incessant employ
ment i'll American speech is "dude,"
with its feminine complement, "du-
dine" This may have come to us from
the old English word for clothes
"duds," in earlier times spelled |
''QuG6S. -
Thackeray writes Of one Of his charaex
tiers: "Her dresses We're wonderful, hel
bonnets marvellous. Few women could
boast such dudes" Shakespeare, in |
''The Merry Wives of Windsor" writes
of q "hlc!ge Of dudes,'' meaning q basy
ketful Of clothes ready for washing Its
present day literary currency dates from
February, 1876, when the word appear
ed in Putnam S Magazine. But famous
New York slubnan, Mr.. Hermann
Oelrichs, claims the credit Of first start:
ing it as popular term Of contempt or
ridicule for all overdressed person, He
claims that q youth Of this type who
passed by the Union club window with
mincing step provoked himself and
another clubman to hum together an ao-
compartment to the youth S walk, thus,
''Du, da, de, du du, du de-" and that
he remarked GOOD enough; dude is
the proper name for it, and that thus
the word was born.
The words lingo" and "jingoism"
are also Of disputed derivation. We all
know about the English music hall song
which sat the word going with new
meaning in 1877, but the original coin
age of the term "By jingo!" is quite |
doubtful. In the Basque language the
word lingo means God, and it is widely
belie7ed that by jingo!'' was a form
OF oath with which the Basque sailors
familiarized the English sailors and,
through them, all English speaking pee-
pie. But others believe the word is
corruption Of ST. Gingoulph. It is one
of the oddities Of popular wordmaking
that the term "jingoism, as now used,
ia a complete trayesty Of the sentiment
of the song from which it was taken. 4 ;
lingo, either in England OF America, is
now set down as d man spelling for
fight, eager for war at any cost. But the
original music hall song, with the lingo
chorus, expressed exactly the opposite
sentiments desire for peace. 1t began
with .'We don't want to fight and Its
fiercest war note was struck in the dec
lsration that if they had to do what they
would fah her not, they had plenty OF
men. ships and money.
Speaking of brother Jonathan,
there is DC doubt about its origin.
When General Washington went to Mas
sachusetts to take command of the Revo-
lutlohary army, he found great lack of
ammunition and other supplies He
turned for aid to Governor Jonathan
Trumbull Of Connecticut, and got it,
and in many emery sncies Of that period
he used the phrase, "We must consult
Brother Jonathan on the subject" The
expression became nationally current,
and it stands as the American parallel
to "John Bull. baltimore Sun,
a IT.