A Kettle of Fish

1904

The phrase "a kettle of fish," meaning an awkward entanglement, most probably has no connection with our word kettle, a vessel in which water is boiled. It has been with much reason derived from the word "kiddle," French "quidel," a stake fence set in a stream for catching fish. Inspector Walpole reminds us that this kidellus net, or kiddle, was mentioned in Magna Charta and in other early statutes. — London Standard.

Origin of Some of World's Most Popular Quotations

1914

Famous Words That Will Endure

Cynical Old Diogenes Told the World "Habit Is Second Nature"

It is recorded that an ignorant person, explaining her distaste for Shakespearean performances, said that his plays were too full of quotations. Yet we, too, though we may pride ourselves upon our learning, probably do not know the origin of half the common phrases we use as carelessly as verbs in our daily conversation.

No less a person than Cicero first made use of the expression, "While there's life there's hope," in a letter he wrote to Atticus. "We are in the same boat" is not modern slang, but occurs in a letter written by Clement I., bishop of Rome, to the Church of Corinth in the first century. This letter is extant and is one of the prized documents of the early church.

"I never put off till tomorrow what I can do today," was Lord Chesterfield's explanation of how he managed to do so much work. "Whatever is worth doing at all is worth doing well" he wrote later in the famous letters to his son.

In some of the expressions we use habitually may be crystallized an epoch of history. Such is the motto of the Order of the Garter, "Honi soit qui mai y pense" ("Shamed be he who thinks evil of it"), which was given by Edward III. of England. Wishing to draw the best soldiers in the world to him, he proposed a revival of the round table of King Arthur, holding a tournament at Windsor castle on New Year's day, 1344. After the contest of arms the guests were entertained at his expense at a round table. Philip, king of France, was jealous over the interest this aroused and forbade his subjects to attend, at the same time misrepresenting Edward's motives. Several years later, when Edward founded the Order of the Garter, he chose a motto that seemed to challenge his rival monarch to think wrong of it if he dared.

Later English history has not been laggard in increasing the supply of apt remarks that have grown into everyday sayings. Lord Eldon, lord chancellor of England during the first twenty-six years of the nineteenth century, continually mispronounced the name of Henry Brougham, afterward to be a successor in the chancellor's office. Brougham objected to be called Broffam, and in this regard Eldon was the chief offender. Once, after Brougham had made an excellent speech, Eldon by way of apology pronounced his name correctly and made a proverb, "New brooms sweep clean."

The same expression occurs frequently to different people who could have no knowledge that their thought had been given utterance before. "No man is a hero to his valet" has been paraphrased by scores, from Mme. du Cornuel, a witty Frenchwoman of the seventeenth century, to Dr. Johnson and Napoleon. The first record of it, however, is found in Plutarch, who states that when Hermodotus addressed a poem to Antigonous I., king of Sparta, hailing him as son of the sun and a god, the monarch replied, "My body servant sings me no such song."

It was Diogenes, the cynic, who declared that "habit is second nature." The phrase "circumstances over which he has no control" was used by the Duke of Wellington in a letter concerning some affairs in which his son was mixed up and with which be declined to interfere. Dickens also used the expression a few years later when he had Micawber write to David Copperfield. "Circumstances beyond my individual control," etc.

"Conspicuous by their absence" has been used on many occasions in modern oratory. It was first used by Tacitus in relating that in the funeral procession of Julia, niece of Cato, sister of Brutus, wife of Cassius, many of the images of the most famous families in Rome were seen, but "Cassius and Brutus shone pre-eminent because their images were not displayed."

"Nothing is certain but death and taxes," wrote Benjamin Franklin, stating that the constitution of the United States was in operation and to all appearances would last.

"Those who live in glass houses should not throw stones" was said by James I. of England when his favorite, the Duke of Buckingham, complained that a mob had broken his glass windows, which were at that time a luxury.

"Mind your p's and q's" is said to have been taken from an old French phrase at the time of Louis XIV. A very low bow was in fashion, and the dancing master in instructing his pupils would warn them to look out for the position of the feet and the movement of the head lest their cue wigs be disarranged. The French word for foot is pied. "Mind your pieds and queues" soon came to be transplanted into English and abbreviated.

Wallace Irwin once complained that when he had been invited to be funny at a banquet his real gems of wit were addressed to the back of his chauffeur on the way home. But what's the difference? According to the Latin poet, upheld by modern investigation, everything you could possibly say has been said before. — Anna Bird Stewart in Minneapolis Journal.

Decatur Doctor Caught Digging Up Negro Cadaver

Illinois, 1879

BODY SNATCHING.

A Decatur Doctor After a Negro Cadaver

His Operations Brought to a Sudden Conclusion.

The Decaturites are all worked up over a body snatching affair that occurred last Friday night. A prominent Decatur physician is implicated in the affair, and if he shows up the Decatur folks promise him an anti-cordial reception.

It seems that the above mentioned physician wanted to increase his knowledge of the human frame, and with this end in view he climbed the fence of a Decatur graveyard, having in his possession those necessary grave-robbing instruments, a pick and shovel. Strange to say this son of Esculapius seems to have a horror for the Caucasians. The reason of this is not known, but it is thought that Caucasian "stiffs" do not "pan out" as well as those of other races, therefore he concluded to get a "subject" of the African persuasion.

Having arrived at this conclusion he wended his way toward the "last resting place" of a recently "planted" negro. As soon as the grave was reached he unslung his pick and immediately began to delve into the newly made grave. He worked away with a will, and he was just stooping to raise the lid of the coffin when the deep stillness of the night was broken by the loud report of what seemed to him about seventeen cannons. The bullets flew past his cranium and buried themselves in the earth a few feet beyond him. The perspiration started in great beads to his forehead, and dropping his pick and shovel he precipitately fled. Scaling the graveyard fence, he took a short cut for his stable. Arriving there he immediately hitched his horse to a buggy, and in less time than it takes to "blow up a safe" he was driving across the country at a "Sleepy Tom" gait, and no tidings of his whereabouts have been received up to this writing.

The names of all parties are reserved, as it is thought that there will be further developments made.

—Fort Wayne Sentinel, Fort Wayne, IN, Aug. 19, 1879, p. 4.

Shakespeare and Slang — "Fie! Beat it hence!"

1916

Later Day Phrases That Were Used by the Immortal Bard.

"Good night," a terse ejaculation that has taken ranking position among the slang of the day, had its source in no less authority than Will Shakespeare. It took a Hamilton college student to discover that the magic words were frequently used in Shakespeare's plays and with as much variety of meaning as we have been giving to them.

"The idea that 'good night' has the mark of modernity," declares this student, "is a sad mistake. In act 1, scene 3, of the first part of 'King Henry IV,' Worcester says he will disclose a matter of Hotspur which is as full of peril 'as to o'erwalk a current roaring loud on the unsteadfast footing of a spear.' To which Hotspur replies, 'If he fall in, good night.' "

Many other bits of modern vernacular are from Shakespeare, the student says, among them "Go to it!" "You cheese!" "I am for you," "Dead drunk" and plenty of others.

And regarding that once very favorite phrase "Beat it" the student says this: "Every one from a former president to a newsboy has made use of these two words. Yet in act 2, scene 1, of 'The Comedy of Errors' Luciana exclaims: 'Fie! Beat it hence!' " — Hartford Courant.

Knocking on Wood

1919

Knocking on wood

The superstition of rapping on wood after a boast of a piece of luck is of European origin. The raps were supposed to drive away evil spirits vexed by others' good fortune. The raps later signified the Trinity, and the necessity for rapping on wood was because that was the material of the cross. The expression dates from a custom in vogue five thousand years ago.

--Middletown Daily Herald, Middletown, New York, June 2, 1919, page 4.

"Saving Our Bacon" - The Expression's Origin

1919--

SAVING OUR BACON

Origin of an Ancient Colloquialism in Connecticut

Expression Used When Debtor Gets Best of Creditors by Questionable Methods in Business Deals

Distribution and sale of the government supply of bacon brought to the minds of many who are acquainted with old sayings the ancient colloquialism, "Saving one's bacon." The thrifty housewife, laying in a store of the smoked meat, assures her near neighbors that she is "saving her bacon." The housewife, of course, is telling the truth, but as she repeats the ancient colloquialism she fails to use it in its proper sense.

The housewife who is so gay over "saving her bacon" would be horrified and justly provoked if her neighbors would reply: "What! You cheating your creditors?" And that is just what she means if she employs the term properly. The story of the origin of the colloquialism is credited to Connecticut, according to the Hartford Times.

In the days when the Charter Oak was green and Sir Edmund Andrews was more green, new London boasted of a citizen of the name of Fitz John Winthrop. He was a sailor, and moreover of literary tastes. These tastes were more distinctly commercial. That is, while he was quite a bibliophile on his own account, and had a goodly store of books, he was in the business of collecting books for others. Probably because he was something of a connoisseur, the colonist who coveted foreign published books engaged him to obtain them when he was in port on the other side; or, knowing their fads, he would, of his own account, make the purchases, and bring them over, disposing of them at a fair profit.

Among the customers was a lawyer who was also interested in shipping, politics and several other things which in our later day might go by the name of speculations. At the time when he was flush with money he would invest in books, and depute Capt. Fitz John to obtain them abroad. Among other works for which he had something of a penchant were those of Lord Bacon. He managed to have quite a sizable importation at different times. On one occasion,when the captain came into port and brought him a bale of books, he found the lawyer in financial difficulties of a shady character. On the following day the property was to be "distrained."

Under the colonial law among other things exempt from the claws of the creditor was meat of various descriptions and quantities. Bewailing the fact that his books must go under the hammer, he was disconsolate when the captain came with the additional volumes. He had a decent supply of wits and he and the lawyer, working industriously by night, managed to stow away a good deal of the library in meat barrels in the cellar. On top of each was a layer of bacon in coarse salt. The following day, when the sheriff's clerk came with his red chalk, he scrawled his "X" on each of the barrels, and the contents were exempted.

It must have been some time later when Capt. Fitz John related the story, and managed to add, "Leave it to any one if them bar'ls didn't hold Bacon!" And so when a debtor got the best of his creditors by questionable methods, the proceedings got to be known as "saving one's bacon."

--The Hamilton Daily News, Hamilton, Ohio, October 6, 1919, page 10.