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mollydooker

History of our language

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mollydooker

Interesting history of our language and now you know
>>>
>>>
>>>     'A SHOT OF WHISKEY'
>>>     In the old west a .45 cartridge for a six-gun cost 12 cents, so did a
>>>     glass of whiskey. If a cowhand were low on cash he would often give
>>>     the bartender a cartridge in exchange for a drink. This became known
>>>     as a "shot" of whiskey.
>>>
>>>     THE WHOLE NINE YARDS
>>>     American fighter planes in WW2 had machine guns that were fed by a
>>>     belt of cartridges. The average plane held belts that were 27 feet (9
>>>     yards) long. If the pilot used up all his ammo he was said to have
>>>     given it the whole nine yards.
>>>
>>>     BUYING THE FARM
>>>     This is synonymous with dying. During WW1 soldiers were given life
>>>     insurance policies worth $5,000. This was about the price of an
>>>     average farm so if you died you "bought the farm" for your survivors.
>>>
>>>     IRON CLAD CONTRACT
>>>     This came about from the ironclad ships of the Civil War. It meant
>>>     something so strong it could not be broken.
>>>
>>>     PASSING THE BUCK / THE BUCK STOPS HERE
>>>     Most men in the early west carried a jack knife made by the Buck knife
>>>     Company. When playing poker it as common to place one of these Buck
>>>     knives in front of the dealer so that everyone knew whom he was. When
>>>     it was time for a new dealer the deck of cards and the knife were
>>>     given to the new dealer. If this person didn't want to deal he would
>>>     "pass the buck" to the next player. If that player accepted then "the
>>>     buck stopped there".
>>>
>>>     RIFF RAFF
>>>     The Mississippi River was the main way of traveling from north to
>>>     south. Riverboats carried passengers and freight but they were
>>>     expensive so most people used rafts. Everything had the right of way
>>>     over rafts, which were considered cheap. The steering oar on the rafts
>>>     was called a "riff" and this transposed into riff-raff, meaning low
>>>     class.
>>>
>>>     COBWEB
>>>     The Old English word for "spider" was "cob".
>>>
>>>     SHIP STATE ROOMS
>>>     Traveling by steamboat was considered the height of comfort. Passenger
>>>     cabins on the boats were not numbered. Instead they were named after
>>>     states. To this day cabins on ships are called staterooms.
>>>
>>>     SLEEP TIGHT
>>>     Early beds were made with a wooden frame. Ropes were tied across the
>>>     frame in a crisscross pattern. A straw mattress was then put on top of
>>>     the ropes. Over time the ropes stretched, causing the bed to sag. The
>>>     owner would then tighten the ropes to get a better night's sleep.
>>>
>>>     SHOWBOAT
>>>     These were floating theaters built on a barge that was pushed by a
>>>     steamboat. These played small town along the Mississippi River. Unlike
>>>     the boat shown in the movie "Showboat" these did not have an engine.
>>>     They were gaudy and attention grabbing which is why we say someone who
>>>     is being the life of the party is "showboating".
>>>
>>>     OVER A BARREL
>>>     In the days before CPR a drowning victim would be placed face down
>>>     over a barrel and the barrel would be rolled back and forth in an
>>>     effort to empty the lungs of water. It was rarely effective. If you
>>>     are over a barrel you are in deep trouble.
>>>
>>>     BARGE IN
>>>     Heavy freight was moved along the Mississippi in large barges pushed
>>>     by steamboats. These were hard to control and would sometimes swing
>>>     into piers or other boats. People would say they "barged in".
>>>
>>>     HOGWASH
>>>     Steamboats carried both people and animals. Since pigs smelled so bad
>>>     they would be washed before being put on board. The mud and other
>>>     filth that was washed off were considered useless "hog wash".
>>>
>>>     CURFEW
>>>     The word "curfew" comes from the French phrase "couvre-feu", which
>>>     means, "Cover the fire". It was used to describe the time of blowing
>>>     out all lamps and candles. It was later adopted into Middle English as
>>>     "curfeu", which later became the modern "curfew". In the early
>>>     American colonies homes had no real fireplaces so a fire was built in
>>>     the center of the room. In order to make sure a fire did not get out
>>>     of control during the night it was required that, by an agreed upon
>>>     time, all fires would be covered with a clay pot called-a "curfew".
>>>
>>>     BARRELS OF OIL
>>>     When the first oil wells were drilled they had made no provision for
>>>     storing the liquid so they used water barrels. That is why, to this
>>>     day, we speak of barrels of oil rather than gallons.
>>>
>>>     HOT OFF THE PRESS
>>>     As the paper goes through the rotary printing press friction causes it
>>>     to heat up. ... ---... Therefore, if you grab the paper right off the
>>>     press it’s hot. The expression means to get immediate information.

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