As an interesting addition to this, I recently heard an English language expert on NPR explain the origins of several sayings, most notably " basket case" and " toe the line ". "Basket case" originated with the medical community after WW1, when a quadruple amputation became medically feasible. Quadruple amputees were carried around hospital campuses in "baskets" and the term basket case was born, the term eventually began to refer to the resulting psychological state these poor souls were in after losing both arms and legs. " Toe the line" came from the rules of bare knuckle boxing, when a fighter who was knocked down was allowed to continue fighting if he could stand and put his right foot on the "starting line" . The boxers began the fight by each placing their right foot on the starting line. Hence, someone who cant " toe the line" is someone who cant finish what they started or cant successfully complete a task. Off topic I know, but interesting as hell. IMHO -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] <[email protected]> To: [email protected] <[email protected]> Date: Monday, April 26, 1999 1:29 AM Subject: Quotes and sayings >See you tomorrow, if the Creeks don't rise, does not mean creeks full of >water, but the Creek Indians. >** >The childrens poem Ring around the Rosy came about in this way. > >Ring around the rosy ( a ring around a sore from the plague) >pocket full of posies ( to put up to the nose because of the smeel of death >and the plague) >Ashes, ashes (they burned the bodies) >All fall down (people just fell where they were, when the plague hit them) >Ley >========================================================= > > The term "go the whole 9 yards" supposedly came from the fact that > years ago when artillery fire (?) was first invented, the strings of > artillery were 9 yards long. So if the troops really wanted to pound > the enemy, they used up the whole 9 yds of artillery >Lynn >===================================================== > > > >Subject: History Lesson > > > > > > >> > >> Life in the 1500's > >> ----- > >> Anne Hathaway was the wife of William Shakespeare. She married at > the > > > >age of 26. This is really unusual for the time. Most people married > >young, like at the age of 11 or 12. Life was not as romantic as we > may > >picture it. > > > >Here are some examples: > >> Anne Hathaway's home was a 3 bedroom house with a small parlor, > which > >was seldom used (only for company), kitchen, and no bathroom. > >> Mother and Father shared a bedroom. Anne had a queen sized bed, > but > >did not sleep alone. She also had 2 other sisters and they shared > the > >bed also with 6 servant girls. (this is before she married) They > >didn't > >sleep like we do length-wise but all laid on the bed cross-wise. > >> At least they had a bed. The other bedroom was shared by her 6 > >brothers and 30 field workers. They didn't have a bed. Everyone just > >wrapped up in their blanket and slept on the floor. They had no > indoor > >heating so all the extra bodies kept them warm. > >> They were also small people, the men only grew to be about 5'6" > and > >the women were 4'8". SO in their house they had 27 people living. > >> Most people got married in June. Why? They took their yearly > bath in > > > >May,so they were till smelling pretty good by June, although they > were > >starting to smell, so the brides would carry a bouquet of flowers to > >hide > >their b.o. > >> Like I said, they took their yearly bath in May, but it was just a > big > > > >tub that they would fill with hot water. The man of the house would > get > >the privilege of the nice clean water. Then all the other sons and > men, > >then the women and finally the children. Last of all the babies. By > >then > >the water was pretty thick. Thus, the saying, "don't throw the baby > out > > > >with the bath water," it was so dirty you could actually lose > someone in > > > >it. > >> I'll describe their houses a little. You've heard of thatch roofs, > >well that's all they were. Thick straw, piled high, with no wood > >underneath. They were the only place for the little animals to get > warm. > > > >So all the pets; dogs, cats and other small animals, mice, rats, > bugs, > >all lived in the roof. When it rained it became slippery so sometimes > >the > >animals would slip and fall off the roof. Thus the saying, "it's > >raining > >cats and dogs," > >> Since there was nothing to stop things from falling into the house > >they > >would just try to clean up a lot. But this posed a real problem in > the > >bedroom where bugs and other droppings from animals could really > mess up > > > >your nice clean bed, so they found if they would make beds with big > >posts > >and hang a sheet over the top it would prevent that problem. That's > >where those beautiful big 4 poster beds with canopies came from. > >> > >> When you came into the house you would notice most times that the > >floor > >was dirt. Only the wealthy had something other than dirt, that's > where > >the saying "dirt poor" came from. The wealthy would have slate > floors. > >That was fine but in the winter they would get slippery when they got > >wet. So they started to spread thresh on the floor to help keep > their > >footing. As the winter wore on they would just keep adding it and > >adding > >it until when you opened the door it would all start slipping > outside. > >SO they put a piece of wood at the entry way, a "thresh hold". > >> In the kitchen they would cook over the fire, they had a fireplace > in > >the kitchen/parlor, that was seldom used and sometimes in the master > >bedroom. They had a big kettle that always hung over the fire and > every > >day they would light the fire and start adding things to the pot. > >> Mostly they ate vegetables, they didn't get much meat. They would > eat > > > >the stew for dinner then leave the leftovers in the pot to get cold > >overnight and then start over the next day. Sometimes the stew would > >have food in it that had been in there for a month! Thus the rhyme: > >peas > >porridge hot, peas porridge cold, peas porridge in the pot nine days > >old." > >> Sometimes they could get a hold on some pork. They really felt > >special > >when that happened and when company came over they even had a rack in > >the > >parlor where they would bring out some bacon and hang it to show it > off. > > > >That was a sign of wealth and that a man "could really bring home the > >bacon." They would cut off a little to share with guests and they > would > > > >all sit around and "chew the fat." > >> If you had money your plates were made out of pewter. Sometimes > some > >of > >their food had a high acid content and some of the lead would leach > out > >into the food. They really noticed it happened with tomatoes. So > they > >stopped eating tomatoes, for 400 years. > >> Most people didn't have pewter plates though, they all had > trenchers, > >that was a piece of wood with the middle scooped out like a bowl. > They > >never washed their boards and a lot of times worms would get into the > >wood. After eating off the trencher with worms they would get "trench > >mouth." If you were going traveling and wanted to stay at an Inn they > >usually provided the bed but not the board. > >> The bread was divided according to status. The workers would get > the > >burnt bottom of the loaf, the family would get the middle and guests > >would get the top, or the "upper crust". > >> They also had lead cups and when they would drink their ale or > >whiskey. > >The combination would sometimes knock them out for a couple of days. > >They would be walking along the road and here would be someone > knocked > >out and they thought they were dead. So they would pick them up and > take > > > >them home and get them ready to bury. They realized if they were too > >slow about it, the person would wake up. Also, maybe not all of the > >people they were burying were dead. So they would lay them out on > the > >kitchen table for a couple of days, the family would gather around > and > >eat and drink and wait and see if they would wake up. That's where > the > >custom of holding a "wake" came from. > >> Since England is so old and small they started running out of > places > >to > >bury people. So they started digging up some coffins and would take > >their bones to a house and re-use the grave. They started opening > these > > > >coffins and found some had scratch marks on the inside. > >> One out of 25 coffins were that way and they realized they had > still > >been burying people alive. So they thought they would tie a string > on > >their wrist and lead it through the coffin and up through the ground > and > > > >tie it to a bell. Someone would have to sit out in the graveyard all > >night to listen for the bell. That is how the saying "graveyard > shift" > >was made. If the bell would ring they would know that someone was > >"saved > >by the bell" or he was a "dead ringer". > > > > <amazing, eh? > >