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    1. [VA-SOUTHSIDE-L] Occupation 'Waterman' Querie
    2. Paul Drake
    3. The word "waterman" has and will for yet a few more generation had several meaning. As I suggest in my dictionary, "What Did They Mean By That?", the terms used to reveal many, many of our thoughts have evolved across the centuries to a point where our ancestors might not recognize those words. A word means what we think it does depending upon when and where we speak. Thus, there ain't no such animal as a "true definition." We should always remember the words of Mr. Justice Holmes: "A word is not a crystal, transparent and unchanging. It is, rather, the skin of a living thought, and its meaning may vary greatly with the time and the context in which it is found. "

    01/25/2004 05:38:50