"Brass tacks" (1876) and etymological evidence

Mon Aug 8 19:03:28 UTC 2005

On Aug 8, 2005, at 11:59 AM, Benjamin Zimmer wrote:

> On Mon, 8 Aug 2005 11:48:05 -0700, Jonathan Lighter
> <wuxxmupp2000 at YAHOO.COM> wrote:
>
>> If this jest could be pushed back a few years, and shone to have
>> had a
>> wide circulation, it might well have had some bearing on the
>> creation of
>> the "brass tacks" metaphor.
>
> Eggcorn alert-- that is, if JL is seeking illumination...

well, he could just be misspelling.  [i first typed "misslepping"!]

arnold