[Ads-l] "Bone in her teeth"

Jonathan Lighter wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM
Mon Oct 20 20:54:44 UTC 2014


HDAS "bone in her mouth" (1627: Captain John Smith).

 "...teeth," J. F. Cooper, 1827.

Cooper was at sea in the merchant marine and U.S. Navy from 1806 to 1809.

JL

On Mon, Oct 20, 2014 at 8:56 AM, Stephen Goranson <goranson at duke.edu> wrote:

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> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Stephen Goranson <goranson at DUKE.EDU>
> Subject:      Re: "Bone in her teeth"
>
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> Also 1823. A Universal Technical Dictionary... v. 1, p. not numbered=0A=
> George Crabb - 1823  =0A=
> "To carry a bone," is said of a ship that makes the water foam before her.
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> https://www.google.com/search?tbo=3Dp&tbm=3Dbks&q=3Dship+%22carry+a+bone%22=
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> &tbs=3D,cdr:1,cd_min:Jan+1_2+1799,cd_max:Dec+31_2+1824&num=3D10&gws_rd=3Dss=
> l=0A=
> ________________________________________=0A=
> From: American Dialect Society  on behalf of Dan Goncharoff =0A=
> Sent: Sunday, October 19, 2014 3:34 PM=0A=
> =0A=
> Subject: [ADS-L] "Bone in her teeth"=0A=
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> At the maritime nonprofit where I help out, this phrase, referring to boat=
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> moving swiftly, generating a 'bone' of foam at her bow, and looking like a=
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> dog carrying a bone in its mouth.=0A=
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> The earliest I can find is The Atlantic Magazine from September 1824:=0A=
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> "...the fastenings of the boat were unloosed by some "polissons" on the=0A=
> wharf; up went the sails, and off sailed the boat, proudly dashing the=0A=
> foaming waters on either side of her bow, or in the more expressive=0A=
> language of her crew, "carrying a white bone in her teeth."=0A=
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> Can anyone help us do better=0A=
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> DanG=0A=
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> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org=0A=
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> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
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