Mighty Mo; Harper's Weekly

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MIGHTY MO

   Frank Rich wrote about a sandwich at the old Hot Shoppes restaurants called the "Mighty Mo" (New York Times, 6 October 1999, section F, pg. 1, col. 2).  Rich said that the name was probably inspired by Superman and Mighty Mouse.
   A letter to the editor published 13 October 1999, pg. 9, col. 1, noted that "Mighty Mo" was the nickname of the famous battleship U.S.S. Missouri that saw action during World War II.
   They didn't ask me, of course, but the name "Mighty Mo" comes from a description of the Missouri River.  Dickson Hall's recording FOLK SONGS AND LEGENDS OF GREAT AMERICAN RIVERS (1960) includes the song "Down the Mighty Mo."
   Not to be confused with Big Mo(mentum).

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HARPER'S WEEKLY

   The New York Public Library now has Harper's Weekly in its list of online databases.  I've spent much time with Harper's Weekly--the Thomas Nast cartoons are an important part of American history.
   However, it's not the whole thing--only 1857-1871 is currently online.  Also, when the page is brought up on the screen, YOU CAN'T READ THE D**N THING!
   It has a number of items under "slang" that I'll check out, although I've recorded much of it.  There are no big surprises--no "Dixie" or "dude" before we'd expect them.  The items under "carpetbagger" were helpful, but the index included some entries where the term wasn't used.