By the Great Horned Spoon!

[Jan Ivarsson TransEdit]

My faithful Stevenson's Book of Quotations has

"The more he thought on't, the madder he grew,
   Until he vowed by the great horn spoon,
Unless they did the thing that was right,
   He'd give them a licking, and that pretty soon."
      Unknown, French Claim, (McCarty, National Song Book, i, 222. 1842.)
and
   "Sez Mr. Foote,
   'I should like to shoot
The holl gang, by the gret horn spoon!' sez he."
      J.R.Lowell (1819-91), The Debate in the Sennit.

Jan Ivarsson
jan.ivarsson at transedit.st