nitty-gritty: racist term?

[Douglas G. Wilson]

>... UK police are not allowed to use the term 'nitty gritty' because it
>allegedly originally meant the waste at the bottom of a slave ship once
>the slaves were taken off.

Another silly baseless etymythology, I think.

Before further examination of this expression's amazing 250-year
politically-charged history, let's see a single citation from before 1950.

-- Doug Wilson