Earlier Known Usage of "Sod"

[Jonathan Lighter]

"Slick-sleeve" was in use at Texas A & M during WWII according to an article published in _AmSp_ shortly afterwards. It became more common in print ca1970.

  "The Bastard King of England" was a favorite song in both world wars.

  JL

"James A. Landau" <JJJRLandau at NETSCAPE.COM> wrote:
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Sender: American Dialect Society
Poster: "James A. Landau"
Subject: Re: Earlier Known Usage of "Sod"
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I doubt this is useful, but the song (folk song? it is sometimes attributed to Rudyard Kipling) "The Bastard King of England" has these lines

He loved to hunt the Royal stag
Within the Royal wood
But better than this
He loved the bliss
Of pulling the Royal pud.

So he offered half the royal purse
And the hole of Queen Hortense
To any sod
Who'd bring him the rod
And the nuts of the King of France

The context makes it clear that "rod" and "nuts" are strictly anatomical references.

OT: re "chitterlings" _The Stars at Noon_ (1954 edition) by Jacqueline Cochran, who is white, describes how she was familiar with chitterlings from her childhood, which was in company towns owned by lumber companies. Presumably the other whites in the company towns were equally familiar.

aside to Wilson Gray: I never heard "slick-sleeve" meaning "E-1" before, probably because I made deuce out of Basic and was in a head shed unit that didn't have many under-fours in it.

- Jim Landau


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