"Plain bays for Jenny's"?

Sat Apr 7 01:15:08 UTC 2007

At 4/5/2007 11:16 PM, sagehen wrote:
>I agree that "bays" is probably baize, & I have a dim recollection of  once
>identifying a "Jenny" as a sort of pinafore or apron.  It could also have
>been a sort of generic for housemaid, which would account for the
>apostrophe (not used for the other plurals). Then the name is a chicken&egg
>sort of thing: which came first?

Can you come up with a citation for pinafore/apron?

The generic for housemaid seems similar to my supposition of a female
name, and "plain" would fit with a housemaid.

As plurals vs. apostrophes, I wouldn't rely on that too much in
Boston newspapers of 1740!

Joel

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org