fun with phrases

[Jonathan Lighter]

Excellent.

JL

On Thu, Oct 20, 2011 at 8:52 PM, Garson O'Toole
<adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com> wrote:
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> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Garson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM>
> Subject:      Re: fun with phrases
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Jonathan Lighter wrote
>>
>> "to walk a tight-rope"
>>
>> To balance one's actions or policy delicately (between dangerously
>> contending forces or ideas).
>>
>> OED sort of has this in its cite blocks s.v."tight-rope," but not till the '50s.
>>
>> 1936 Mark Sullivan in _Oakland Tribune_ (Aug. 21) 29 [NewspArch]:
>> Until after the election, the administration policy is to walk a tight
>> rope between the contending organizations.
>
> Here is "walking a tight rope" in 1919 with the figurative sense that
> you mention.
>
> Cite: 1919, "The Russian Pendulum: Autocracy - Democracy - Bolshivism"
> by Arthur Bullard, Page 172, Macmillan Compnany, New York. (Google
> Books full view)
> http://books.google.com/books?id=1RIEAAAAYAAJ&q=%22tight+rope%22#v=snippet&
>
> If he definitely committed himself to the Left, there would be danger
> of a new "Cossack Conspiracy." He has successfully performed the
> difficult feat of walking a tight rope. Up to the present he has kept
> the two very jealous factions from fighting. How long he can continue
> to avoid taking sides is, of course uncertain.
>
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