Hail Columbia

[victor steinbok]

Slight correction--p. 4/3, not 3/3

VS-)

On Wed, Sep 21, 2011 at 12:49 AM, victor steinbok <aardvark66 at gmail.com>wrote:

> A follow-up on Shut the Door and similar constructions:
>
> http://goo.gl/dwLON
> How the Language Has Changed. George Sokolsky. Rome News-Tribune - Apr 25,
> 1951. p. 3/3
> [Commenting on A Dictionary of Americanism on Historical Principles]
>
>> So I found that "Hail Columbia" is a synonym for the expletive, "Hell!"
>> and that took me back what seems to me to be a century of two when women
>> used to say politely, "I'll give him Hail Columbia!" That was to avoid
>> saying such a bad word as hell. Imagine what those sweet ladies would have
>> thought if they heard what President Truman said about Drew Pearson and the
>> kind of words that have to be used to get a good curtain on a second act.
>>
>
> VS-)
>

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