"dull as ditchwater" vs. "dull as dishwater"?

[Garson O'Toole]

Joel S. Berson wrote:
> Can anyone explain the flawed and inconsistent Google Book search
> results when a time period is specified?  E.g., if I ask for "1700 -
> 1799", I find "dull as ditchwater" at 1747

The match in GB for the phrase "dull as ditchwater" with a 1747 date
appears to be spurious. The metadata is apparently inaccurate. Here is
a link:

http://books.google.com/books?id=XBw-AQAAIAAJ&q=ditchwater#search_anchor

GB indicates that the word "ditchwater" is present in "The Spectator,
Volume 8" with a date of 1747. Also, the phrase "dull as ditchwater"
is visible in the snippet.

However, if you search for "November" in this same volume a snippet
shows an issue dated "November 9, 1974". This suggests that the date
of 1747 is detached from conventional reality.

Perhaps the GB date was assigned to 1747 because some journal named
"The Spectator" was founded in 1747.

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