[Ads-l] Bootstrap antedating

[Ben Zimmer]

More on the history of the expression (citing Barry and me) here:

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps-nonsense_n_5b1ed024e4b0bbb7a0e037d4

On Tue, Jul 9, 2019 at 12:45 PM ADSGarson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com>
wrote:

> Thanks Dave and Stephen.
> Barry Popik has an entry which acknowledges the assistance of Ben
> Zimmer who posted information to the ADS list on August 11, 2005.
>
> https://www.barrypopik.com/index.php/new_york_city/entry/pull_yourself_up_by_your_bootstraps
>
> Barry lists the following earliest citation:
>
> [Begin excerpt from barrypopik.com]
> 30 September 1834, New-York )NY) American, pg. 2, col. 4: KNOW YE,
> that I, NIMROD MURPHREE, of the city of Nashville, and state of
> Tennessee, have discovered perpetual motion. N. MUROHREE.
>
> Nashville, Aug, 27, 1834.—We clip the above from the last number of
> the Nashville (Tenn.) Banner, where it appears as an advertisement,
> without note or comment. Probably Mr. Murphree has succeeded in
> handing himself over the Cumberland river, or a barn yard fence, by
> the straps of his boots. We advise him to send his pretensions on the
> next Congress by Col. Crockett himself, whose motto is “go
> ahead!”—[Mobile Adv.]
> [End excerpt from barrypopik.com]
>
> Garson
>

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