[Ads-l] Another country heard from.

Ben Zimmer bgzimmer at GMAIL.COM
Tue Jan 14 17:50:15 UTC 2020


It's often claimed that "another county heard from" originated in the
closely fought presidential election of 1876, e.g.:

https://www.yourdictionary.com/another-county-heard-from
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/another_county_heard_from

But as Grant Barrett points out on "A Way With Words," the "another county"
version had already become a stock phrase by 1868. (Grant speculates it
might have come from a line in a play or a joke circulating at the time.)

https://www.waywordradio.org/another-country-heard-from-2/

Here are two 1868 examples:

Green Bay (Wisc.) Weekly Gazette, Mar. 21, 1868, p. 3, col. 1
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/42283140/another_county/

The Vermont Record and Farmer (Brattleboro, Vt.), Aug. 12, 1868, p. 5, col.
1
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/42283160/another_county/

There's also "another precinct heard from" from 1871...

Appleton (Wisc.) Post, Oct. 12, 1871, p. 3, col. 2
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/42283360/another_precinct/

...and "another district heard from" from 1875.

Times Union (Brooklyn, NY), Sep. 25, 1875, p. 4, col. 2
https://www.newspapers.com/clip/42283479/another_district/


On Tue, Jan 14, 2020 at 10:13 AM Charles C Doyle <cdoyle at uga.edu> wrote:

> "Another COUNTY heard from" may be a little older . . . .
>
> --Charlie
> ________________________________
> From: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> on behalf of
> Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM>
> Sent: Tuesday, January 14, 2020 9:38 AM
> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Subject: Another country heard from.
>
> [External Sender]
>
> This formerly well-known phrase ('That opinion or remark is impudent or
> otherwise uncalled-for') isn't in OED.
>
> 1883 _Seattle Post-Intelligencer_, in _Daily Astorian_ (Dec.23) 3: Another
> Country Heard From.
>
> 1904 _Macon Telegraph_ (Apr. 5) 1:   "Another Country Heard From."
>
> 1914 _Ft. Worth Star Telegram_ (Dec. 13) 2: Election Slang...."Another
> country heard from" originated during the Hayes-Tilden combat [1876] as a
> result of the slow returns from contested Southern states.
>
> Etc., etc.
>
>

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