A known NW indigenous-to-English loan, and a possible 'nother

[David Robertson]

LaXiyEm.

We know that 'high muckymuck / high muckamuck' etc. is a loan from The
Jargon to English.  Viz. Hubert Howe Bancroft's "Retrospection:  Political
and personal" (New York:  Bancroft [yes, his company], 1912), page 107:

	[An indigenous gentleman in Coloma, California, referred to as
	George Washington is addressed.]
	
	'"You high muck-a-muck here George?"
	'"Yas, gotambread?"
	'"Ah, your Excellency has not breakfasted.  Kindly go to the
	kitchen and tell them I sent you."'

But as I happened upon another book about the Pacific Coast of North
America today, I wondered, upon seeing the following, from Marius
Barbeau's "Pathfinders in the North Pacific" (Caldwell, ID:  Caxton,
1958), page 133:

	'On another occasion, over a hundred years ago, the Tlingit or
	Russian Indians fell out with another party of Tsimsyan -- or
	British Indians -- visiting them at their old village near the
	mouth of the Stikine.  As, in a dog fight, the Tlingit gained the
	upper hand, this time they claimed to have captured from the
	Tsimsyan the name of Shaiks....

	'The defeated Shaiks of the Tsimsyan, in a great feast given to
	wipe out his defeat, altered his former name to Great-Shaiks, and
	had still finer headdresses carved by the best Nass River artists
	of the day.  For he would not accept his loss at the hands of a
	spoliator.'

My friends, today's question is "Where did the English idiom 'No great
shakes' come from?"  The Tlingit name is commonly spelled Shakes, and may
have been hereditary; I've heard of a Chief Shakes IV, haven't I?

I could look this up, but I always want to encourage some repartee here.

Yr Humble & dev. srvt,
Dave





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