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?History lesson?

To: "'tigers'" <tigers@Autox.Team.Net>
Subject: ?History lesson?
From: Bennett Cullen <p21988@gegpo8.geg.mot.com>
Date: Tue, 18 Mar 97 09:21:00 MST
Hi group,
The enclosed message came across my desk this morning. I have seen it in the 
past and thought it to be mildly humorous. I still have suspicions as to the 
authenticity of the material, but be it as it may, here it is just as I 
received it. The car show is the only automotive reference in the ditty 
though.
start quote"
         The origin of 'the finger'.

    The 'Car Talk' show (on NPR) with Click and Clack, the Tappet
Brothers have a feature called the 'Puzzler', and their most recent
'Puzzler' was about the Battle of Agincourt.  The French, who were
overwhelmingly favored to win the battle, threatened to cut a certain
body part off of all captured English soldiers so that they could never
fight again.  The English won in a major upset and waved the body part
in question at the French in defiance.
The  puzzler was:  What was this body part?
This is the answer submitted by a  listener:

Dear Click and Clack,

    Thank you for the Agincourt 'Puzzler', which clears up some
profound questions of etymology, folklore and emotional symbolism.  The
body part which the French proposed to cut off of the English after
defeating them was, of course, the middle finger, without which it is
impossible to draw the renowned English longbow.  This famous weapon was
made of the native English yew tree, and so the act of drawing the
longbow was known as "plucking yew".  Thus, when the victorious English
waved their middle fingers at the defeated French, they said, "See, we
can still pluck yew!  PLUCK YEW!"

    Over the years some 'folk etymologies' have grown up around this
symbolic gesture.  Since 'pluck yew' is rather difficult to say (like
"pleasant mother pheasant plucker", which is who you had to go to for
the feathers used on the arrows), the difficult consonant cluster at
the beginning has gradually changed to a labiodental fricative 'f', and
thus the words often used in conjunction with the one-finger-salute are
mistakenly thought to have something to do with an intimate encounter.
It is also because of the pheasant feathers on the arrows that the
symbolic gesture is known as "giving the bird".

    And yew all thought yew knew everything!

"end quote.
Cullen in Tempe (B9472658)

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