Show CHEWING THE RAG HI T OF NEW YORK are Just Juet now worked wo kec n to toa a r heat PHILOLOGISTS P of excitement over the ol of the euphonic euph nic phrase chewing ipg the rag ragI I One of these TV writing to the New York Sun claims that after long and laborious 18 us tracing of ot the footprints of ot his this t glib phrase along the public tongue h he he ties has finally finall found its source in the prisons of York The writer explains 8 that in Sing Sing Slug and nd Cherry Hill there is a 8 cod code of signals b between the convicts by means of which any I pl ce of on ti l o be flashed over oer the prison m in an incredibly short abort time This code coc V includes a definitely related to th raff raS Which h is made in reply to a signal asking What are you doing Tho Tue M bW the rag signal signa means mean the speaker hs an attack of the blues bluett and is Ia ruminating over his condition and ill luck Hence argues arcue the writer write ws WIt use lisa u athe the phrase cheu che j in the rag when hen a person gh way to useless complaining c mp I Wha f lre may be in this th thory orv it is more than n probable bable that Ua t chewing t 6 r rag K is s only a vulgar T relative of the more mOle aristocratic art such as the bitter cud ol of t remorse reano and the like THes tB In their U i turn doubtless have a common origin with the word rumination when used to f moody meditation namely the quiet meditative m dita UY attitude of cow that is 18 chew chewing ing her cud So that though chewing the ag g may ro y have I come io 0 UP u the slums it was originally y an agricultural ral ct t tAs i As such sJ h it certainTy belongs to a iod wd Od family and aDd though tike some ome of the thes s younger rs or of pan nobility it may have bae lost the favor tavor of its rela relatives r 1 tives T associating oMa too closely with the common herd U I tins if s just juit as blue I blood in its veins as the tie more gie aristocratic the tue e e i ol o rf fancy ncY of the I books Uk Like fk ri ny in n another aneth t may m Y in time live yn its it past pa t and andrt fee be received rt with opec ope arms arttis by the entice crt and the tensors or the 1 9 |