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Show Briny Deep Birthplace of Many Figures of Speech In addition to such obviously nautical terms as "Pouring oil on troubled waters," "Feeling buoyed ;up," and "Left high and dry," our everyday speech is liberally I sprinkled with metaphors whose j maritime origin is not so apparent. appar-ent. The "bitter end" to which everyone every-one was going to fight refers to the end of the cable that was secured to the bitts, an arrange-jment arrange-jment of wooden or iron posts .which took the strain when a vessel ves-sel lay at anchor. When the full llength of the cable was extended, it was said to be out "to the bit-jter bit-jter end," signifying that the limit had been reached. |