Subscribe by RSS

NAUTICAL SAYINGS THE DEVIL TO PAY

DEVIL TO PAY
As always, Old Nick has nothing to do with this well known phrase meaning to bring about seriously bad consequences. The original saying was ‘the devil to pay and no pitch hot’. ‘Pay’ was an old nautical term that meant to seal a ship’s seams with tar. As regular readers will already know the ‘devil’ was the name of the longest seam of a ship, which ran from stem to stern and supported the gun deck. It was also the most difficult seam to reach and when repairing a ship in dry dock sailors had to squat in the bilges to pay the devil.

07-02-2012 - Bolton School Dickens World Record
04-02-2012 - Cargo Ship Hits Bridge
04-02-2012 - Snakes In The Everglades
01-02-2012 - February 2012 Competition
29-01-2012 - A Busy Year Ahead
25-01-2012 - What Is The Clipper Round The World
24-01-2012 - The Meaning Of Life
24-01-2012 - School Children Crossing Damaged Bridge
18-01-2012 - Conwy Visitor Guide
14-01-2012 - Cruise Ship Runs Aground

Harbour Guides Comments