Dear freemartin or 'free fumbler of fumbler's hall' my 1811 dictionary may
help
Or perhaps 'free and easy john'-tipple porter sing bawdry
Or '' freeholder'-one whose partneraccompanies him to the ale house
Or even 'freebooter'plunderer of the enemy
With bestos from pensioner pal freezimmerman patrick
-----Original Message-----
From: Poetryetc provides a venue for a dialogue relating to poetry and
poetics [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Robin Hamilton
Sent: 21 April 2005 14:22
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Surrender in the Battle of Poetry Web Sites
> What *really* annoys me, though, wherever I come across it, is 'origin
> obscure'. I like to KNOW!
>
> best joanna
Join the club.
Actually, I think it *is* possible to trace a plausible etymological origin
for the term "freemartin", but given that I grew up with the word, bugger me
if I can think of it off-hand.
Off to get myself organised for the PPPC -- is Roger going to be there or
not?
A Pedantic Freemartin
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