who-laid-the-rail
adv. phr.— «He said he was a Willkie man to who-laid-the-rail, but that unfortunately he was afflicted with asthma, which was responsible for the hissing.» —“The Brighter Side” by Damon Runyon Zanesville Signal (Ohio) Aug. 27, 1940. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
David says that when he was growing up in Akron, Ohio, his family referred to the grassy area between the sidewalk and street as the devil strip. He’s since moved to Nashville, Tennessee, where he doesn’t hear that term. There are lots...
Is there such a thing as a “neutral” accent, and if so what does it sound like? And that quirk in the way southern Californians talk about freeways. They’ll say things like take the 405 and get on the 8. Why the definite article...