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Re: The whole nine yards
Posted By: Mousie, on host 199.107.4.10
Date: Tuesday, October 19, 1999, at 17:20:59
In Reply To: The whole nine yards posted by Brunnen-G on Tuesday, October 19, 1999, at 17:02:16:

> I have heard a number of explanations. Mine is that in the days of square riggers, a standard three-masted ship with three yardarms on each mast would be moving all-out, under full power, when all yardarms were flying sail. In other words - three masts - nine yardarms - the whole nine yards.
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> Any other questions?
>
> Brunnen-G

My boss steadfastly maintains that machine gun bullets, or some such wartime ammunition, used to come in lengths of 9 yards, hence.....

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