Wednesday, September 02, 2015

Phrase of the day: kick over the traces

The phrase of the day is kick over the traces:

Break loose from restraint, misbehave. This metaphoric expression alludes to the straps attaching a horse to vehicle, which the animal sometimes gets a leg over in order to kick more freely and thereby refuse to move forward. [Mid-1800s ] (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/kick+over+the+traces)


"In building his army Zapata encountered remarkably few political difficulties.  Already the main chiefs in central and northern Guerrero—Salgado, Díaz, Gómez, and Castillo—had formally recognized the authority of the Zapatista headquarters...  Only in Morelos did chiefs kick their traces.  Mendoza, for instance, evidently resented spending his men and ammunition in diversionary raids."

 - John Womack, Zapata and the Mexican Revolution

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