The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #4142   Message #2212662
Posted By: The Vulgar Boatman
10-Dec-07 - 04:20 PM
Thread Name: Lyr Add: The Tailor and the Louse
Subject: RE: Origins: The Tailor and the Louse
That's the one, Burl. Sounds almost like the weavers taking the rise out of the tailors with a sarcastic toast...
Ian, as to anti-semitism, curiously enough the only Jewish tailors I've been personally acquainted with have been far more like Morry in Mankowitz's "Bespoke Overcoat", but that's a bit modern. Was tailoring a major profession for Jews when the likes of The Tailor and the Louse or even The Tailor's Breeches came into being, or are we rationalising the stereotype to include anti-semitism? As you may gather from the original question, that bit of history is a weak point for me.
As an aside, though, I have to admit that when an old Jewish friend of mine was called up to the Army in WW2, he was greeted with "You're Jewish - you must be good at tailoring..." and set to altering uniforms!