I’ve always been intrigued with the history of common everyday expressions and idioms. I came across an article in an online article in Pocket Worthy titled “Everyday Sayings Explained” put together by Stylist Team as gathered from Phrase Finder.
We’ve all heard these phrases which we liberally use in our everyday language — “Hold a candle to . . . The hair of the dog that bit you . . . A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.”
One such phrase is “Mad as a Hatter.” It originates from the 18th century. Hat makers used to use mercury in the forming of their hats as it bonded the felt into a tighter firmer mat. The mercury, however, was a poison that affected the nervous system of the hat makers and caused them to go mad.
In the book “Alice in Wonderland” by Lewis Carroll, the illustration of the Mad Hatter shows a 10/6 on his hat which is the price of his hat, 10 shillings 6 pence. For fun, some celebrate National Mad Hatter Day which is held on October 6.
Google Phrase Finder to find the story behind many more of our common sayings.