Packard Forum Index » Pre-War (1899-1942)

This is a great discussion. I have the Webster's Collegiate dictionary and it has seven definitions for bail. Four are Middle English, one is Anglo-French, one is verb transitive from 1548, and one is verb transitive from 1613. Let's zero in on this Middle English one which started out as - beil and baile - and is attributed as a Scandinavian derivation. 1 a: a supporting half hoop. b: a hinged bar for holding paper against the platen of a typewriter. 2 arched handle of a teapot or kettle.

It is easy to see how mariners might drop the i in baile. Especially given maritme history in the North Atlantic. So maybe the Packard thing might more accurately be called a bale. Or, change the e to an a in beil and call it a bail.

One thing is for sure, on the high seas bail means moving water so why would anybody use that spelling for parts of the rigging?

Considering who might have been writing the copy for the Packard parts book, why wouldn't they use the same name as the bar on typewriter they are using?

Maybe a better choice would have been to call the thing a clasp which is defined as: a device for holding objects or parts together. Except that after 1931 the thing was purely decorative.

Sometimes word choices are made for convenience. For example, in the old days General Motors used gage rather than gauge for instruments. Why? Because some hotshot accountant figured it would save money to use the four letter version.

Interesting stuff, Tim. I brought up the nautical spelling as so much automotive vernacular comes from maritime roots. After all, ships were around for a couple of centuries before cars. Chris.

200 hundred years ago (& longer)they really didn't much give a shi! about spelling if it was close to phonetically correct that's all that matter.

To plagiarize a saying about roses:

"A bale by any other name is still a bail."

Or is it "A bail by any other name is still a bale."

Hmmm, how about the term baling wire?