Double-Tongued Dictionary

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who laid the rail

adv. phr. in the forms from or to or until or for or since who laid the rail: with all possible speed, force, or action; completely, thoroughly, excessively, endlessly, limitlessly; quickly; forever, always, since time immemorial, until the end of time.

The origins of this expression are unknown. A phrase used in the same way is “who laid the chunk,” which dates to at least as early as 1906. The phrase “who laid the rail” was also used by the character of the mayor in the stageplay The Music Man, written in 1957 by Meredith Willson and made as a movie in 1962, but as indicated by the cites below, the term predates the play by many decades. One of the most well-known songs in The Music Man, “Ya Got Trouble,” sung by Professor Harold Hill, is about pool halls corrupting the youth of the town. It includes the line, “Right here in River City./Trouble with a capital “T”/And that rhymes with “P”/and that stands for pool!” Interestingly, but probably coincidentally, the 1906 citation from Dallas is from an article discussing a city ordinance that would shutter pool halls in that town. Thanks to Martha Barnette for suggesting this entry.

Citations, subject labels, and comments can be found on the Double-Tongued Dictionary web site:

http://dtww.org/index.php/dictionary/who_laid_the_rail/

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