On Friday, April 16, 2021 at 4:56:27 AM UTC-4, Quadibloc wrote:
> The answer, of course, is no.
> But why on Earth would he be suspected of such a thing?
> The answer has to do with a very old slang term.
> In the online search in which I learned that it was from his
> writings that I had first heard that term, I've seen various
> theories of it's origin - a Swedish word meaning 'knockout
> blow', or a corruption of the word 'doxology'.
> The word is 'sockdolager'.
> It turns out that word was used in one context that may have
> lent it some infamy: within the punch line of a joke in a certain
> play... that led to the audience's laughter being loud enough to
> conceal the noise of a fatal gunshot.
> The play?
> 'Our American Cousin'.
>
> John Savard

Another question was if Paul Morphy was a Confederate sympathizer and whether this caused him to drop out of chess? Read this well researched book (if you can find a copy as it's out of print) "The Chess Players" by the noted writer Keyes.

Good luck!

RL

On Thursday, May 13, 2021 at 8:08:03 AM UTC-7, raylopez99 wrote:

> Another question was if Paul Morphy was a Confederate sympathizer and whether this caused him to drop out of chess? Read this well researched book (if you can find a copy as it's out of print) "The Chess Players" by the noted writer Keyes.
>
> Good luck!
>
> RL
I read that book in high school (and still have it somewhere) but it's fictional, especially the latter part dealing with his Confederate activities and his murdered sweetheart.