Ray asked:

I remember at one time knowing the source of the quote, "When pigs fly" and that it was not from
Alice in Wonderland(or Through the Looking Glass). If anyone can help me I would appreciate it.

Peace and all good,

Father Ray Goodman (member, 'Phi Sigma Tau')

============

Well you sent me on a merry chase. Here it is:

"What's the origin of the phrase 'WHEN PIGS FLY'?

"Here's an attempt to satisfy the teenaged heir to the legacy of Mr Lucky, Mak Dolnick. The Makster
wants to know the origin of the phrase, 'When pigs fly'.

"To the Oxford English Dictionary we return, where the aeronautic properties of swine are first cited in
Clerk's Withal Dict. Eng & Lat. The year is 1616 when he reports the observation, 'Pigs fly in the aire
with their tailes forward.' This same statement, identified now as a proverb, appears in a couple of
other 17th century tomes. Mr Lucky is unsure of exactly what bit of practical wisdom is idealized in
this expression.

"The proverb has evolved by 1860 to, 'Pigs may fly; but they are very unlikely birds.' Who among us
can argue with this sapient observation?

'Then, in 1865, the mathematician Reverend Charles Lutwidge Dodgson writes, 'I've a right to think,'
said Alice sharply...'Just about as much right,' said the Duchess, 'as pigs have to fly.' Of course, you
probably know the author as Lewis Carroll. The cited book is Alice In Wonderland.This usage is the
first that explicitly implies the meaning 'never' to the notion of pigs flying."

(Source: Mark Dolnick http://home.netcom.com/~mrlucky/pig.html)

Steven Ravett Brown