1848. J. R. Lowell, Biglow Papers. The field of Lexin'ton where England tried The fastest colors thet she ever dyed. An' Concord Bridge, thet Davis, when he came, Found was the bee-line track to heaven an' fame, Ez all roads be by natur', ef your soul Don't sneak thur shun-pikes so's to save the toll.
1874. M. Collins, Frances, ch. v. How they could follow an enemy's trail, or strike a bee-line through unpathed woods to the point they sought!
1875. Miss Bird, Six Mos. in Sandwich Islands, Lett. xxix., p. 275 (1886). Horses cross the sand and hummocks as nearly as possible on a bee-line.
1884. Aldridge, Ranch Notes, p. 78. The cattle are in great dread of this pest [the heel-fly], and the instant an animal feels one, it hoists its tail in the air, and takes a bee-line for the nearest water.
Beelzebub's Paradise, subs. (popular).—Hell; the infernal regions. Beelzebub is a frequent mis-reading for Beelzebul, the name given by the Jews to the prince of demons. The usage occurs in the New Testament at Matthew x., 25, and xii., 24-27, where Beelzebub should read Beelzebul. The former is properly the god of the Philistines, worshipped as the destroyer of flies [from Hebrew baal, lord + zebub, a fly]; whilst the latter is an opprobrious change on the former [from Hebrew baal, lord + zebul, dung].
Been in the Sun, adv. phr. (common).—A synonym for 'drunk,' in connection with which see Screwed. An allusion to a flushed, heated appearance.
Been Measured for a New Umbrella, phr. (American).—Said sportively of anyone appearing in new, ill-fitting clothes, or who has struck out a new line of action, the wisdom of which is doubtful. The joke is an old one and refers to a man of whom it was said that nothing fitted him but his umbrella.
Been There. Oh, yes, I've been there, phr. (American), i.e., 'I know what I am about.' A popular exclamation. When it is said of a man that he has been there, shrewdness, pertinacity, and experience are implied. A variant may be found in the equally slang expression, 'he got there all the same.'—See Got there.
1888. Atlanta Constitution, May 4. The Japanese say: 'A man takes a drink; then the drink takes a drink, and next the drink takes the man.' Evidently the Japanese 'have been there.'
2. Another and more invidious meaning, however, is attached to the phrase. Women suspected of clandestine meetings with men are said to have been there.
Beer, subs. (familiar).—To do a beer, i.e., to take a drink of beer.
1880. Punch's Almanac, p. 3. Quarter-day, too, no more chance of tick, Fancy I shall 'ave to cut my stick. Got the doldrums dreadful, that is clear, Two d. left!—must go and do a beer!
1889. Sporting Times, July 6. It was the old tale of stony, pebble-beached, block granite Wednesday, and money on the staff there was none. 'Pitcher,' said Shifter, brushing the dust off his tongue, 'got enough for a beer?' 'Enough for a beer?' repeated Pitcher. 'Good heavens, I wish I had. If Bass's ale was a ha'penny a barrel I couldn't buy enough to soak a fly-paper!'
Verb.—To drink beer; also, to get drunk.
