Ron in Gloverville, South Carolina, wonders about the phrase since hatchet was hammer, which some use to mean “for a long period of time,” as in My family has lived here since hatchet was hammer. Another phrase he’s heard indicating the same thing is since goat was calf. Since Hector was a pup, since Methuselah was a boy, since Christ was a corporal, since dirt was young, or since dirt was rock. The version involving a hatchet and hammer is currently used in several Caribbean countries, but usually in the form of since King Hatchet was a hammer. One of the earliest uses of the phrase is from New Zealand in the late 19th century. It may well be that the phrase was much more widespread but has since fallen out…..