“Tangled up, or tied up, like a bundle of crabs.”--Said of people
notoriously clumsy.[82]--[_Martinique._]
[82] Anyone who has ever seen a heap of live crabs in a basket, will
comprehend the fun of this saying--intimating that the sinews of the
gawkish person are tangled up as hopelessly as crabs in a
market-basket.
200. Mégue coment çatte qui manze lérats-misqué. (Maigre comme un chat
qui mange des rats musqués.)
“Thin as a cat that lives on musk-rats.”--[_Mauritius._]
201. Même baton qui batte chein nouèr-là, pé batte chein blanc-là. (Le
même bâton qui bat le chien noir peut battre le chien blanc.)
“The same stick that beats the black dog can beat the
white.”[83]--[_Trinidad._]
[83] As one should observe: “I’ve whipped better men than you.”
202. Menti ça pas si mal conm palé mal moun. (Le mensonge n’est pas si
mauvais que de parler mal des autres.)
“Lying isn’t as bad as speaking badly about people.”--Lying is less
wicked than calumny.--[_Martinique._]