HOW MANURE CAME TO BE KNOWN AS ‘SHIT’

The Unconventional Gazette / February 27, 2013

Manure has been used as fertilizer for centuries. In the 16th and 17th centuries, everything had to be transported by ship. Since that was before the invention of commercial fertilizers, large shipments of manure were quite common.

Manure was shipped dry because in dry form it weighed a lot less than when wet. But once water (at sea) hit it, not only did the manure become heavier, but the process of fermentation began. It so happens that a byproduct of fermentation is methane gas.

Because the manure was stored below decks in bundles, you can see what could (and did) happen. Methane began to build up below decks and the first time someone came below at night with a lantern ..... BOOOOM!

Several ships were destroyed in this manner before it was determined just what was happening (Lloyds of London).

After that, the bundles of manure were always stamped with the instruction 'Stow high in transit' on them. That meant for the sailors to stow the manure high enough off the lower decks so that if any water came into the hold, it would not touch this volatile cargo, thus preventing the production of methane.

That’s how the term 'S.H.I.T.' (Stow High In Transit) evolved, and it has come down through the centuries to this very day. Today, the term is used all the time, often preceded by the word ‘oh’.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Sounds like a load of shit to me.