ax to grind, an

A selfish motive. Allegedly this term comes from a cau- tionary tale by Charles Miner, first published in 1810, about a boy per- suaded to turn the grindstone for a man sharpening his ax. The work not only was difficult to do but also made him late for school. Instead of prais- ing the youngster, the man then scolded him for truancy and told him to hurry to school. Other sources attribute it to a similar story recounted by Benjamin Franklin. Whichever its origin, the term was frequently used thereafter and apparently was a cliché by the mid-nineteenth century.