The history of the term first appeared in print in 1531, describing a vessel which had safely cleared the cost, and was later used in Shakespeare's Henry VI. In the heyday of smuggling, a boy boy led a white horse along the clif as a signal that there was no revenue men about-and it was thus safe for the smugglers to land their contraband cargo.
10/05/2010
Coast is clear
The history of the term first appeared in print in 1531, describing a vessel which had safely cleared the cost, and was later used in Shakespeare's Henry VI. In the heyday of smuggling, a boy boy led a white horse along the clif as a signal that there was no revenue men about-and it was thus safe for the smugglers to land their contraband cargo.