On Thursday, July 18, 2013 11:21:49 AM UTC-5, F.O.A.D. wrote:
My brother sent this along. He says it has been circulating for ages,

but I've not seen it before.



It's perfect for this newsgroup and its non-boating right-wing ****

slingers.



"An interesting fact about Manu In the 16th and 17th centuries,

everything had to be transported by ship, and it was also before the

invention of commercial fertilizers, so large shipments of manure were

quite common. It 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 it

become heavier, but the process of fermentation began again, of which a

by product is methane gas of course. Since the stuff 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 -- BOOM! Several ships were destroyed in this manner

before it was determined just what was happening. After that, the

bundles of manure were always stamped with 'Stow high in transit' on

them, which meant for the sailors to stow it high enough off the lower

decks so that any water that came into the hold would not touch this

volatile cargo and start the production of methane.



"This evolved the term 'S.H.I.T.', (Stow High In Transit) which has come

down through the centuries and is in use to this very day. You probably

did not know the true history of this word."

It's been running on the 'net for at least 5 years, and according to this source, it's false


http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors...m#.UehklKxwOSo