Historically, the phrase started out as "cold enough to freeze the
tail/nose/paw/etc off a monkey". Balls is a much later addition, as is
brass. During the time of origin of this phrase, the use of lawn
ornaments, like iron monkeys, was much in vogue. That's the first
clue.
If a "monkey" were so delicate and unstable a storage device that faint
expansion or contraction could cause it to fail to hold the cannon
balls, the rocking and pounding motion of the ship would ensure the
cannon balls would continuously break free. That's the second clue.
Having cannon balls rolling freely about the decks of a wooden war ship
wreaks havoc on the ship and the crew. Ships regularly sink from having
cargo lose and rolling about, particularly the rather fragile wooden
hulled ones. No one would tolerate this as an intentional practice.
That's the third clue.
You will find many differing descriptions of these "monkeys". Some
sources claiming they are bands surrounding stacked cannon balls, others
claiming they are trays cannon balls are laid in, yet more claiming they
are rails mounted to bulkheads, and many more. This dramatic difference
of description of the "monkey" is a fourth clue.
Antique dictionaries and historical navy records covering the entire
span of human history fail to show a single entry referring to cannon
ball storage devices as monkeys. And that's the nail in the coffin.
It makes a great story, but like I said, it's not true.
>>> "Craig Smith" <csmith1@awcwire.com> 03/14/03 08:02AM >>>
Nolan your wrong.
In the days when gulf wars had more to do with sailing ships than TV
coverage, cannon balls were stacked on the decks in pyramids. The
pyramids
were held in place by a brass frame around the base, called a "monkey".
When
it got cold, the brass monkey contracted, and the cannon balls rolled
off
around the ship's deck.
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