Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[imchongjun]

Hello, teachers.

I have no idea what the second sentence means in the following paragraph:

His favourite diversion was luncheon at the Advertising Club where he would pore, fascinated, over displays of advertising booklets, posters, and pamphlets with such titles as Tell Your Story in Bold-Face.
He was accustomed to remark that "the fellow who writes the Packard ads has Ralph Waldo Emerson skinned three ways from the Jack."

I would appreciate it greatly if you could paraphrase it for me. (This was from a novel written in 1919. I understand the Packard is an automobile company, but what is the Jack?)

Thanks!!

[Mister Micawber]

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Well, the meaning of the clause is that the fellow is a much better writer than RW Emerson (a famous American essayist). Skinned means badly beaten, I would guess-- but Jack is hidden in the mists of time. You might try looking through all of the meanings of Jack in Webster's 1913 Dictionary.

Three ways from the Jack seems to have some affiliation with the more contemporary three ways from Sunday-- which I say, but for which I cannot produce an etymology either. It simply means extremely.
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"I really do not know that anything has ever been more exciting than diagramming sentences." � Gertrude Stein
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Canadian-American who teaches English for a living at Mr Micawber's