Ernie Clark o
f Ohio wanted to know where the word, "Cop" originated, was it German or French? Neither, the editor informed the reader, its origins are actually British and come from Constable On Patrol - The first letter of each word are joined to get Cop.Harry Last of Texas wanted to know how much it cost the taxpayer to keep the FBI going - the editor informed him that in 1959 money the cost per year was $983,179,840.
Michael Jenks wanted to know how big America's police force was - 175,000 policemen across the nation was the answer.
1 comment:
I'd have guessed British, too, since in crime fiction TV from the UK, police are often called "coppers." The OED doesn't venture a guess at the derivation, just says it's slang dating from the mid 19th century.
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