A dictionary of Proverbs (Oxford Paperback Reference)

One HAND for yourself and one for the ship
A nautical proverb, also used in variant forms in similar contexts: see the explanation in quot. 1902.

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  1799 Port Folio (Philadelphia, 1812) VII. 130 Did I not tell you never to fill both hands at once. Always keep one hand for the owners, and one for yourself. 1822 J. F. COOPER Pilot I. vii. The maxim, which says, ‘one hand for the owner, and t’other for yourself,’ .. has saved many a hearty fellow from a fall that would have balanced the purser’s books. 1902 B. LUBBOCK Round Horn 58 The old rule on a yard is, ‘one hand for yourself and one for the ship,’ which means, hold on with one hand and work with the other. 1968 L. MORTON Long Wake i. I did not know then the old adage ‘one hand for oneself and one hand for the company.’ 1993 B. CALLISON Crocodile Trapp (1994) x. 169 ‘Now you allus remember the seaman’s golden rule from now on, Mister Despytoff,’ Spew chastised gently. ‘One hand f’r the ship—or in your case, f’r the aeroplane, eh? heh, heh .. an’ one hand f’r yerself.’ ■ prudence; security
  

The HAND that rocks the cradle rules the world

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  1865 W. R. WALLACE in J. K. Hoyt Cyclopxdia of Practical Quotations (1896) 402 A mightier power and stronger Man from his throne has hurled, For the hand that rocks the cradle Is the hand that rules the world. a 1916 ’SAKI’ Toys of Peace (1919) 158 You can’t prevent it; it’s the nature of the sex. The hand that rocks the cradle rocks the world, in a volcanic sense. 1996 Washington Times 10 May A2 The habits of the home in one generation become the morals of society in the next. As the old adage says: ‘The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world.’ ■ women
  

One HAND washes the other
Cf. EPICHARMUS Apophthegm 273 (Kaibel) ^{1 :} ' ^l" ,• ^{:: ; : :} , one hand washes the other; SENECA Apocolocyntosis ix. manus manum lavat, hand washes hand.

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