Origin of "bone to pick"

VOA Learning Englishと言うサイトに "bone to pick" の由来の説明が次の様に書かれていました。
This phrase comes from the 16th-century. Imagine, if you will, two dogs fighting over a bone. The “bone” is the contentious issue that two people fight over. “Contentious” describes something that is likely to cause people to argue or disagree.

犬の骨争いが元なのですね。

bone to pick

東野圭吾の "JOURNEY UNDER THE MIDNIGHT SUN" を読んでいます。

'Of course, yeah. Tell you the truth, I still don't blieve it. I mean, who would kill the boss? Maybe it was a mistake?'
'Can't think of anyone who might've wanted to do something like this?'
'Not a one.'
'In this line of business, you must get a lot of different kinds of customers. You're sure there wasn't anyone with a bone to pick? Maybe about money?'

"a bone to pick" この慣用句は見覚えがありますが意味を思い出せません。　辞書を見ます。
・Oxford English Dictionary: A disagreeable matter to settle with somebody.: "I say, Winthrop," he cried, "I've got a bone to pick with you. You've been hitting me pretty hard in that rag of yours."
・Urban Dictionary: something to argue about, a matter to discuss: Joe sounded angry when he said, "I have a bone to pick with you."

Have at it

三年前に東野圭吾の "The Devotion of Suspect X" を読み大変良かったと記憶していますが、当時は同作家の英訳本は他にはなかった（江戸川区の図書館には）のですが、東野圭吾の英訳本は2冊増えていて、その一つの "JOURNEY UNDER THE MIDNIGHT SUN" を読むことにしました。

'Hey, Enjoying your day off?' the older detective, a man by the name of Kobayashi, said. He was two years Sasagaki's senior. The younger man, Detective Koga, had joined Homicide less than a year before
'I had a had feeling when I woke up this morning,' Sasagaki said.
'Wish I'd been wrong for a change.' He lowered his voice. 'How's the old man's mood?'
Kobayashi frowned and shook his head. Koga gave a wry smile.
'That's what I figured,' Sasagaki said. 'Well, no rest for the wicked. What's he up to in there?'
'Dr Matsuno just got here.'
'Right.'
Kobayashi cleared his throat. 'We're going to take a look around outside, OK?'
'Have at it.'
Sasagaki watched the two leave.

口語的な表現の "Have at it" は文脈からして「そうしたら」の意味だと思いますが、辞書で確認します。
・McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs: Start doing it.; Start eating your food. John: Here's your hamburger. Have at it.
・Urban Dictionary: Start doing something. Get down to it.：We are ready to start, let's have at it.

inexorable cupidity

O. Henryの短編 'THE ROADS WE TAKE' からの引用です。
The expression on Dodson's face changed in an instant to one of cold ferocity mingled with inexorable cupidity. The soul of the man showed itself for a moment like an evil face in the window of a reputable house.

"cupidity" の意味を調べます。
・Collins Dictionary: Cupidity is a greedy desire for money and possessions.: His eyes gave him away, shining with cupidity.
・Cambridge English Dictionary: a strong feeling of wanting to have something, especially money or possessions: You will not succeed in carrying conversion through by appealing merely to cupidity.
Vocabulary.comに次の様な丁寧な説明がありました。
Remember the saying “Greed is good”? It could just as easily be “Cupidity is good,” though admittedly it doesn’t roll off the tongue quite the same way. Cupidity means a burning desire to have more wealth than you need.
Though it sounds like it might have something to do with the little winged figure who shoots arrows and makes folks fall in love on Valentine’s Day, cupidity is all about the love of money. It comes to us from Latin cupidus, which means "desirous." It’s not a word that crops up a lot in conversation, though you might run across it in newspapers and magazines, particularly those blaming Wall Street’s unbridled cupidity for America’s economic woes.

"cupid" からはかけ離れたイメージですね。

Do Tell

昨日雨の中、東京都主催のシニアマラソン（コロナ前は駒沢オリンピック公園内を走る10kmランでしたが、再開後の去年から5kmのトラックランに変わりました。）に参加して来ました。記録は昨年より14秒遅い28分45秒でした。1年間で14秒の老化と考えれば、後期高齢者に今年なった私としては上出来と、楽観的に考えることにします。

さて、O. Henryの短編 'THE ROADS WE TAKE' からの引用です。
While the fireman was lowering the feeding hose, Bob Tidball, "Shark" Dodson and a quarter-bred Creek Indian called John Big Dog climbed on the engine and showed the engineer three round orifices in pieces of ordnance that they carried. These orifices so impressed the engineer with their possibilities that he raised both hands in a gesture such as accompanies the ejaculation "Do tell!"

"Do tell" ですが、昔、動詞の前の "do" は強調の為と習いましたが、ここでは、その後に相手が何かを言ったわけではないので、他の用法だと思います。辞書を見ます。

・Merriam-Webster: used especially to express mild or polite surprise
・The American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms: A phrase used to express surprise about something, as in Jane's getting married again? Do tell. This expression does not necessarily ask the speaker to provide more details but merely expresses one's astonishment. [Colloquial; first half of 1800] For a synonym, see you don't say.

"you don't say" という言い方は聞いたことがあります。同じような意味で使われるのですね。 "Do tell" は古臭く多分今は使われないのでしょう。

tolerably pretty

O. Henryの短編 'A TECHNICAL ERROR' からの引用です。

Sam Durkee had a girl. (If it were an all-fiction magazine that I expect to sell this story to, I should say, "Mr. Durkee rejoiced in a fiancee.") Her name was Ella Baynes. They appeared to be devoted to each other, as all couples do who are and have or aren't and haven't. She was tolerably pretty, with a heavy mass of brown hair that helped her along.

"tolerable" の普通に使われる意味からすると、許容範囲、我慢できる程なので "tolerably pretty" では少なくとも美人ではなさそうですが一応辞書で確認します。

・Oxford English Dictionary: fairly good, but not of the best quality: a tolerable degree of success
・Collins Dictionary: informal fairly good
・Cambridge English Dictionary: of a quality that is acceptable, although certainly not good: At their best the conditions in these prisons are barely tolerable.
Vocabulary.com:
Something that's tolerable is something you're able to live with. The best thing you can say about sleeping in a tent with your younger siblings might be that it's tolerable.
If you can tolerate something, or put up with it, it's tolerable. You can also use this adjective to mean "good enough" or "adequate." If your waiter asks how your meal is and you answer, "The pizza is tolerable," you're not giving a rave review; you're basically saying, "It's average" or "It's edible, but nothing special." Tolerable comes from the Latin tolerabilis, "that may be endured."

"fairly good" の意味でも使われるとありますが、少なくとも本人に直接、あるいは、いる場合に言える表現ではないですね。

wet behind the ears & ply the waters

11月14日の投稿 wet behind the ears と10月29日の投稿ply the watersについて桐野 夏生の原文小説『グロテスク』で該当の箇所だけ読んだのでそれぞれの投稿に対しコメントで補足しました。

at my expense

桐野 夏生の "Grotesque" を読んでいます。

He shouted at me, with breath reeking of boose, "Get the hell out of my face. I got a good buzz on and don't want you ruining it."
The hawkers in front of the cabaret saw this and had a good laugh at my expense. Then slapped each other on the shoulder and looked over at me, eyeing me derisively.

普通は "at my expense" だと「私の費用（自腹）で」の意味ですが、上の例ではそれでは可笑しい。　辞書を見ます。
・Oxford English Dictionary: if you make a joke at somebody’s expense, you laugh at them and make them feel silly
・Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary: used of a joke about or laughter at a person that might cause embarrassment: Everyone had a good laugh at my expense.
・Cambridge English Dictionary: making another person look silly: Would you stop making jokes at my expense?

笑われているのは超美人でスタイルも抜群だったハーフのYurikoです。信じ難いほど落ちぶれたものです。

ply the waters

ラグビーの話ですが、イングランドはやはり強かったですね。ディフェンスが早いので日本は全く攻めることができず完敗です。　さて、桐野 夏生の "Grotesque" を読んでいます。

Who would like to see dead? My mother, Kamei, the office manager--lots and lots of people. I though. So many I can't even remember their faces now, let alone their names. I don't really like anyone. And I've never been loved by anyone. I suddenly realized I simply ply the waters of the night on my own. I could well imagine the way Zhang's younger sister looked as she lifted her hand above the surface of the dark sea.

"ply the waters of the night" の個所の意味が分かりません。 "ply" はこれまでにも幾つか取り上げましたが覚えにくい単語です。
6/24/2011: to go or travel regularly over
7/31/2012: apply oneself diligently: “Ply one's trade”
6/29/2017: ply someone with something
5/13/2021: plies to Tokio

良く考えると6/24/2011と5/13/2021は同じ様な例ですね。7/31/2012の意味は今回の例と意味が近い感じがします。　日本語の原文がどうなっているのかを後で調べようと思います。

Why is he crying?

Reader's Digest ９月号の記事 'AH, THE JOYS OF PARENTHOOD' からの引用です。

My six-year-old, to her crying brother: It's OK to be sad. Sometimes we need to let our feeling out. Just let yourself be sad.
Me: Oh darling, that's so lovely. Well done. Why is he crying anyway?
My six-year-old: I hit him.

褒めるのがちょっと早かったかな？