Dead men tell no tales

Posted by ESC March 12, 2004In reply to Dead men tell no tales posted by David Knight on March 11, 2004

Can anyone tell me the origin of this phrase?

DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES -- "The dead cannot reveal any secrets. The proverb has been traced back to Thomas Becon (c. 1560). First attested in the United States in 'Porcupine's Works' ..." From Random House Dictionary of Popular Proverbs and Sayings by Gregory Y. Titelman (Random House, New York, 1996).

That is Becon (not Bacon).