Posted by Mike Field on April 27, 2012 at 16:18:41 user mikefield.
In Reply to: Re: Duffers posted by Adam Quinan on April 27, 2012 at 07:15:41:
Cattle duffing here applied originally not to stolen cattle in general, but to the stealing of 'poddy calves' -- young animals that hadn't yet been rounded up for branding by the owner. If you could find them yourself first and brand them with your own brand, then who was to prove they weren't yours?
What the connection is with clumsiness or silliness, if any, I have no idea.