‘Mad as a Hatter’: The History of a Simile

(NYTBR) Is the Hatter mad? Since 1865, when “Alice in Wonderland” was published, readers have quoted and parsed his every utterance. He’s called simply the Hatter in “Alice” and Hatta in “Through the Looking-Glass,” but we know he’s mad; the Cheshire-Cat tells us so. Continued