Red Herring

Etymology:

• Red herring is primarily a fish which is being preserved and picked in a special manner that it gets reddish. The smell of the fish is also very strong. A few centuries ago, this particular fish was used for the training purposes of the hunting dogs so that they’d be able to follow the trails. The hunting dogs used to follow the scents of the red herring which was dragged on various paths. People who used to hate hunting dragged it across fox’s path so that the hunting dog gets confused and follow the wrong direction. Similarly, escaping crooks also used the same red herrings in order to diminish their own scents so that it would become difficult for bloodhounds to find them. This idiom became popular in the 19th Century.