[gmw]

Originally Posted by CRussel

Under the Ontario Temperance Act, local townships or municipalities could opt to prohibit ALL sales, manufacture, or importation of alcohol. Even after the act was repealed:

Thanks very much. From the context I had assumed it must have been something along those lines but it's good to have the confirmation.

Originally Posted by fantasyfan

It would seem that "full of it" is a colloquial and casual usage. Whether or not it ever has or had positive connotations is apparently open to question—though I’ve never heard it so used. Here's a discussion from the English Language and Usage site:

https://english.stackexchange.com/qu...it/99936#99936

There does seem to be a distinction made between simply "full of" and "full of it".

I've seen (and used) both the connotations described on that link.

The context of the quote makes me think the phrase must have had much the same connotation then, but I can't find anything that gives any hint as to how long the phrase has been interpreted this way.