It is suggested in a forum that such phrases date back to the time when road traffic (carts and carriages) were pulled by horses. According to Ammer (2013), ‘pull over’ dates back to the early 1900s; ‘pull in’ (with respect to reining in a horse) originated ~1600 and ‘pull out’ (with respect to departing) was first used in the 1800s [1]. As horse-drawn vehicles were not replaced by motor vehicles until about 1912, this appears to be a credible explanation. I’d love to hear alternative suggestions.
As an aside, it is interesting that while motor vehicles undoubtedly pose huge problems in terms of air pollution, horse-drawn transport also had its issues; these were summarised as the ‘Great Horse Manure Crisis of 1894’. Apparently, the Times newspaper predicted in 1894 that ‘In 50 years, every street in London will be buried under nine feet of manure.’
[1] Ammer, C. (2013). Preface. In C. Ammer, The American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms (2nd ed.). Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin.
As an aside, it is interesting that while motor vehicles undoubtedly pose huge problems in terms of air pollution, horse-drawn transport also had its issues; these were summarised as the ‘Great Horse Manure Crisis of 1894’. Apparently, the Times newspaper predicted in 1894 that ‘In 50 years, every street in London will be buried under nine feet of manure.’
[1] Ammer, C. (2013). Preface. In C. Ammer, The American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms (2nd ed.). Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin.
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