Why does to "take a powder" mean to run away or to leave?

From Flappers to Rappers: American youth slang by Dr. Thomas Dalzell cites "take a powder" as a 1930s expression meaning to run away or to leave. Does anyone have any ideas why taking a powder would mean running away or leaving?

Solution 1:

The phrase take a powder meaning to "scram, vanish," is probably from the 20's; it was a common phrase as a doctor's instruction, so perhaps from the notion of taking a laxative medicine or a sleeping powder, with the result that one has to leave in a hurry (or, on another guess, from a magician's magical powder, which made things disappear). Powder blue (1650s) was smelt used in laundering; as a color name from 1894.

(The Word Detective)

Solution 2:

In American usage, the "powder room" is a euphemism for the ladies lavatory, and the phrase "to powder one's nose" indicates the immediate exit of a lady toward this room. Thus, it is to leave, rather quickly, but with discretion, and without further comment. It appeared in movie and gangster novel lingo in the 1920's, meaning to depart hastily, in the interest of discretion (usually to avoid trouble).

See Webster's Third New International Dictionary for usage of "take" at the beginning of a phrase. To "take a walk", "take a stroll", "take a drive", and dozens of others are found here. The colloquial shortening of to "take a powder room break" down to "take a powder" cannot be verified, but all attempts at phrasal etymology admit failure in this case. So, now, I take a powder.

Solution 3:

Personally, I’ve never heard this expression, so this is all unfamiliar to me.

According to the OED, the origin of the word powder meaning ‘hurry, rush’ is uncertain. It’s not new—the meaning has attestations dating back to around 1600.

They say the following about its etymology:

Perhaps an alteration of pother n. by association with powder n.¹ [the regular meaning of ‘powder’, ed.]

Perhaps compare Scots uses of powder n.¹ (from the late 18th and early 19th centuries respectively) in the senses ‘energy, force, fire, brains, gumption’ and ‘force or strength behind the delivery of a stone in curling’, both apparently originating from the sense ‘gunpowder’ (see Sc. National Dict. s.v. pouther n., v.).

It seems fairly likely that pother (disturbance, tumult, turmoil, commotion, fuss, agitation, worry, blather, smoky atmosphere) would be associated with, and eventually mixed up with, powder in some of the senses: it can be hard, if we assume a sense like “shooting off like gunpowder, with lots of noise and commotion, yet associated with something smoky and powdery”, to place exactly whether that is related to pother or powder, or just both.

Interestingly, the OED has no citations at all of the expression take a powder, only of the older expression (hurry off) in/with a powder. Then again, the most recent citation is from 1898, so that is perhaps not wholly unexpected, if take a powder is newer than that.

Solution 4:

I have no idea if it's related, but there's a French expression

Prendre la poudre d'escampette

(poudre being the origin of the word powder)

It means more or less the same thing (never heard the English expression though): to flee discreetly, to run away.