It was plain as a pikestaff that they were frightened, and that the superstitions of the forecastle were hard at work in them whilst they viewed me.
"The Frozen Pirate"
W. Clark Russell
"Your path is as plain as a pikestaff.
"The Locusts' Years"
Mary Helen Fee
And it was as plain as a pikestaff that he was here to lay down the political law to me.
"Adventures In Friendship"
David Grayson