Your statement 
@Output = qx { /nz/kit/bin/nzsql -d histdb  -c "$SQL1" };

[download]
causes the shell to re-interpolate the contents of $SQL, because you use double quotes.

You could either pass single quotes to the shell, or add another "\\" before each dollar sign in the contents of $SQL. I'd suggest: 

@Output = qx { /nz/kit/bin/nzsql -d histdb  -c '$SQL1' };

[download]

        What is the sound of Perl? Is it not the sound of a wall that people have stopped banging their heads against?
              -Larry Wall, 1992

In reply to Re: Escaping and quoting ????? by NetWallah
in thread Escaping and quoting ????? by pgduke65

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