UC-NRLF SB bEM 1H7 i4«A^^l^^V\^o^ MtSltlf LIBRARY V UNIVERSITY OP CALTOiNU CAR. I. TABORI S. £L*>rtb / &&-7bl A GLOSSARY OF THE ESSEX DIALECT. RICHARD STEPHEN CHARNOCK, Ph.Dr. F.S.A. LONDON : TRUBNER & CO., LUDGATE HILL. 1880. CHAELES JONES, PRINTER, WEST HARDING STREET. PREFACE. Some years since, when making pedestrian tours through Essex, I was struck with the peculiarity of the dialect, and I noted down many words. Having looked through Mr. Russell Smith's List of Provincial Glossaries for England, and not found one for this county, it occurred to me that a Glossary might be useful, especially as I learned that the dialect was dying out. With this view I consulted several works on the subject, but was not at first rewarded with much success. The Mithridates of Adelung gives a version of the Lord's Prayer in the dialect of Walden, in Essex, taken from Chamberlayne's Oratio Dominica.* Upon examination I found that the version in question did not relate to the Essex dialect at all, but to that of the Waldenses or Vaudois,f which would seem to bear considerable resemblance to the Gaelic. :f I next consulted HalliweH's Sketch of the Provincial * Headed in Adelung In der Mundart des FlecJcens Walden in Essex. Aus Chamberlayne, s. 39. f The Vaudois, Valdenses or Waldenses, in their own dialect Vaude's, dwell in three high valleys of Piedmont. % In the " Sprachprobe," Adelung, after referring to Chamberlayne, says, Die Mundart in dem Flecken "Walden in der Englischen Grafschaft Essex, dessen Einwohner ohne Zweifel eine Galische Colonie sind, weicht davon merklich ab. Chamberlayne und andere Ilerausgeber haben Walden mit den Waldensern verweehselt, und daher diese Formel nach Italien verpflanzt. r\ t^M IV PREFACE. Dialects of England, which contains a poem of the • Fif- teenth Century, by the Vicar of Maldon, from a MS. Harl. 271 f. 26, in the Essex dialect of the period," but which, on examination, appeared to be written in the common English of the time. In an article in the Penny Cyclo- paedia* on the " Saxon Language and Literature," the writer, in a note, asserts that nearly one-half of Gammer Gurton's Needle is written in the dialect of Essex. Upon referring to u A Ryght Pithy, Pleasaunt, and Merie Comedie, intytuled Gurton's Nedle,"'f I found that, even supposing the latter to be written in the Essex dialect, which I do not believe, it bore no resemblance whatever to the dialect spoken in the county at the present day. To the words which I had collected during my pedestrian tours through the county I added several more from a short list contained in the Monthly Magazine for July, 18444 and others from Bailey's Dictionary, Halliweirs Archaic Dictionary, and Grose's Glossary. I have also taken many more from Mr. Charles Clark's interesting little poem, " John Noakes and Mary Styles," which contains some of the most difficult words and phrases in the dialect. § I have also consulted the same author's u Trip to Tiptree, or a Lover's Triumph (in verse)."|| Of course some of the words contained in * Vol. xx. p. 481. Lond. 1841. t By John Still, Lond. 1575. X Pp. 498-9. The list appears to have been compiled by Mr. Daniel Copsey, and contains only 79 words. § Lond. 1839. 12mo. j| Tiptree, 1842, 8vo. I note that " Tiptree Fair in 1844," by J. B. H. (1848), contains at the end u The Trip to Tiptree, or a Lover's Triumph, humbly presented to the philologist as a specimen of the dialect of the peasantry of Essex.' PREFACE, V the present Glossary are merely different orthographies or corruptions of words which occur in English Dictionaries, but, as many of them are given by Mr. Clark, and as I am advised that they come within the province of a Glossary, I have thought it prudent to retain them.* The greatest peculiarities of the dialect that I have met with are north of Chelmsford, especially at Braintree, Halstead, Gosfield, Bardfield, Wethersfield, and in the vicinity of the Salt Ings. In some parts of the county the dialect resembles that of Kent, in others that of Suffolk. It is, however, not generally so broad as either, nor is it spoken with the strong whining tone of the Suffolk dialect. It contains many words from the Saxon,"f Friesic, Dutch, and Belgic, not usually found in other English dialects, as ails, amper, bigge, bog, bullimony or bullimong, cowl, golls, housen, lugsome, mad, mawther, not, pillow-beer, rumpled, sliver, slud, slump, snace: others from the Norman, as foizon, frail, chate, coppy. The dialect also contains many Chaucerian words, and includes a good many slang words ; but, as they are not peculiar to the county, I have endeavoured to pass them by. There is a tendency to transpose letters ; as aers for ears. Vowels are frequently lengthened, as maade for made, maake for make. A is liable to become 0, as ollis for always. * I have lately come across a collection of Glossaries published by J. B. Bell, Lond. 1851, containing some provincial words used in Essex, from which I have culled a few words. f Dr. Latham (The English Language, 5th ed. p. 19) says, "On the authority of historians a.d. 530 certain Saxons landed in Essex ; so that the county of Essex was the fourth district where the original British was superseded by the mother-tongue of the present English, introduced from Northern Germany." VI PREFACE. E often changes into A, as anough for enough, arrant for errand, warse for verse. I has frequently a broad sound, aafoine, noice, smoile, toime, twoice, for fine, nice, smile, time, twice. often becomes U, as frum, sput, nut, for from, spot, not. D is sometimes changed into T, as arrant for errand, ballet for ballad. The letter i? is sometimes dropped, as suppass'd for surpassed, hul for hurl. As in other dialects, words are often abbreviated and contracted, and the cor- ruptions are many,* as amas, ast, au to, boarnt, mosly, lowance, monsus, for almost, asked, all to, bonnet, mostly, allowance, monstrous. The use of W for V is common in some parts, as warse for verse, &c. Essex people generally pronounce the letter H correctly; but there is nevertheless a tendency to drop this letter when prefixed by T, as now and ten, for now and then. We also occasionally find words prefixed by s, as scringing for cringing ; but this is not peculiar to any dialect. Some words would appear to have been formed by imitation of sound, as bobbery, bonx. The old plural in en also occurs, as housen for houses. | The people do not speak in the often subdued tone of Londoners ; indeed, they more fre- quently scream their words, and remind one of the Venetian gondolier or the French poissonniere. The following quotation from Mr. Charles Clark's * I have heard Mountnessing pronounced Munnazecn. f It is the termination of the second declension of the Anglo-Saxon. Compare Chaucer's eyen> shoon, been, assen, for eyes, shoes, bees, asses. PREFACE. Vll " John Noakes and Mary Styles " will give some idea of the Essex dialect: — COCK-A-BEVIS HILL. At Tottum's Cock-a-Bevis Hill, A sput suppass'd by few, "Where toddlers ollis haut to eye The proper pritty wiew. "Where people crake so ov the place, Leasways, so I've hard say; An' from its top yow sarteny, Can see a monsus way. 'Bout this oad Hill, I warrant ya, Their bog it nuver ceases ; They'd growl shud yow nut own that it Beats Danbury's au' to pieces. But no sense ov a place, some think, To this here hill so high, — Cos there, full oft, 'tis nation coad, But that dont argufy. Yit, if they their inquirations maake In winter time, some will Condemn that place as no great shakes. Where folks ha' the coad-chill ! As sum'dy, 'haps, when nigh the sput, May ha' a wish to see 't, — From Mauldon town to Keldon 'tis, An' 'gin a four releet. "Where up the road the load it goos So lugsome an' so stiff, That hosses mosly kitch a whop, Frum drivers in a tiff. At Cock-a-Bevis Hill, too, the Wiseacres show a tree, Which if yow clamber up, besure, A precious way yow see. Vlll PREFACE. I dorn't think I cud clime it now, Aldoe I uster cud ; I shudn't warsley loike to troy, For guelch cum down I shud. My head 'ood swim, — I 'oodn't do it Nut even for a guinea : A naarbour ax'd me, t'other day, " Naa, naa," says I, "nut quinny." At Cock-a-Bevis Hill, I was A-goon to tell the folks, Some warses back — when I bargun — In peace there lived John Noakes. In a paper in the Edinburgh Review for April, 1844,* entitled "Provincialisms of the European Languages/' the writer puts down the provincial words used in Essex at 589.* The author does not state whence he obtained his information, neither have I thought it worth while to count the words contained in the present Glossary. To conclude, I have attempted the etymology of many of the words, a task that is generally given up by glossographers on account of the difficulty thereof. I have also added some proverbs, sayings, &c, peculiar to the county. * Vol. lxxix. p. 472. The same writer gives the number of pro- vincial words used in Suffolk and Norfolk as 2400 and 2500 respectively. He says the highest number is in Craven, viz., 6069; the lowest in Exmoor, 370. WORKS CONSULTED. The Monthly Magazine for July, 1814 (Mr. Daniel Copsey on the Essex Dialect), p. 498. Glossary of Provincial Words used in the County of Essex, contained in a Collection of Glossaries published by J. G. Bell. Lond. 1851. John Noakes and Mary Styles ; or, An Essex Calf's Visit to Tiptree Races. A poem, exhibiting some of the most striking lingual localisms peculiar to Essex, with a Glossary. By Charles Clark, of Great Totham Hall, Essex. Lond. 1839. 12mo. The Trip to Tiptree ; or, A Lover's Triumph. (In verse.) By Charles Clark, Tiptree, 1842. 8vo. The Edinburgh Review for 1844, vol. 79, " Provincialisms of the European Languages." The Penny Cyclopaedia: " On the Saxon Language." A Dictionary of Archaic and Provincial Words. By J. 0. Halli- well, F.R.S. Two vols. Lond. 1847. 8vo. A Dictionary of Archaic and Provincial Words. By same Author. Two vols. Lond. 1850. 8vo. A Dictionary of Archaic and Provincial Words. By same Author. Brixton Hill. Two vols. 1852. 4to. An Historical Sketch of the Provincial Dialects of England. By same Author. Albany, N.Y. i863. 8vo. X WORKS CONSULTED. A Glossary of Provincial and Local Words used in England. By Francis Grose, Esq., F.A., AS. 8. With a Supplement by Samuel Pegge, Esq., F.S.A. Lond., 1836. The Vocabulary of East Anglia. By Kobert Forby. Edited by G. Turner. Vol. 3, by W. J. Spurdens. Lond. 1830—58. 12mo. A Ryght Pithy, Plesaunt, and Merie Comedie, Inty tuled Gurton's Nedle. By John Still. Lond. 1575. Oratio Dominica in Diversas Omnium fere Gentium Linguas, &c. By John Chamberlayne, F.R.S. Amst. 1715. 4to. Mithridates, oder Allgemeine Sprachenkunde von Johann Christopher Adelung. Three vols. 1817. 8vo. With a Supplement, in one vol., by Dr. Johann Severin Vater. The East Anglian ; or, Notes and Queries on Subjects con- nected with Suffolk, Cambridge, Essex, and Norfolk. Lowes- toft : Tymms. 1858 et seq. CONTENTS. PAGE. Glossary.* 1 Addenda 56 Proverbs, Sayings, &c 58 GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. Adry, thirsty. Aers, ears of corn. Clark, Afore, before. Afeard. See Feard. Agin, again. Agoo, a-going. Clark. Ails, or Iles, the beards of barley, beards of wheat. Bailey. From A. S. egla, egle, which Dr. Bosworth variously renders " a sprout, tender shoot, the beard of corn, the pricks of a thistle, that which pricks, trouble, festuca, carduus." In the North of England awns is used for ails. Aldoe, although. Clark. All, sometimes for quite ; as all that, for quite that. Altogether, a word used without any definite meaning. See Boa. A-mos, Almost. Clark. Amper, Ampor, a rising scab or sore, also a vein swelled with corrupted blood. In Kent, ampred, ampered, signifies cor- rupted, as " ampred cheese ;" and in old English, amper, ampor, was a swelling, also a flaw in cloth. According to Grose, amper B 2 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. in Kent is a fault, defect, or flaw ; an amprey tooth, a decayed tooth. The word is from A. S. ampre, ompre, a crooked swelling vein; also the name of a herb. Conf. Kennett, M.S. Lansd. 1033 ; and Skinner. Andraa, a clown or mountebank. Clark. "An' there the Andraa's play'd sich tricks — n John Noakes. N. From merry- andrew, a term said to have originated from Andrew Borde, a physician in the time of Henry VIII., who attracted attention and obtained patients by facetious speeches to the multitude. Ank, for hang ; as " ank that gate," i.e. hang or shut that gate. Anoather, another. Anough, enough. Anythink, anything. Ark (the), clouds running into two points Clark. Arly, early. Arrar, arrow. Arrand, errand. Arter, after. Arterwards, afterwards. Clark. A-TOME, at home. Clark. Attact, attack. Clark. Auctioneerer, auctioneer. Clark. Aukard, awkward. Au TO, all to. " All to pieces," &c. Clark. Ax'd, asked. Ax, axen, to ask, is often found in Chaucer. If that man axed him in certeyn houres. The Milleres Tale, 9. Or if men axed him what schulde bifalle. Id. 11. B. Backwater, a stream from the sea ; perhaps the same as " tidal streams." Bagging-hook, the reaping-hook. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX, 3 Ballet, for ballad. Clark. Bange, light fine rain ; perhaps connected with next word. Banjy, dull, gloomy ; as a banjy day. Halliwell gives also benjy, cloudy, overcast, as an Essex word. B argun, began. Barley-bird, the siskin, a bird so called in Essex. Crdbb. Siskin is another name for the aberdavine or Fringilla spinus. Bast, to flog severely. Clark. Beas, beasts. Beat-out, puzzled, put in a quandary. Clark. Bed-steddle, a bedstead. Steddle seems to be a diminutive of A. S. stede (Dan. id.), a place. Behine, behind. Behounced, finely dressed, smart with finery. Kennett says, " ironically applied." M.S. Lansd. 1033. Grose renders the Sussex word behounc'tid, "tricked up and made fine, a metaphor taken from an ornament worn by a cart-horse, called hounches, which lies spread upon his collar. This term is in general used ironically." See Hounces, in this Glossary. Conf. the Chaucerian hauncin, to enhance, to promote ; haunsing, elevation ; the modern English enhance, to raise, to be raised, to swell, grow larger ; from Norman enhauncer, from hauncer, to raise (enhaunce, hauz, haulz, high). Bellar, to bellow, cry out violently. Bengy, cloudy, overcast. Bettermust, best ; only applied to clothes. Clark. Bellywengins, small beer. Grose gives belly-wark, the gripes, N. They also say tooth-wark and head-wark. The last part of the word would seem to be a corruption of vengeance. Bigge, a pap or teat. Grose. Gifford, a native of Essex, in- troduces the word in his Dialogue on Witches, 1603. The bigge is the name of the hare in a curious poem in Relig. Antiq. 1,133. Halliwell. Qu. A. S. bige, byge y a bosom. 4 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. Bile, boil. " The kettle biles." Clark. Bin, been. Biznus, business. Bizzy, busy. Black-sick. The oysters are sick after they have spat ; but in June and July they begin to mend, and in August are frequently well. The male oyster is black-sick, as the fishermen term it, having a black substance in the fin ; and the female white-sick, having a milky substance in the fin. Dr. Spratt. (Hist. Roy. Soc.) Another author accounts the white sickness to be the milky spawn of the male ; and the other, the eggs of the female newly effused in the fins. Cromwell. (Hist. Colchester, p. 292.) Boa, boy. Wa a yow gowan altogether, boa ? — where are you going, boy ? See also Gal. Boarnt, bonnet. Bob. See Johnny. Boddle, bottle. Bog, to boast ; from A. S. bogan, id. Boine, a swelling. HalliwelL A swelling arising from a blow. Grose. Kennett, M. S. Lands. 1033, has " a boine on the head, a blow or wound on the head (Ess.)" In Norfolk, boun or bown is swelled. Halliwell has bunys, blows ; also bunny, a smal] swelling (East) ; bony, a swelling on the body arising from bruises or pressure. Cowel (Interpreter) renders orbis, " a bonney, a swelling or knob in the flesh caused by a blow ;" and he gives Low Lat. boncha, a bonch or bunch, which he derives from bonna or bunna, a rising bank for the term or bound of fields ; " hence the word bown is used in Norfolk for a swelling or rising up in a bunch or tumour, &c." Conf. Chaucer's boine, to swell, boil up ; Dan. bugne,to swell. Sw. bulnad, a swelling, morbid tumour; bulna, to swell, to matter. See also Greek ftovvos, a hill, rising ground. Bonnka, very large. Clark. In other parts of the East of England bonka is also used for large, strapping. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. O Bonx, to beat up batter for pudding ; a word perhaps derived from sound. Bote, bought. Bouy, boy. Boustle, bustle. Brack, a flaw or fault in anything. From A. S. bracan, brecan, to break ; braic, broke. Sw. brack, Dan. brag, a crack. Brank, buck-wheat. In Worcestershire it is called crap. Webster says it was probably so named from its joints, breaks. It is doubtless the same as the old Gaulish word brance. " Gallice quoque suum genus farris dedere ; quod illic brance vocant, apud nos sandalum, nitidissimi grani." Plin. 18, 7; but see Dufresne. Brindled down, thrown down violently. Clark. Britches, breeches. Clark. Brother Will, small beer (in some parts of the county). Brote, brought. Bruck, broke. Bud, a small cow, one bet ween, a calf and a cow. In Sussex a weaned calf of the first year is called a bud, " because," says Grose, " the horns then begin to bud ;" or, according to Bailey, " because the horns are then in bud." Bullimony, Bullimong, a mixture of several sorts of grain together ; as pease, oats, vetches. Bailey. Doubtless the same as bolmeng, which Cowel renders " mesling corn or bread, from Sax. bold, villa, mong, miscella ; because countrymen eat this sort of bread." Bailey gives also bollimong, bullimong, which he renders " buck-wheat, a sort of grain ; also a medley of several sorts of grain together." The last part of the word is from the obsolete menge, to mix ; Fries, and D. mengen. Conf. Coleridge's Glossary, under ming, mingle ; referring to Robert of Gloucester. Bulls-noon, midnight. Clark. The word is also used in other parts of East Anglia. b A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. Bumby, a receptacle for filth and rubbish. Conf. the Norfolk and Suffolk bumbey, which Grose renders a " quagmire" from stag- nant water, dung, &c, such as is often seen in a farm-yard. The word is from bum, "the part on which we sit" (Shakspeare), from A. S. botm a bottom, fundum ; and the Gotho-Teutonic by, a place. Bum-by, by and bye ; also used in var. dial. Bunting, not neat, unsightly dress, untidy. In some parts of East Anglia it signifies mean and shabby. This word may be from bunting, buntine, a thin woollen stuff, of which the colours or flags and signals of ships are made ; from G. bunt, D. bont } streaked, or of different colours. Busk, to lie idly in the sun. For bask. Buss, to kiss, to embrace. Clark. Bussock, a donkey. Notes and Queries, 5th S. x. 521. Buth, birth, situation ; " buth, situation." Wright C. Cad, the smallest of a litter, as the cad pig, which is looked upon as of the least value. " Fling out the cad, and I'll hev'm," says the jobber. The word seems to be from Fr. cadet, properly the second son, but in general the younger son or brother, or the youngest. Grose, however, gives the S. of England cadma, u called also a whinnock, the least pig of the litter." Ca.int, can not. Clark. Caist, cast. Carl, curl. Clark. Carlly, curly. Cart Rake or Rack, a cart track or rut. Chake, cheek. Charmber, chamber. Clark. Charriter, character. Clark. Chate, a feast, a treat. From cates, delicious food or viands, A GLOSSARY OP ESSEX. 7 dainties ; according to some from Norm, acat, a buying. (Fr. acheter, to buy ; It. cattare, to get.) See also Minshew under cate, cater ; Junius under cater ; Latham under cates. I query if the word is not corrupted from delicates. M So far beyond a prince's delicate*. 3 H. VI. 2, 5, 51. Chevy, to chase, to run after. Clark. Chice, a small portion. In the Romaunt of the Rose (5590), Chaucer has " lyveth more at ese, and more is riche, than doth he that is chiche." Mr. Morris renders chiche niggardly, sparing ; and Bailey, a covetous niggardly fellow. The word seems to be from Fr. chiche, stingy, niggardly, mean, sordid, avaricious, close- fisted; perhaps connected with Sp. chico, little, small, a little boy. Chop, to flog ; " to flog with a whip." Clark. Chops, the lips. Clark. Chuck- full, quite full, crammed; compare the slang word chock-full, full till the scale comes down with a shock ; originally choke-full, and often used in reference to theatres and places of amusement. Church Clerk, the parish clerk. Grose. Chutch, church. Claa, claw. Cliver, a herb used medicinally ; perhaps the same with clivers, a plant, the Gallium aparine ; in some parts of England called goose-grease, in N. of England hariff and catchweed. Clove, a weight in Essex, of cheese and butter 8 lbs., of wool 7 lbs. Bailey. Perhaps from Dan. clove, to cleave, slit, split. Clunchy, thick and clumsy. " Strong and clunchy was Simon." Clark. Perhaps another form of clumsy. Coach, to drive. Coad or Cowd, cold. Coad Chill, a ridiculous pleonasm, meaning an ague fit. Clark. Coas, course. 8 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. Come up, to appear in person. Clarlc. Commence, an awkward event. Consarn, for concern. Cop, to throw; also to pass. " Cop that to me ; cop it here." Coppy, sometimes used for a copse or coppice, of which it is another orthography ; from Norman coupiz, from couper, to cut. Cos, because. Cotch, catch. Count, to think, intend. Cout, coat. Cow, to cower. Cow. See Cowl. Cowl or Cow, a tub. In some counties coul is a provincial word for a large wooden tub ; and indeed it was formerly used to denote any kind of cup or vessel. The word is from G. kugel, a bowl, literally a ball, sphara (O.Gr. keuel, heul, haul, globus, sphsera). Crake, to boast, brag. Croke is used by Spenser. The word is derived from Fr. craquer. Crazy, over anxious, excited. Clark. Crock, a pot or kettle. From A. S. crocca (Dan. hrulche, a jug, mug, pitcher, pot ; Sw. JcruJca), a pot, pitcher. Crock, to blacken with soot ; " the black from any thing that has been burnt." Clark. Perhaps derived from the colour of a crock. Crome, a staff with a hook at the end. A nut-crome is a nut- hook. From Dan. krum, crooked, curved, bent ; Jcrumme, to bend, to curve. Conf. W. crom, crwm, bending, bowed, crooked ; Armor, gromm, a curb. Crome, to draw with a crome. The Prompt. Parv. has " croumbe or crome (crowmbe, P.), bucus ; C. F. unccus, K. P. arpax, C. F." ; and in a note Mr. Way adds, " this word, signifying a staff with an hooked end, is still retained among the provincialisms of Nor- folk and Suffolk, and is traced by Forby to Belg. crom, uncus. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. y Tusser speaks of a dung-crome, and Jamieson gives crummock, crummie-st&ff, a staff with a crooked head for leaning on, A. S. crumb, curvus." Cromp, cramp. Crope, to grope, to walk cautiously. Clark. Another ortho- graphy of grope. Crotch-tail, a kite. Halliwell. Crumbles, crumbs ; from crumble, to break into small pieces. Crups, crops. Clark, Cud, could. Cue, to. To try to make believe, to insinuate. Clark. Culsh, Culch, Cultch, rubbish, "culch, rubbish of any description." Clark. " Cultch, lumber, stuff, refuse of any kind f Halliwell. Mr. A. Holt White says, "the Essex oyster- dredgers call any hard rubbish, oyster shells, broken bricks, &c, used to make an artificial bottom for their oyster-beds, cultch ; " and he asks, " Are not cullet and cultch something culled or selected from a larger quantity ? To cull a flock of sheep is to take out the culls or the worst or faulty ones." Brande defines cullet " broken glass to be melted over." See Notes and Queries, 2nd S. 1, 377, 504. " The spat (the spawn of the oyster) cleaves to stones, old oyster-shells, pieces of wood, and such like things at the bottom of the sea, which they call cultch." Cromwell, Hist. Colchester. "When the full-grown oysters are taken, the small brood is separated from the clutch, which is then thrown in again. If the clutch were carried away, the ooze would increase and encourage the breed of muscles and cockles rather than oysters." White, Hist. Essex, speaking of the Colchester fishery. IfcZwfc7iisthe proper orthography of the word, it may be from clutch, to seize, to grasp, from A. S. Iceccan, gelceccan, to seize. See also Camden Hotten's Slang Dictionary under " Cullet." Cull, the fish called the bull head; according to Littleton, Gobio capitatus. 10 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. CUROSITY, curiosity. Curous, curious. Cuss, curse. Cuther, a word denoting surprise, frequently used in familiar conversation. D. Dag, dew. From Sw. dagg. (Plat, dau, D. dauw.) Dallop, a patch of ground missed by the plough, or a patch of corn where a dunghill has laid. Grose, who also makes it a Norfolk word, renders it " a patch of ground among corn that has escaped the plough; also tufts of corn where dung-heaps have long laid." It seems to be the same as dollops, which Bailey renders "patches or corners of grass or weed among corn," and may have been corrupted from daliprats, narrow slips of pasture ground, from Low S. dal, a meadow. Dapster, an adept, proficient. Clark. Doubtless the same as the slang word dabster, an expert person ; perhaps from dapper, active, nimble, brisk, neat, lively, from adeptus. Conf. also Prompt. Parv. under " dapyr or praty, elegans," and Palgrave's "daper, proper, mignon, godin ; dapyrnesse, propernesse, mi- gnotterie." Dare, harm or pain, as " it does me no dare." From next. Dare, to pain, grieve, as "it dares me," i. e. "it pains me." Conf. 0. Eng. dere, to injure, hurt, from A. S. derian, id., D. deren, Fries, deerje, Lancash. to deere, A. S. daru, dare, hurt, damage. Dart, dirt. Darter, daughter. Darty, dirty. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 11 Deadly, superlative degree of any thing, as deadly good, &c. Clark, Dean, a din, noise. Dean, to din. Ded, did. Dent, did not. Clark. Dent ote to maake it late! John Noakes, &c. Desarves, deserves. Deviltry, devilry. Dicky, a donkey, an ass. Didal, a sharp triangular spade. Grose, who also makes it a Norfolk word, defines it u a triangular spade, as sharp as a knife ; called also a dag-priek ;" a corruption of dibble, the garden instru- ment ; or from dig -awl (A. S. eel, an awl). Dif, deaf. Dilvered, drowsy, " exhausted, worn out with fatigue. ' Clark, Qu. Dan. dvale, dead sleep, Sw. drala, trance, ecstasy. Doe, do. Ding, to throw with a sling. Grose, Tn Norfolk to ding is to throw in general; and in the N. of England to ding is to beat ; as Fse ding him, I shall beat him. See Grose. Dog-rapper. "The parish beadle, or more frequently the sexton, who officiates in a similar capacity in village churches, bearing the long peeled willow wand, is in Essex, and probably in other parts of the country, called the dog-rapper. This title has no doubt been traditionally handed down from his office in the 17th century." The East Anglian, June, 1865, p. 212. Dogged, great, as " dogged way," a great way. In various dialects dogged is very, excessive, and dog-cheap is very cheap. Dogs, the dew, from Dan. dug, Sw. dagg. Doke, a bruise, from A. S. dolg, dolh (Fries, dolg), a wound, a scar of a wound. Doke, a stream, the sike or syke of the northern counties, " a 12 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. deep dint or furrow." Grose. Halliwell thinks the word dokz, which in other counties signifies any small hollow, synonymous with dalk, which the Prompt. Parv. renders a vale. Doke is probably another orthography of dyke, Fr. digue. Doles or Dools, slips of pasture. Bailey defines a dole- meadow, u one wherein divers persons have a share." Cowel says " dole is a part or portion, most commonly of a meadow, so called to this day, as dole-meadow (anno 4 Jac. c. 11), where several persons have shares." Dolouring, a mournful noise, perhaps from the old word dolour, pain, grief, sorrow, anguish; from Fr. douleur, or L. dolor. Doull, dull. Dover-court, a great noise. See Proverbs. Down, at. " Down t'other end o' the town." Draa, draw. Draffs, drawings, pictures. Clark. Drean, to drain. Dredge, a mixture of oats and barley now little sown. This word is also used in Norfolk. Dredge is derived from the country word dredg, dreg, oats and barley mingled together. Bailey renders to dredge meat, " to scatter flour on it while roasting," and a dredger, " a flour box." Dreft, drove. Dubs, money. In common English slang dub is to pay or give, as " dub up," pay up. It may be from dub. to confer any dignity or new character (a man of wealth dubbed a man of worth, Pope); properly, to strike a blow with a sword and make a knight ; literally, to strike; from A. S. dubban, to strike, to create. Dullar, a stunning or uninterrupted noise, confusion. Hal- liwell. Dunt, to confuse by noise, to stupefy. Clark. Perhaps from A. S. dynan, to din, to make a noise ; dyne', gedyn, noise. See also Bailey under dunny et seq. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 13 E. Eand, end. Easles, hot embers, from Dan. aske, ashes, embers. East, yeast. Clark. Edder, fence wood, commonly put on the top of fences; from A. S. edor, eader, a hedge, fence, a place enclosed by a hedge, a fold, dwelling-house. Eel Thing, St. Anthony's fire, i. e. erysipelas. Ees, yes. Clark. Em, them. Enow, enough. Essex Lion, a calf. u Calves, a great number of which are brought alive in carts to the London market, were formerly called Essex lions." Minshew says, " Essex calues the pro- uerbe praiseth, but Waltham's calfe, that went nine mile to suck a bulle and came home againe a- thirst, can haue noe parte of this prouerbe." " A calf is probably the only lively animal to be seen in a journey through Essex." Camden Rotten. Essex Stile, a ditch. Camden Hotten says this is a jocular allusion to the peculiarities of the " low country." Etch, each, every one, every other. Clark. Etch Crop, the after crop. " The culture of oats is much the same as barley. The custom of making this grain an after, or, as it is called here, an etch crop, is universally reprobated, and rarely practised." Wright's Essex, vol. I. 2. Tusser translates etch " stubble." In Kent it signifies " to eke out, to augment." Mor- timer renders etch or eddish " ground from which a crop has been taken. The word eddish is also found written eadish, earsh, and eagrass. In Lancashire, after-math, eddish, and fog are indiscri- minately used for the after-grass, i. e. the second crop of grass after the hay is mown. See also Grose under " eddish.' 1 The word is 14 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. corrupted from A. S. edisc, edish, after-math ; from the adjectival form of ed, anew, again, like Latin re. Ether, another form of edder. Every etch, every other. Clark. F. Fairing, a present bought at a fair. In the N. of England/air is also used for a present at or from a fair. Fared, felt, seemed. In Suffolk, to fare is to appear, to seem. Farrard, forward, in advance. Favour, to resemble personally. Clark. In some parts of England favour means look, countenance, to resemble in countenance ; and favourable is beautiful. In Shakespeare's Measure for Measure, III. 2, favour means countenance ; in Troilus and Cressida, I. 2, complexion ; in Lear, I. 4, quality. Feard or Afeard, afraid. "Do you ever fish here? — Ny, zir. Do you bathe ? — Ny, zir. Do you row ? — Ny, zir. Why not ? — Feard a bin drownded. " Feff, to obtrude, to put upon in buying or selling. Feft, to put off or dispose of wares. In Norfolk # /e/£ signifies to persuade, or endeavour to persuade. Fell, to come round or return periodically. It may be from to fall, in the sense of to happen, befall, come. " Since this fortune falls to you." Shakespeare. Compare Sw. Goth f alia, to fall and to happen. Fellar, fellow. Fessing, forcing, pressing, or obtruding a thing on one. Flacked, hung loose, agitated by the wind. Probably from flaccid. L. flaccid us. Clark. Flaring, very bright, gaudy. Clark. Fleck, a simile used to express great speed, &c. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 15 Fleck, the soft hair of a rabbit. Another orthography' of fleece, from A. S.fleos,flys,flese (D. vlies, G.fliess), from L. vellus. Fleet, a strip of water fringed with reeds. In some counties fleet signifies a river or rivulet. The word is from A. S. fleot (Plat, fleet, a small river, G. flethe, a channel), a place where vessels float, a bay, gulf, arm of the sea, the mouth of a river ; fleot-an, to float, swim. Fleet-milk, skim milk. One of the meanings of the non- provincial word fleet is skimming the surface ; and Webster gives " fleet, to skim milk, local in England." We have also the provincial word flotten-milk ; and flat-milk is used in Lincolnshire for skimmed milk. The D. vlote melk has the same meaning. Fling out, sometimes used for " take away." Foce, force. Foine, fine. Foizon. Plenty. Grose makes it also a Sussex word ; and he renders the Suffolk foison or fizon, the nature, juice, or moisture of the grass, or other herbs, the heart or strength of it. The word is derived from F. foison, O. F. fuson, abundance, great quantity, from Ju.fusio, pouring forth. Pain e char e bon peisson Leur mit el nef a grant fusson* Haveloc. Fill, a field, meadow. Fillnut, filbert. Fimble, to touch lightly. Tusser has firnble ; the u female hemp, soonest ripe and fittest for spinning, but is not worth half so much as the carle with its seed ; Ess. and Suss. The fimble to spin, and the carle for his seed." See Grose's Glossary. Fine, to find. Finnicks, a tawdry-dressing female ; perhaps etymologically connected with finical, spruce, neat, affected ; a word formed from fine. 16 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. Fit, feet. Following Time, a season in which fine weather and showers follow each other in quick succession. Clark. For, sometimes for of. Foreman. A curate is so called in some parts of the county. For't, for it. Foun', found ; also for had. " What soart o' wether hev yow foun' ? " Fower, four. Fowers, the 4 o'clock meal (at least at harvest time). Frail Basket, a shapeless flexible mat basket, without bottom or handle, save two eyelets in the mat. Clark. The word is derived from Norman frail, a basket ; perhaps from 0. Fr. fraile, frael, fragile, menu, from L. fragilis. Roquefort has, however, frael, balle, caisse, and frayel\ i.q.fraiaus, cabas, panier de jonc ; fiscella. Wedgwood gives also 0. Fr. frayel,freau, a mat basket. As a non-provincial word frail, fraile, frayel, seems to have been used for a basket to carry a particular sort of fruit. Thus, Bailey gives frail, a basket of raisins, figs, &c, about 75 lbs. " You have pick'd a raisin out of a frails of figges." Lilly's Mother Bombie, ed. 1632, sig. Cc. VI. Frayel, Piers Ploughman, p. 252. Frins, friends. Frum, from. Fudder, further. Furnitude or Furnitade, furniture. Furriner, foreigner. " I have heard the peasants of Booking apply the term ' furriner ' to any one born in the Colnes." Forby, p. 296, says, " The people of Norfolk look upon any one as a foreigner who had not the good fortune to be born in one of the sister counties, or in Essex, and call him a shire-man." Fust, first. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 17 G. Gab, idle talk, nonsense, "lob-loll." Clark. From 0. Eng. gabbe, talking, to chatter, joke ; gabbing, talking, idle talk ; from A. S. gabban, to scoff, mock, delude, jest. Chaucer in several places uses gabbe, to chatter, to lie ; and gabbere for a liar, chatterer. Quod tho this sely man, " I am no labbe, Though I it say, I am not leef to gabbe." The Milleres Tale, 323. Gal, girl. The use of gal and boa in some parts of the county is curious ; for instance, instead of speaking of Charlotte and John, they say, " the gal Charlotte," " the boa John." G-ames, tricks, jokes. Gannicking, gossiping, idling. Gaster, to frighten, "to startle, scare or affright suddenly." Grose. Shakspeare uses gast for frightened {Lear). In Chaucer gaste signifies to make aghast. " No dreem," quod he, " may so myn herte gaste. " The JSfonne Priest his Tale, 268. And gastness amazement, fright. Both gast and gaster are obsolete verbs, signifying to make aghast, to frighten ; and gastre is still a provincial word for an apparition. Compare Frs. gast, D. geest, spectrum ; and Chaucer's gost 7 goost, spirit. Gauls, void spaces in coppices. Gawm, to look idly about. Compare the Northern word gawming, awkward, lubberly ; gawmless, stupid, awkward, lubberly, See also Grose's Glossary. Gawne, gave ; still in use in Essex. Howard, Household Books, p. 466. Halliwell. C 18 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. Gays, ornamental prints in books. In Suffolk court-cards are called gay-cards, Geazon, scarce, hard or difficult to procure. Halliwell gives also geason, scarce, and geson, rare, scarce, as common provincial words elsewhere. Gehezie Cheese, very poor cheese, from which most of the cream has been taken away. According to Grose the word is also used in Suffolk. Gentily, gently. Ginnick, neat, complete, perfect. Halliwell, Corrupted from neat, or Fr. net ; from L. nitidus, niteo, to shine, be clear, fair or fine. 'Ginst, against. Git, get. Glare, a fixed or wild look, a staring. Clark. Spencer uses glare for a fierce look, and Bailey renders to glare to overblaze, to dazzle, to stare intently upon ; from Fr. esclairer (now eclairer) Go after, to court. Clark. Goel or Gole, yellow ; from Sw. and Dan. gul, guul, yellow, whence guld, gold. " In Suffolk and Essex goel ox gole is still used for bright yellow." Rev. S. Lysons. Goffe, a mow of hay or corn. In Norfolk and Suffolk the word is spelt gofe, and gove is to stack the corn. Goffle, to gobble, to eat fast ; "to eat fast and greedily." Clark. Another orthography of gobble. Goings-on, proceedings, doings. Gole, prominent. Compare the south country word gole or goal, big, large, full, florid. Golls, the hands. The following namby-pamby verse is ad- dressed to children : — "Warm golls, warm, Boys are gone to plough ; If you want to warm golls, Warm golls now. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 19 Grose gives also goll, a hand or fist ; " give me thy goll. Var." Forby (E. Anglia) gives " golls, fat chops, or ridges of fat on the fleshy parts of a corpulent person. It is in Johnson, with autho- rities, as used contemptuously for hands, paws. It is not known to us in that sense." Bailey says " golls, q.d. walds, of Sax. wealdan, to wield, because the hands direct and order business." Qu. yvotkov, the palm of the hand, literally a hollow, a cavity (yvoiXos, that may be grasped in the hand), L. vola, id. Gomes, gums, the flesh in which the teeth are set. From A. S. goma (Sw. & D. gom, F. gomme), the gums of the mouth. Goon, going. Gownd, gown. Greening-pits. At the time Morant wrote the Colchester oysters were frequently distinguished by a green tinge, which the fisherman had the art of communicating to them. In order to green the oysters, they were put into pits about two feet deep, in the salt marshes, which are overflowed only at spring tides, to which they have sluices, and let out the salt water until it is about a foot and a half deep. These pits, from some quality in the soil, will become green, and communicate their colour to the oysters that are put in them, in four or five days, though they commonly let them continue there six weeks or two months, in which time they will be a dark green But this distinction of Colchester from other oysters is rapidly wearing away ; indeed, it may be said that few or none of them are now ever greened. See Crom- well, Hist. Colchester, p. 293. Grift, slate pencil. From Dan. and Sw. griff el. Gud, good. Gultch, to fall heavily (Clarh) : a word probably derived from sound. Gullion, stomach-ache, cholic (ClarJc). Qu. L. gula, gullet, throat; Gr. xcv\ov 9 the colon or great gut, whence kovXikqv, relating to the colic, and colicus (dolor). 20 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. Gumption, nonsense, foolish talk (Clark). In various dialects gumption is talent, understanding, contrivance, and in slang gump- tion or rumgumption is rendered comprehension, capacity. In some parts of E. Anglia gumptious is quarrelsome. Grose derives it from gawm to understand ; it is more probably corrupted down from comprehension. Gut, got. Gye (jy) y Ranunculus arvensis. Halliwell renders gye "the name of different weeds growing among corn. East" Forby says in E. Anglia it is applied to Ranunculus arvensis and various corn- field weeds. Holloway says this name is given in Norfolk to different weeds growing among corn, the Ranunculus arvensis and the different species of Galium. See Notes and Queries, 4th S. viii. 108. H. Ha, have. Ha' at, have it. Hafe, half. Hainish, unpleasant, as " hainish weather." The original and more correct spelling of heinous (Chaucer, heynous), hateful, odious, horrid, outrageous ; from Fr. haineux, hateful, malicious, from haine (0. Eng. hain, hayne), hatred, ill-will. Hale, an instrument to hang a pot over a fire, " a hammel " (Bailey). Compare Dan. hale, tail, train, hale to hawl ; Sw. halaid. y Fr. haler, to draw with a rope, 0. Eng. hale to pull or draw with force, drag. Half-shanny, half- cracked. Qu. the Lincolnshire shan, shamefacedness, bashfulness ; and the Northern shandy, wild. Handle, to make use of, to use, to place. Handy-warp, "a kind of cloth made at Cocksal, Booking, and Braintree, in Essex, and mentioned in Stat. 4 & 5 Phil. & A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 21 Mary." Cowel. " Handewarps, a kind of cloth formerly much made in Essex." Halliwell. Hant, had not. 'Haps, abbreviation of perhaps. Har, her. Hard, heard. Harve, a haw, i. e. a close or small piece of land near a house. N. Essex. Hatch, a frequent adjunct of local names in Essex ; as Aubury Hatch, Chingford Hatch, Fox Hatch, Hoastly Hatch, How Hatch, Kelvedon Hatch, Newport Hatch, Pilgrims' Hatch, West Hatch. Morant says hatch means u a low gate towards the forest." In Owl and Nightingale, 1056, Coleridge renders hatch " a small door." The word is however occasionally to be met with in other counties, as in Hants, Somerset, and Surrey ; and is derived from A. S. hceca, a bar or bolt of a door, a hatch ; pessulus. See Notes and Queries, 2nd S. vol. x. pp. 107, 197, 238, 316. Haumly, ugly ; as a haumly woman, a haumly horse. Haut, halt. Clark. Hazle, stiff as clay, &c. Halliwell. See next. Hazely Brick Earth, a kind of loam found in some parts of Essex. Halliwell Webster renders hazel-earth " a kind of red loam ; " and hazelly, " of the colour of the hazel-nut ; of a light brown." Haysel, the hay seaon. From A. S. heg hay, set time. Heave, hive, i. e. a bee-hive. " Yow want a swarm heaved into yowr own heave. See Notes and Queries, 2nd S. V. 119, 302. A. Holt-White. Hev, Heve, to have. Hinder, yonder. In the Northern counties it signifies remote- From A. S. hinder, remote ; hinan, hindan, behind. Webster gives hind, backward/, comp. hinder, superl. hindmost. Hoap, to help. " I hoaped her along." Hoap, helped. Clark. Halliwell. 22 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. Hobby, uneven, rough. From Frs. and D. hobbelig, id. ; also knappy, cragged ; D. hobbelen, to toss to and fro. Compare Eng. hobble, to walk lamely ; hobble, an unequal halting gait. Hodmadod, a shell-snail. Webster writes the word hodmandod, which he renders " a shell-fish, otherwise called dodman (Bacon), 11 Under dodman he says, " a fish that casts its shell like the lobster and crab ; also called dodmandod (Bacon). 11 According to Halli- well, in the South of England the word hodmandod is used for a s nail-shell, and sometimes for the snail itself. So they hoisted her down just as safe and as well, And as snug as a hodmandod rides in his shell. The New Bath Guide, ed. 1830, p. 36. In the West of England hodmandod means a scarecrow. The proper spelling of the word is no doubt hodmadod ; probably from he provincial word hod, a hood, cap, also any kind of cover- ing (from A. S. hod, whence hood) ; and mad, an earth-worm. See Mad. Hoggins, the sand sifted from the gravel before the stones are carted upon the roads. Wedgwood thinks it is so called from the jogging motion of the sieve ; from 0. N. hagga, to move, to jog. Hogling. Apple hoglings are baked apple dumplings. The word may be a corruption of codlin, which however properly signifies an apple coddled (JPomum coctile), or one suitable for codling or used for that purpose. To codle or coddle is to parboil or soften by the heat of water. Hoiland, island. Hoister, to support. Probably from hoist, hoise, to heave or lift up ; from Fr. hausser. Hoppet. One writer suggests that this word may mean a small hop-garden: " Roding Alta Rectory Terrier, 1610 . . . One hoppet of about a rood, and the churchyard/ 7 Newcourt's Reper- torium. But see Hoppit. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 23 Hoppit, a small field, generally one near a house, of a square form. HalliwelL Hoss, horse. Hounces, the appendage to the collar of a cart-horse that covers his neck. It may possibly be etymologically connected with haunch, hanch. Fr. hanche. Housen, houses (an old plural). Hued, held. Hulk, a heavy fall. Clark. A word probably formed by sound. Hul, to throw : "hul it away." For hurl. Hulliday, holiday. Hume-book, hymn book. Clark. Humoursome, complaisant, courteous ; to treat with kindness. Clark. Hunks, a miser, a niggard. Clark. Hunks is used by Dryden for a covetous sordid man, a miser, a niggard. The word is also found in L'Estrange, Gray, and Addison. Todd gives Isl. Jmnskar, sordid. Webster refers to Prov. Eng. hunk, hunch, hump. Hutch, a chest, a large box. Clark. The same as hucche (in Chaucer, wiche), an ash chest; from A. S. hwcBcca. In some parts of England hutch is a coop for an animal ; also a trough or bin. Hyle, oil. Iles, see Ails. Inges, for ings, i. e. meadows ; as the salt inges. The word is from A. S. ing, inge, or meadow, pasture, enclosure (Goth, wingd). Inquiration, an inquiry. Intossicated, intoxicated. Clark. J. Jacob, a frog, A corruption of jakey, jakie, provincial names 24 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. for the frog. Nemnich (Techn. Lex.) under " Rana paradoxa " [Rana piscis, Proteus marinus] gives the Fr. synonym, "jackie, grenouille a queue." The word is also found in Linnaeus, D'Orbigny, Sibylle de Merian, and Wagler. In Laurenti it occurs under " Proteus raninus." See also Encyc. des Gens du Monde, art. " Grenouille," by Lemonnier. Nemnich renders Rana bombina in Eng. natter jade, and in Russ. uh. The word was no doubt formed by sound. Jags. See rags. Jahing, for jawing, i. e. talking. " She's in a jahing yumer to-day." Jar, to scold, expressive of anger. From jar, to creak, make a harsh noise ; from L. garrire, to chirp, chatter. Jarney, journey. Jes, jest, just. Clark. Jice, a very small quantity ; " a very small quantity of a powder, &c." Clark. A corruption of cMche ; in Chaucer, niggardly, sparing ; from Fr. chiche, niggardly (Roquefort, chice, avarice, vilenie, mesquinerie ; chice, menager, mesquin, qui donne peu) ; which Bracher derives from ciccum, that which is of little worth ; but qu. Sp. cliico, small. Jink, to try money by ringing it. A word formed by sound. Jocoshus, jocose, facetious, merrily. Clark. Joggle, a shaking, a jogging. Johnny, a word frequently used for " friend." " Bob " is also used in the same sense, but not so often as " Johnny." u Mary " is applied to females. Joulterhead, a blockhead, a clown. Clark. Joun, joined. Jounce, a jolt, a sudden shaking. Clark. For jaunce, to jolt or shake ; from Fr. jancer. JouY,joy. Jub, a very slow trot; between a trot and a walk. Clark. A word probably formed by sound. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 25 Julk, a hard blow, a jolt. Clark. In the W. of England /W& is to shake, splash, jolt, give a hard blow ; and in Devonshire,/w% is to jolt. Perhaps another orthography of jolt. K. Keeping Room, the sitting room, the room usually sat in by the family. (East.) Ealliwell. In some counties " to keep " is used for to dwell, to inhabit. Keount, count ; like the American ' ; reckon." I keount, i. e. I reckon, calculate. Keow, cow. Kep, kept. Kex. Mr. J. W. Savill, of Dunmow, says, " in Dunmow and North Essex generally kex is limited to the dried sere stalks of the hemlock and hog fennel. ' As light as a kex ' (pronounced kix) is a common expression." Boys make miniature windmills of the split stalks." In many English counties (both N. and S.) the stem of any suitable plant, when hollowed out and the pith ex- tracted, is called a keck. A keck may therefore be made of an elder stem, or hemlock, or rush, or butter-bur, &c. An empty sugar-cane is a keck. Bees are fed with kecks filled with sugar, &c, and introduced into their hives. In some parts of the country also hollow elder stems (then called kecks) are used as moulds for home-made candles. Bailey gives kecks, dry hollow stalks. This is precisely the meaning of the word, and the form in use in several counties. See Notes and Queries, 5th S. viii. 169, 454 ; ix. 113, 417 ; x. 56. Kidder, a huckster, " called in the North a badger." Grose. Halliwell gives kiddier, a huckster. East. Kilters, tools, instruments ; the compound parts of a thing. u The kilter is the part of the scythe used for collecting the matter mown ; and kiltering is properly getting in the corn." The word may be from L. culter, the coulter of a plough, a vine 26 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. knife, especially the iron part near the handle. We have how- ever the 0. Eng. word Jcelter, frame, order, which Skinner derives from Dan. opkilter, to gird ; and Bailey, from L. cultura, trimming. Kitch, catch. Kittle, kettle. Kix. See Kex. Kivered, covered. Knaa, know. Knack, the right way, dexterity. Clark. In var. dial, of England knacky is ingenious, handy, cunning, crafty, i. e. having a knack. To knack in some parts of England signifies to speak finely. It comes from A. S. cndwincg, knowledge, a knowing, from cndwan, to know. Knowed, knew. L. Laier, soil, dung. Grose gives it also as a Suffolk word. Compare Eng. layer, a bed of mortar ; D. leger, a lying-place. Largess-spending, a gift to reapers in harvest time ; a supper given to the farmers' labourers after the harvest is got in. " Largess, a bounty ; the reapers in Essex and Suffolk ask all passengers for a largess, and when any money is given to them all shout together, Largess ! Largess ! " Grose. This word occurs in the Taming of the Shrew, 1. 11. 150 ; I'll mend it with a largess. It is also frequently met with in Chaucer : Thow art largesse of pleyn felicitee. Chaucer's A. B. C. (B.) "With brightnesse of beauts in her face, Fulfilled of largesse and of alle grace. Of Quene Anelyda, 145. Mery and full of jolit£, And of largesse a-losed be. The Bomaunt of the Bose, 2354. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 27 " But, for als moche as some folk ben unresonable, men ought to eschiewe fole-largesse that men clepen wast. Certes, he that is fool-large, " he yiveth nought his catel, but he leseth his catel." The Persones Tale (Morris, vol. iii. p. 338). The literal meaning of largess is a free gift, a dole, a present ; from Fr. largesse ; from L. largitio, liberal expense, bountifulness ; from largus, very great, bountiful, plentiful. Larned, learned. La'-ri, an exclamation. Las, last. Clark. Leaf, leave. Lear, to scowl, to frown. Probably the same with leer,to look obliquely, which Swift uses for " to turn the eye and cast a look from a corner, either in contempt, defiance, or frowning, or for a sly look." Lease, a piece of ground of two or three acres. Grose gives it also as a Suffolk word ; and he renders the west country word, a cow-lease, cow-pasture. It is perhaps the same as the obsolete word leasow, a pasture ; from A. S. las, Icesew (G. Use), pasture, common, pastura, pascuum. Leas-ways, at least. Leetle, little. Levens, the 11 o'clock meal (at all events at harvest time) ; a corruption of elevens. Compare the Sussex elevener, a luncheon. Lenty. See Linty. Liddle, little. Lieve, as soon. Limp, limber, supple. Etymologically the same as limber. Linty, Lenty, slowness or laziness. Halliwell gives " linty, idle, lazy, fat, var. dial." A correspondent of Notes and Queries suggests that the word may come from L. lentus, slow ; another correspondent, from Festina lente\ Hasten slowly. See Notes and Queries, 4th S. v. 46. Lip, a basket for carrying seed ; Grose writes lib. He says, "in 28 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. Essex lib is a basket for carrying seed-corn. He gives also Sussex leap or lib, half a bushel. Bailey has leap, lip, half a bushel, also a corn-basket. E. C. Leap, for a basket, occurs in Wicklif and Sherwood. The word is derived from A. S. leap, which Dr. Basworth renders — 1. a basket, hamper, corbis, calatlius; 2. a well, a twiggen, snare to catch fish, in Lancashire now called a leap ; 3. a chest, coffer. List, to enlist. List of hearing, ready, quick, not at all deaf. Clark. From A. S. list (Dan. Sw. Isl. D. Frs. id.), science, wisdom, power, faculty. Compare Coleridge's list, craft : Owl and Nightingale. Live under, to be tenant to. Clark. Loike, like. Look at the nose, to seem out of temper, to frown. Clark. Lope, to take long strides. Clark. Perhaps from lope, to run or slip away ; in Cant, to follow or run after. Compare PI. Dan. lobe, to run, PI. D. loopen to leap. Lowance, for allowance, i. e. pay. Lugsome, heavy, lumbrous. This word is also used in other parts of E. Anglia ; it comes from lug, something heavy to be drawn or carried ; lug, to drag, move heavily ; from A. S. lyccan, aluccan, geluggian, to pull. Compare blithesome from blithe, glad- some from glad ; handsome, lonesome. M. Maake, made. Mad, very angry. Clark. Mad, an earth-worm. Kay has " mad, made, an earth-worm." In the N. of England mad is used for maggot. The word is derived from A. S. mogthe, mohth, moth y matha (Goth, matha; D. mot, G-. motte), a moth. Mag, to chatter. Maggots, whims, strange fancies. Clark. In various dialects in England maggoty is whimsical, frisky, playful, hence maggoty- A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 29 headed. The word is from maggot (W. macai, Belg. maede, G. made, sl mite in bread), a worm or grub so called (particularly the fly-worm), which changes into a fly. Make a noise, to scold, to be angry with. Clark. Make count, to intend, to reckon on any thing. Clark. Man, gentleman. Mavis, the thrush. Mavis the singing thrush. See Ray's Diet. Tril. p. 29. Still in use. 11 Cromes, popinjayes, pyes, pekocks, and mavies. Ashmole's Theat. Chem. Brit. 1652, p. 115." Halliwell. And therat lough the mavis in a scorn. The Court of Love, 1388. And thrushes, ternis, and mavys. The Eomaunt of the Rose, 665. " Mavis, for a thrush {Turdus musicus, Linn.), is an 0. Eng. word, but, although obsolete in South Britain, it is the common name, and almost the only one known among the peasantry in S. Jamieson. The word is of French origin. "Mauvis, mauve, mauveis, alouette huppee, petite grive de la troisieme espece, qui chante fort bien (le Turdus ruber). Ce n'est point un oiseau qui vole sur les eaux, ni une poule d'eau, comme le dit Joubert, mait ce que nous appelons mauviette, malvitius, en bas Bret, milvid, milwit, milfit, milhuit. La mauvis qui commence a tentir, Et li douz son dou missel de gravele, Me font resovenir, De la ou tuit mi bon desir sont. Chastelain de Coucy (Eoquefort). Mauvis, oyseau, espece de grive ; de l'ltalien malvigio, qui peut avoir ete fait de malus. Malus, mail, malivus, malivi, malivigius, malvigiusj malvigio : a cause du mal que font les mauvis en mangeant les raisins. Belon, dans son livre de la Nature des Oyseaux. ' Les mauvis sont coutumiers de se paistre des raisins, et faire grand degast es vignes : comme aussi font les etourneaux : 30 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. parquoy l'on en prend beaucoup en vendanges, en diverses manieres : et principalement avec un instrument qu'ils nomment Bret.' " Menage, Marster, for mister. Martlemas Beef, beef dried in the chimney, like bacon; perhaps cured about the period of Martinmas, the feast of St. Martin, 11th Nov. Mary. See Johnny. Mawther, Mauther, a great awkward girl ; generally used contemptuously. Clark. The word is also found in Norfolk and Suffolk. Kilian derives it from Belg. modde, moddeken, pupa, puella, virguncula; Spelman from Dan. moer, virgo, puella; or from Belg. maegd, G. magd, with a feminine termination. Wedgwood gives G-. bdrmutter, 0. H. Gr. muater, D. moeder, the womb, Lith. motere, a woman, a wife. See also Cowel and Bailey; and Prompt. Parv. under moder, servante or wenche. Mayhap, perhaps, it may happen. Meag or Meak, a pea hook. Tusser renders meah tt a hook with a long handle ; " and Bailey gives " meah, meag, an instrument for mowing of pease, brake, &c." It may be from Fr. meche, the spiral screw of a cork-screw, an iron whimble. Meece, mice. Meller, miller. Mew, to mow, to cut with a scythe. Mine, mind. Misery, pain, a continuous aching. Clark. Mizzle, to succumb, to give up, yield. Clark. Moanths, months. Moarn, morn, the morning. Mob, a morning cap. Malone, in a note on " The moble queen" (Ham. 5, ix.), says, "The ordinary morning head-dress of ladies continued to almost the end of the reign of Geo. II." Stevens adds, " In the counties of Essex and Middlesex this morning cap has always been called a mob, and not a mab. My spelling of the A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 31 word agrees with its most familiar pronunciation." Conf. Richard- son's and Todd's Johnson's Dictionaries. Molloncholy, melancholy. Monsus, monstrous, great. Morrar, morrow. More, for Mauther, q. v. Mort, a great number. In Lincolnshire a mort signifies a great abundance. Grose renders the Kentish mort or mot, many, abundance, a multitude ; a mort of money, apples, men, &c. In Devonshire and Cornwall they use the expression " a mort of things." In " The Rivals" we have " here's a mort of merry-making, eh ? " Bailey gives also the old word murth, abundance ; and un- der a mort, the French a mort, which I do not find. Without doubt the Fr. mort, death, is sometimes used by way of exaggeration ; and figuratively for " great pains," " great grief ; " and Shake- speare sometimes uses " mortal " for " abounding ; " but the provincial word is otherwise derived. Lye derives the word from Cim. morg, Isl. margt, multum, or mergd, multitudo. Wedg- wood gives " 0. N. margt, neuter of margr, much, mart {adv.) much; mergth, copia, abundantia, GudmT Jf ort is rather from Fr. moult (found mout), much, very much, many, from L. multum. Mosey, having much soft hair about the face. Clark. Halli- well gives " mosey, mealy, Glouc. ; rough, hairy, SufF. ; l incvpiens barba, a younge moocie bearde,' Elyot, ed. 1539." The word is a corruption of mossy (G. moosig), full of moss or down (G. moos. L. muscus). Mosly, mostly. Muck, rubbish, nonsense. From much, dung. Muckinger, a pocket hander chief. Clark. Muckender was also formerly used in the same sense in Dorsetshire. In old English it is written mucketter, and is by some derived from Sp. mocadero, of the same meaning, from moco, mucus ; but it may have been formed from the English word muck. 32 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. Muggy, half intoxicated, tipsy. Perhaps from mug, or from muggy, moist, damp. Mulch, straw, half rotten. Clark. Wedgwood gives Pi. D. molsh, Bav. molschet, objectionably soft, soft through decay. Mum, silent ; secret anger. Halliwell. Mummy, mother, a corruption of mamma. Clark. Mus, must. Music ian ers, musicians. N. Naa, no Naarbour, neighbour. Clark. Sometimes pronounced nabor. Compare the provincial word nebbor (Frs. neiber, D. nabuur, id.) Nabor, neighbour. See Naarbour. Nare, near. ClarJc. Narve, nerve. Clarlc. Nation, many, much, great, &c. ClarJc. For tarnation, which is said to be a corruption of damnation. Newy, nephew. Newing, yeast or barm. New Land, ground that has lain long untilled, and just ploughed up. Grose. Neckum, Sinkum, Swankum. The three draughts into which a jug of beer is divided. The first two words would seem to explain themselves. See also Swank. Nex, next. Nigg, a small piece ; etymologically the same as niggard. Niggle, to dawdle after tediously. Clark. Nippet, a small quantity ; a diminutive of nip, a sip or small draught ; from Dan. nippe, to sip (G. nippen). No Sense, poor, sorry, not good. Clark. Noice, nice. Nonce, designedly, purposely. A corruption of " once." A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 33 Webster renders " for the nonce," " for the once ; " i.e. for the present call or occasion. None or Both, neither. Not, smooth, polled or shorn, as " not sheep," sheep without horns ; also well tilled, as a " not field." Bailey gives not, " to pull or shear." Halliwell says, " well tilled, as a field." Tn Stowe nott is to shear ; in Chaucer, shorn. Grose says that in Berk " that field is not " signifies " that field is well tilled." Noteless, stupefied ; perhaps for naughtless. Nut, not. Nut Crome. See Crome. Nuver, never. Nuzzle, the nose of a bellows. For nozzle, a diminutive nose O. Oad, old. Oaf, off. Oather, other. Oavis, the eaves ot a house. Halliwell. From A. S. efese also a brim, brink, margo. Obstropolous, obstreperous, unruly. Clark. Of a fire, on fire, ignited. Compare Chaucer's ofbove\ above ofnew, ofnewe, anew. Off-hand Farms. Some who hold farms in different parishes call those farms where they do not reside " off-han^ farms." Ol, old. Old Land, ground that has been untilled a long while, and is newly broken up. Halliwell. Ollis, always. Onny, only. Ood, would. Ool, will. Oommun, woman. Orfan, often. 34 A GLOSSARY OP ESSEX. Oup, up ; u cum oup," come up ; " struck oup," struck up. Out of sight, an Irish expression, meaning to look after as Jong as in sight. Clark. Ov, of. Overant, for overanent, opposite. To go overant, to cross the river. From over and anent (evotvn), in 0. Eng. over, against. Over night, the night previous. Clark. Owd, old. Own, to acknowledge, to identify. Clark. Oxlip, a cowslip. " This flower probably derives its name from its sweetness, compared to the breath or lip of a cow or ox." Grose. Oye, eye. Paagles. Cowslips are so called by children in N. Essex. A corruption of paigles, pagles, or pagils, the cowslip-primrose. a Primula veris : common cowslip or paigle :" Pantologia. " Pagle, or paigle : " Nares. "Blue harebells, pagles, pansies, calaminth." Ben Jonson. " The yellow marigold, the sunnes owne flower, Pagle, and pintle, that decke faire Floraes bower." Hey wood'' s Marriage Triumphe, 1613. In some of the Eastern counties paigles is also used for flowers in general. Skinner suggests as a derivation A. S. padl, colour, tinctura, sc. a coloribus variis et jucundis." Paddick or Paddock, a great toad or frog. Both Spenser and Shakspeare use paddick for a toad. Paddock calls. Macb. I. i. The word is from A. S. pada, pad, a frog, a toad, D. padde, id. Dan. padde ) a frog, 0. N. padda. Compare provincial padstool, paddock-stool, a toadstool, D . paddestoel y id. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 35 Parridge, Patridge, a partridge. The "Dog and Partridge " at Leigh is sometimes called the " Dog and Parridge." Passin, passing. Patridge. See Parridge. Pay, to flog, beat, chastise ; as to pay a horse. Shakespeare uses pay in the sense of to beat or thrash ; and to pay on is still used colloquially for to beat with vigour, to redouble blows. To discharge a debt, is to pay a debt ; to discharge a blow, to pay a blow. Peas-bolt, peas-straw. Bailey gives also peas-hawm as a country word for peas-straw. Peck, sometimes used for pick or pick- axe, especially in the neighbourhood of Chelmsford. Pegs, legs or feet. In other parts of England peg is variously used for a leg, foot, tooth. Perish, to injure, to pain. HalliwelL This word is used in the sense of" to be injured or tormented " in I. Cor. viii. 2. u And through thy knowledge shall thy weak brother perish for whom Christ died?" Perk, lively. From perc, to hold up the head with affected smartness (Pope). To dress up, to make trim or smart, to prank (Shahs.) Perk, properly erect, hence smart, trim ( Webster). Persaivance, understanding, from perceivance, power of per- ceiving. Piggatory, great trouble, a corruption of purgatory. Pile, pail. Pillow-beer, a pillow case. The word pillowbeer is found in Chaucer (The Prologe, 690-700) ; and in the Boke of the Duchesse, 254, we have " and many a pelowe, and every "bere of cloth of Eeynes to slepe softe." Webster says " pillow-beer is the pillow-bearer." It is derived from D. peluwe, puluwe (G. pfuhl, FLpdl, pohl, A. S. pyle, pile), from L. pulvillus, diminutive of pulvinus for pulvinulus ; or from pulvinar or polvinar, a cushion, 36 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. bolster, pillow ; from pilus, hair ; and beer, bcere, beer, here, a portable bed (A. S. bedbeer, bedber, a bed, hammock, bedbolster, a pillow, bolster). Pillow-bier and pillow-slip are used in New England for pillow-case. See Bartlett, Diet, of Americanisms. Pillow- Slip, a pillow-case. See Pillow-beer. Pin-patches, periwinkles. Perhaps from pin and 0. Fr. peisse (also peison, peisson} a fish . Pipperidge, the barberry tree ; pipperidges, barberries. The same as piperidge, a corruption of Berberis, which in England is chiefly found in a chalky soil, especially about Saffron Walden. Pitle, Pightle, or Pikle, This word occurs sometimes in Essex for a close, croft, or enclosed field; it is not, however, peculiar to the county. Holloway (Provincialisms) says, " pitle or pickle, It al. piccolo, little ; a small piece of enclosed ground, a croft, used in Norfolk and the northern counties." A correspondent of Notes and Queries, who does not think Holloway's derivation satisfactory, says, " In Newcourt's Repertorium Ecclesiasticum Parochiale Londinense . . . the Second Volume, comprising all the County of Essex, London 1710, folio, this word occurs several times: — ' Ramsay Vicarage, Terrier, 1637 . . . One croft or pightle of land of 4 acres,' p. 484. 4 Toppesfield Rectory, Terrier, 1637 ... A garden with a pightle of 2 acres/ p. 607. (See also pp. 6, 11,40, 330, 688.) It is spelt pikle in three places, pp. 79, 196, 410/ ' Boxted Vicarage. It is said that the vicarage-house standeth in a small pikle containing about an acre,' p. 79. * Matching Vicarage, Terrier, 1610 . . . A little pikle] p. 410. If pightle be the old form, it would be more natural to connect it with pight, i.e. pitched, fixed, or settled, as it means a close, croft, or enclosed field. (Notes and Queries, 2nd S. VII. 15,7)." Webster gives "pihtel, a little enclosure (local). The obsolete word pight, pitched, fixed, determined. Conf. Sco. pight or picht, from pitch, W. piciaw." But the word is doubtless a corruption of plightel, a diminutive oi plight, a small portion of A GLOSSARY OE ESSEX. 37 ground, a fold, a double, a plait, from plica, a fold. Cowel has plita terras,, and Bailey plica terra*. See also Cowel under Pitell, alias Pightell, Pilta terras, and Picle alias Pightell, Pictellum, in some places called Pingle ; all synonymous words. Plased, pleased. Plough-Money. In general Plough Monday, or the first Monday of the Twelfth day, is the ploughman's holiday, when they beg for the plough to drink. In Essex and Suffolk, at Shrove- tide or upon Shrove Tuesday, after the confession, it was usual for the farmer to permit his ploughman to go to the barn blind- folded, and u thresh the fat hen," saying " if you can kill her, then give it thy men ; and go you and dine on fritters and pancakes." Sports and Pastimes by Joseph Strutt, with additions, &c. by Wm Hone, Lond. 8v. 1875, pp. 348, 349, referring to Warton's Hist. Eng. Poet. vol. III. p. 307. Pont, to pant. Precious, great, extraordinary. Often used ironically, implying worthlessness. Halliwell. Presbyterian Trick, a dishonest bargain, a knavish trick. Halliwell. Pretty, pretty Proide, pride. Proper, very ; as proper nice ; proper good. This word is not peculiar to Essex. In the Eastern Counties it signifies becoming, deserved ; and in Cornwall, according to Polwhele, it signifies both handsome and witty. Publick-housen, public-houses (an old plural). Puggle, to stir the fire ; said to be from bev&ge, to move, stir agitate ; oevcegelse, motion, movement, shaking. Pulk, a hole full of standing water ; said to be quasi pool-loch ; but more probably a diminutive of pool ; from A. S. pol, pul, W. pwll. 38 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. Purely, very well, in good health. How are yow ? Oh, Pm purely. Puss, purrse. Put on, to tread upon, i.e. to impose upon. Q. Quackle, to suffocate, to choke, a word derived by sound ; or from Dan. quale, to stifle, suffocate. Quackled, suffocated. See last. Quarter. u Potatoes are sold by the quarter-peck instead of by the pound." Queer, to puzzle, to put or set wondering. Quinny, not quite ; not just yet. Clark, Perhaps a corrup- tion of quite and nay. Quire, to inquire, Quoins, coins, i.e. money. Quoite, quite. R. Racks, range, kitchen fireplace. Clark. From A. S. racian, to rake ; or Piatt, raken, to scrape, sweep together. Rags and Jags, tatters, worn-out dress. Clark. Rake, see Cart. Ran, rain. Ran, see Rap. Rant. " One day you may find snipes by the side of favourite rants and fleets in fair numbers (in the Essex marshes), on another spot radically distributed everywhere, and on another nowhere." Standard, 26 December, 1874. Probably from raw, run, a river or stream. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 39 Rap and Ran. Ran is a very old word, used in the laws of Canute, signifying robbery or rapine ; hence the expression, " he snatches all he can rap and ran" Copsey. " Ran in old writers signifies open robbery. " Lambarde. Clark has rap and rend, that is, all he can get or lay hands on. " To rap and rend, to seize and tear or strip ; to fall on and plunder ; to snatch by violence. ' They brought off all they could rap and rend.' " Webster. Rap is from A. S. hrepan, hreppan, to touch ; or repan, to touch, seize, from L. rapio . Rapscallion, rascal. Clark. Rassle, to stir the embers in an oven with a pole. Clark. The word may be from Dan. rasle, to rattle, to rustle, A. S. hristlan, G. rasseln, ~Eng.rustle, Sw. rossla, to rattle ; or from Dan. ryste, to shake, stir, whence rystelse, a shaking. Ready, rid, rid of. Rear, raw. From A. S. hreaw, hreoh, raw, cruel, fierce. In some counties rear or rere is used for " underdone," as rere egg, an egg boiled slightly. Releat or Releet, a spot where three roads meet, or, as Mr. Charles Clark renders it, " a crossing of roads, a conjunction." " The term elite or eleet is in Essex constantly employed by the peasantry to denote the point at which four roads meet, and the word is pronounced ' four-to-leat/ that is to say, a traveller who arrives at such a place will find roads to lead to four different localities ; Ji-to-leat, and three-to-leat are occasionally employed in the same sense, to indicate the point of junction of five or three roads." East Anglian, April, 1863. The word seems to be derived from A. S. geleete, a going out, ending, meeting, from losdan, to lead, to take, whence from Imt, it leads, leat, an artificial trench to conduct water to or from a mill. Rev. E. Grillett seems to agree with this. Referring to vocabularies of the 10th to the 15th century, printed by Mr. Joseph Mayer, F.S.A., and edited by Mr. Thomas Wright, F.S.A., he says " at p. 37 is L. compita, 40 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. A. S. weg-gelata ; and at p. 53, trivium, wege-loston ; " and he adds, " these are clearly the original ofreleat." Rep, to reap, reaped. Retch, to reach. Rhe, the course of water, and the overflowing of it. Rice, a rise, an elevation. Richt-up, a stone jug. Ridin', riding. Right on, downright, violently. Clark. Rimpled, rumpled, puckered. Compare Frs. rimpled, and D. gerumpeld, wrinkled. On the East coast of England rimple is a wrinkle, with which compare Frs. and D. rimpel, id. Bailey gives rimpeled, rumpled, withered, and the Eng. rumple is to wrinkle, to make uneven. Compare D. rompelen, to rumple, A. S. hrympelle, or fold. Roights, rights. Roile. See Ryle. Rosil or Rosilly, a word applied to soil between sand and clay, i.e. neither light nor heavy, Harrison mentions rosellie mould. See Halliwell. Mortimer (Husbandry) says, " In Essex moory land is thought to be most proper : that which I have observed to be the best is a rossely top and a brick earthy bottom." He also speaks of " a true rossel or light land, whether white or black." Bailey gives " rosland heavy land, also watery moorish land." Compare the Welsh rhos, a moist large plain, Cornish ros, a mountain meadow, a common, moss. Ruff, roof. Ruinated, decayed, gone to ruin. Clark. Runty, surly, crusty, ill-humoured. Clark. Qu. for grunty. Ryle or Roile, to make angry. Ryled, annoyed, vexed. This word may be connected with rail, to utter reproaches, to use insolent and reproachful language, from Sw. ralla, to prate, or Dan. drille, to rally, jeer. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 41 S. Saa, saw. Saacy, saucy. Sappy, smart, compact, clever ; as a sappy mare, a sappy cow. Perhaps from sapient, Sarah, a marsh hare, which is preserved for coursing and therefore sacred from the gun. " Marsh hares are known in Essex by the familiar and tender name of Sarah." Standard, 26 December, 1874. Sarce, vegetables. Halliwell. The word is also used in Norfolk and Suffolk. Sarteny, certainly. Sarvant, servant. Clark. Scace, scarce. Scaly, shabby, mean, unhandsome. Clark. The word is also used in various dialects to denote mean, scabby; as a scaly fellow. It seems to be from scall, a scab, scabbiness, leprosy, connected with scald ; or from scale, from A. S. sceale, a shell. " It is a dry scall, even a leprosy upon the head or beard." Lev. xiii. 30. Shakspeare uses scall for a mean scabby fellow. Scat, scared. Scatch-pawed, left-handed. Perhaps originally scath-pawed, from scath (A. S. scathiari) to damage. Scranch, a mark or scratch. Scrarl, scrawl. Screened, sheltered, protected. Clark. Scringing, cringing. Scrowge, a crowd, a squeeze. Clark. Scue, aslant, obliquely, awry. Clark. 42 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. Scuttled, went fast. In Lincolnshire to scuttle is to walk fast. The word may be from scud, to run with precipitation, to fly. Seal or Seel, time, season ; " what seal of day is it ? " what time of day is it ? " It is a fine seal for you to come at ! " spoken ironically to persons coming too late. From A. S. seel. Secunt, second Sen, since. Clark. Sertle, to surprise, to startle. Halliwell. Doubtless cor- rupted from a word sterile, for startle. Chaucer has at a stert for " in a moment." Set up, began, commenced. Clark. Setting, shutting. In March or April yearly proclamation is made near Mersey Stone, which is within the jurisdiction of the town (Colchester), that the River Colne is shut, and that all persons are for bidden todredge, or take any oysters whatsoever, before the feast of St. Mary Magdalen (July 22nd), and then to come in and take licences. This is called setting, i.e. shutting the Colne." Wright's Hist. Essex, vol. I. 337. Sew, sow. Shain't, shall not. Shaky, feeble, emaciated. Clark. Shant, a pot or quart, a drover's expression ; as a " shant o' gatter," a pot of beer. Indeed, shant is a common slang word for a pot or quart. The word is probably from A. S. sctene, drink, what holds the drink, a pot (Plat D. schenkan, a tankard, G. S. schenke, in its oldest signification beaker, tankard, drink- ing cup, at present a public-house, Ice. shenkr, a gift, drink). Shakspeare uses shinker for a tapster. Gower has shenche for to pour out. Compare Frs. schinke, D. schenken, id., the provincial skinker, a cup-bearer, Frs. D. schenker, id., also Frs. schenkpot, D. schenk ketel, a shinking-pot, the vessel from which the liquor is poured. Shay. Chaise. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 43 Shell. The carcase of a house. " But why do you call it a shell ?" " Why ain't it holler like a shell ?" " That factory's a shell." Shere Man, any man who has not the good fortune to be born in one of the sister counties or in Essex. He is a sort of foreigner to us ; and to our ears, which are acutely sensible of any violation of the beauty of our phraseology, and the music of our pronun- ciation, his speech soon betrays him. "Ay, I knew he must be a shere man by his tongue." Forby, Vocab. East Anglia. Sheu, showed. Shimmer, a glimmer. Chaucer uses shimmer for to gleam, glisten, and shimiring for glimmering ; and shimper in Suffolk is to shine. The word is from A. S. scymrian (Gr. schimmern, D. schemer en) Ship, sheep. Shoon't, should not. Shore. A sewer is so called in the neighbourhood of Plaistow. Shot, money Clark. In other counties shot is a provincial word for a reckoning at an inn : " He paid his shot." Another orthography of scot {scot and lot), from A. S. sceat, a part, portion, money, tax, tribute, toll, price, gift, Fr. Scot, shot, reckoning, ce que chacunpaie de sa part pour un repas. Shote, short. Shote, a young hog. Ainsworth has shote, a young hog, or a half-grown unfattened hog ; Hollo way, shoot, a young swine which is shooting or growing up. Showy, shy (G-. scheu). Shuck, shook, shaked. Clark. Shud, should. Shummaker, shoemaker. Shuma, should not. SiCH, such. Clark. Sid, seed. 44 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. Sides, besides. Clark. Sight, a great number. Sights, peep-shows, &c. Clark. \ Simpson. The herb groundsel. From F. senecon, from L. senecio. Sin, seen. Sing small, to put up with less than was expected or promised ; 11 equivalent to, must be content with less than appearances promised." Clark. Singafy, signify. Sinkum. See Neckum. Sithe, a sigh. In Derbyshire sike is to sigh. The word is from the A. S. verb sican (D. zugten, Dan. sukker, Sw. nucha). Sithin, sighing. Sizzle, to burn. Clark. Probably from siss, to hiss, a local word used in some parts of England, but in universal popular use, in New England ; from D. sissen, G. sausen, Dan. suse, Sw. susa, to buzz, rush, hiss, whistle. Skillet, a little round brass pan with a handle like to that of a pail, and used for boiling milk, &c, from F. escuellete. Compare the Scottish skellet, a small kettle or boiler. Slammacks, a slattern, an untidy female. Clark. Slaughter, a great alteration involving some destruction ; e.g. applied to the thorough repair and renovation of an old mansion. Sliver, a splinter of wood. The word is found in Hamlet, 11 an envious slive broke.'' It comes from the old sliver, sllve, to split, to divide longwise, from A. S. slifan, to cleave. Slud, mire, from sludge, mud, mire, soft mud ; from L. lutum, or from A. S. slog, & slough, D. slyk. Slump, to step or fall into the dirt (perhaps suddenly), from Dan. slumpe, to get a thing by chance ; slump, hazard, chance ; Sw. slump, chance, accident, casualty, hap, G-. schlumpe. Smack, to come or go against any thing with great force. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 45 Smart, to undergo, to injure ; also to cause pain ; from A. S. smertan. Compare the provincial smerte, to smart, D. smart, dolor. Smie, a kind of small fish. "In Essex is a fysshe called a smie, whyche, if he be longe kept, will turne to water." Elyot. 11 Apua, a smie." Nomencl. The word seems to be from the Sw.-Goth. sma, Dan. smaae, Plat and Ice. sma, little, small, Smoile, smile. Smuck, smoke. Snace, the snuff of a candle. Halliwell. Said to be from A. S. snaca or Dan. sneg, a snake, and named from its resemblance ; but in Scotland to snite the candle is to snuff it ; and the word may be from A. S. snidan, snithan (Gr. schneiden), to cut. Snape, snack. Snarth, the long handle of a scythe. Properly snath (0. Eng snead, sneath), from A. S. snced. Snew, snowed. Snoug, snug. Soad, sold. Soadgers, soldiers. Clark. Soights, sights. Sot, set or sat. Spake, spoke. Spalt, brittle, from Dan. spalte, to split, slit, cleave, spalte, split, slit, cleft, fissure, G. spalten, to split, cleave, Frs. spaltje, D. spalten. Spare, save ; as " to spare time," to save time. Spote, sport. Sprunk, to crack or split. Halliwell, From Dan. sprcehhe, to crack, chink, burst. Sprunny, a sweetheart. Spud, a short dwarfish person. Halliwell. Johnson uses spud for a short knife, any short thick thing, in contempt ; Bailey, 46 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. for a short sorry knife, a little despicable fellow. Todd thinks the word may come from It. spada, a kind of sword. But spud often signifies the short sprout that commences a fresh stem in herbaceous plants. Qu. Dan. spyd, a spear, Ice. spiot. Sput, spot. Squarls, squalls. Clark. Squench, quench. Squiggle, to shake about. Squint, a look, to observe slyly. Clark. Squolk, a draught of beer or other liquor. Squolsh, the sound produced by the fall of soft heavy bodies. Stand, to put up with, non-resistance. Clark. Starred, stirred. Steel, the long straight handle of a hoe, fork, rake, &c. Clark. Compare the provincial stele, a handle. From A. S. stel, stele, D. steel, a handle. Stell, still. Stew, a store pond, a small pond where fish are kept for the table. " Salt water stews are used for various sorts of fish in Foulness Island." From A. S. stow, a place. Stiff, heavy, burthensome. Clark. Stingy, cross, ill-tempered. Clark. Stomp, to stamp with the feet Stroke, a game, a proceeding. Clark. Stron', strong. Stubbing, grubbing up roots, extirpating, pulling shrubs, &c, out of land. Compare the provincial word stub, an old root or stump ; also to grub up such roots. " And stubbe the old rote away." MS. Cantab. Pf. ii., f. 29. Stud, stood. Stull, a luncheon ; a great piece of bread, cheese, or other victuals. From G. stoll, a piece, sort of bread. Stup, stop. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 47 Sturt, start. Suffin, suffing, something. Sumdy, somebody. Suppas, surpass. Suvrins, sovereigns. Clark. Swabble, to quarrel, dispute noisily ; " a quarrel, loud talk- ing." Clark. A corruption of squabble. Swack, to go or hit against violently. Clark. Swank. At Booking, in Essex, that remainder of liquor at the bottom of a tankard, pot, or cup, which is just sufficient for one draught; which is not accounted good-mannered to divide with the left-hand man, and, according to the quantity, is called either a large or a little swank. Bailey. Swankey, the commonest beer ; small beer, sometimes sold at a penny a pint. Swankum. See Neckum. Swill, a mixture of middling and wash, used for feeding pigs. From A. S. swelgan, swylgan to swallow. See next. Swill, to stir round ; " swill it round," stir it round. See also East Anglian, May, 1866. Swipes, middling beer. Compare the Northern taplash, the last and weakest running of small beer. Swish-swash, slop. " There is a kind of swish-swash made also in Essex, and divers other places, with honicombs and water, which the homelie countrie wives, putting some pepper and a little other spice among, call mead, verie good in mine opinion for such as love to be loose-bodied at large, or a little eased of the cough ; otherwise it differeth so much from the true metheglin as chalke from cheese." Harrison's England, p. 170. Tackes, to mend apparel. Take up, spoken of the weather after continued rain. Tares, tears. 48 A GLOSSARY OP ESSEX. Tarning, a turning. Tavin, a tavern. Tay. See Tye. Tear, to go fast. Tell, till. Terrified, teased, pained, annoyed. Clark. Tetchy, cross, peevish ; also changeable, as " tetchy weather." Teuk, the redshank. Halliwell. Perhaps etymologically con- nected with the Northern tewfel, a lapwing, D. kievit. Teuly. See Tewly. Tew, two. Tew, to be actively employed. From A. S. tawian, Gr. Ziehen. Tewly or Teuly, in ill-health, qualmish ; a word in common use. M A person feeling rather poorly in the morning, and not relishing his breakfast. ' You are rather teuly this morning.' A person in delicate health is called a teuly one." Halliwell. The word is still more common in Cambridgeshire. Tey. See Tye. Theave, an ewe of the first year. Ray. Pegge however says it is applied in the North to a sheep of three years old. The word may be connected with theevo, which in old deeds Bailey renders " a young plant or set ;" also " any branch or bough of a tree." This side, less than ; " a mile this side ;" less than a mile. Thole, the two pieces or handles of a scythe. From A. S. thol (Fr. and Gal. dula), a pin or peg. Thote, thought. Clark. Thrap, a crowd, to crowd. A place is said to be thrapt full when greatly crowded. The word is etymologically connected with troop, to collect in numbers ; troop, a number of people ; Fr. troupe, Ice. thyrpa, Dan. trop, Sw. tropp. Three-square, triangular. Clark. " The cot a yard it had, in shape a sort ov a three-square." John Noakes, &c. In a note A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 49 Mr. Clark adds, " Who knows, perhaps, that Solomon the Second, King James, imbibed all his vast mathematical knowledge in the good county of Essex, for in his celebrated ' Demonology ' he talks of l square and triangular circles !' n Throsh, thrash. Thurrar, furrow. Clark. In Leicestershire it is thurrough. From A. S. thurah, a gutter ; from thuruh, thurh, through. Thussins, in this way, thus. Clark. From thus, A. S. id. Thusty, thirsty. Tighted-up, dressed neatly, put in order. Clark. One of the senses of tightly is neatly ; and of tightness, neatness, as in dress ; and the old word tight, as applied to dress, meant " not slatternly." Tip the Cash, to hand it over, pay it immediately. Clark. Tits, showy light horses. Clark. Toad, told. Clark. Toad-in-hole, a small piece of meat baked in a pudding, "A small joint or pieces of meat baked in a pudding or batter." Clark. Toime, time. Tothers, the others. Tottle, to walk unsteadily. Another orthography of toddle, to walk with short steps, as a child. To-do, fuss, disturbance. Clark. 'Tood, it would. Topsitivvy, topsiturvy, i.e. top side t'other way. To rights, properly, neatly. Tourn, turn. Clark. Towlgate, tollgate. To-year, the current year, the present season. Clark. Var. dial.; "to zere homo," Cathol. Anglia M.S. XV. cent. Tramp, to walk, to journey on foot. Clark. Transmogrified, transformed, changed. Trape, to go idly up and down, to saunter. From G. trappen, to trape. x 50 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. Trapes, a slattern, literally one who trapeses, i.e. walks slut- tishly or carelessly. Clark gives trapes " to trail in the dirt." See Trape. Trinkle, trickle. Troy, try. Truck, worthless commodities. " There's a lot of truck." From Fr. troquer, to track, barter, or exchange ; It. truccare ; Sp. trocar. Trudge, to walk briskly. Clark. Tub, the top of a malt-kiln ; a corruption of top. Tuck, took. Tumbril, a waggon. From 0. Fr. turner el (also turner eau, tumeriau), tombereau, charrette, faite comme une caisse, et servant a transporter des gravois, du sable, &c. Tunnips, turnips. Twig, to observe slyly. Clark. Twinking, quickly ; a corruption of winking. Compare G. augenblick, a moment, literally a wink of the eye. Twoice, twice. Tye, a strip of pasture. The Rev. E. Gillett thinks this word (found variously written tay and tey) means a strip of land, and he refers to Westm. L.B.B. i. 32, where tey is rendered 11 lacinia prati." He also notes the Isl. teigr, one meaning of which is arvum declive (Dan. skraa, medgaaende enge), and another that of tractus. See Ihre (Lex. Suio-Goth., vol. ii. col. 872, ed. 1749, under " Teg." Mr. William Collyn, of Haldon, admitting that tye or tie means a strip of pasture, says " several of the tyes or ties have a post in the centre, where a horse road crosses the lacinia prati, to which horses are directed to be tied up by parties coming from a distance, and having to proceed further, riding so far and sending their first steeds back." The word is also used in Suffolk, and in Kent it is written tigh and teage. Com p Are A.S. teag, teagh, tea\ an inclosure. See also Notes and Queries, 1st S. iii. 263, 340, 469 ; v. 356, 395 ; 2nd S. v. 197, 298, 343. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 5l U. Um, them. Upright, independent. " He lives upright." Clark. Upset, a cross, an obstruction. Clark, Upun, upon. Ust, used. Uster, formerly. " Uster could, I could formerly, &c." Clark. Compare D. gister, L. hesternus, yesterday. But it may also be for used. V. Vae, way. Ven, when. Vessel, a pail or bucket. Vite, white. Vot, vot. W. Want, a cross road. "Wants Eoad is a Parish of St. Peter, Maldon ; and there is or was a locality called the Three Wants in Fifield. In Kent this word assumes the form of wence. Mr. Morris renders the Chaucerian word went a passage, road, path- way. Is through a goter, by a pry v£ wente, Troylus and Cryseyde, 738. Down by a flowry grene wente. The Boke of the Duchesse, 398. It comes from the old wend, to go, to turn ; from A.S. wendan, to go, to turn, Dan. vende, to turn. e2 52 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. Wape, pale from fatigue or illness. Perhaps a corruption of vapid, dead, having the spirit evaporated, spiritless, mawkish, flat. Wark, work. Warld, world. Warmin, vermin. Warnt, warrant. " I warnt yow doant." Warse, verse. * Warsley, not much. Clark, Halliwell. If this is the proper meaning of the word, it is probably used ironically for vastly. From the line, " I shudn't warsley loike to troy," in John Noakes and Mary Styles it would seem to mean the reverse of " not much." Waste, to abate ; also to wane, as " the moon wastes." Wem, a blemish in cloth ; " a small blemish, hole, or decay, especially in cloth." Grose. From A. S. wem, wemm, a spot, blemish; worn, warn, warn, a spot, stain, blemish; wemman, to spoil, corrupt. Compare also old English wem, a spot or car ; also to defile, corrupt. Wennel, a young beast, ox, bull, or cow. Grose makes it also a Suffolk word. Halliwell renders the provincial wennel " a calf newly weaned," so that the word is no doubt from A. S. wenan, to wean, or D. wennan; Dan. vcenne, to accustom ; vamne fra, to wean. Wentersome, venturous, bold, daring. Werry, very. Wesh, wish. Weskit, waistcoat. What, that. Whistle, the throat. Like whistle (A. S. wistle, a whistle, an oaten pipe), from L. fistula. White-sick. See Black-sick. Whoile, while. WiGH, a small dairy-house. Halliwell. Probably same as wyhe. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 53 Wiew, view. Wile, wild ; " wild beas, wild beasts." Clark. Wind, wine. Clark. Winnick, a suppressed cry ; to fret. Clark. In East Anglia it also signifies to cry, to fret. Probably a diminutive of whine. to make a mournful noise, speak in a crying tone. From Dan. hviner, A. S. wanian, cwanian, Goth, hwainon, to whine and to whinny, as a horse, the same as to neigh. From the L. hinnire. Wolf, an arch or culvert for water to pass through. From A. S. hwealfa, a convexity, arch, expanse. Compare Plat welfte, wolfte, gewolfte, D. verwelf, gewelf, G. wolbung, gewolbe, Dan. hvalving, Sw. hwdlfning, Ice. hvelfing, Eng. vault ; also Fr. volte L. volutus, volvere. The Rev. Ed. Gillett says, " This word was repeatedly used at the trial of the Tollesbury murder at the Essex Lent Assizes this year. Repairing ■ wolven ' frequently occurs in old accounts of Romford. n See Notes and Queries, Oct. 30th, 1852, p. 411. Wonderful, very, as a wonderful fine day, wonderful pretty wonderful nice. The word is found in var. dial. WoNDERMENt, astonishment. Clark. Woodsere. See Wood-sower Land. Wood-sower Land. According to Townsend, the clay land in Essex is sometimes so called because, though it will produce fine elm and ash timber, it requires chalking to render it fit for corn. See Wright, vol. I., p. 20. Grose gives woodsere "decayed or hollow pollards," also the month or season for felling wood. Ess. and Suff." Wor, were. Wos, what. Wos-a-matter ? What is the matter ? Woundly, very great. Clark. " A woundly larned man was he." John Noakes and Mary Styles, p. 9. A corruption of woundy, excessive, which, Dr. Johnson says, is a low, bad word. " We have such a world of holidays, that 'tis a woundy hindrance to a poor man that lives by his labour." UEstrange. ** These 54 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. stockings of Susan's cost a woundy deal of pains the pulling on." Gay. Wusser, the comparative degree of bad. Clark. Wyke, sometimes used for a " farm.' 7 Cowel says, " a ferm or farm, which in the N. parts is called a tacke, in Lancashire a form-holt, is in Essex called a wyke." " Wyke (wyka), a farm or little village. Et totam wykam, cum hominibus, &c. Mon. Angl. 2, Far. fol. 154. Car cesty q'prist lease pur anz dun farme en le northpais appelle ceo tacke, et en Lancashire il est apelle fermeholt, et en Essex wyke." Plowden, fol. 169 b." The word is derived from A. S. wic, wick, wye, a dwelling-place, habitation, village, street ; habitatio, vicus, platea. Compare Plat D. wyk, Frs. wic, O. G-. wik, wiek, weich, a town, castle, &c. See also the Dan. vig, viig, Sw. wik, Ice. vik. Y. Yallar, yellow. Yard, garden. From A. S. geard, a yard, enclosure. Yarn, earn. Yaspen, as much as can be taken up in both hands joined together. Halliwell writes the word also yeepsen. Wright spells it yaspin, and gives likewise yepsintle, u two handfuls." (Lancash.) Ash has yaspen, yaspin, a handful (a local word), whence he derives gasping, grasping. In Redivivus, p. 32, yepsonds is used to denote "as much as both hands would hold at a time.'' Before even consulting Skinner it struck us that the word might be from grasping, by change of g into y and dropping the r, but I queried the A. S. spannan, gespannan, p. gespeon, span, to measure ; span, palmus. Compare also pugil (from It. pugillo, a handful), which Bacon uses for " as much as is taken between the thumb and two first fingers.'' See also Notes and A GLOSSARY OP ESSEX. 55 Queries, x. 210, 276 ; Halliwell ; Ray ; and Skinner, referring to Gouldman. Yeep'sen. See Yaspen. Yit, yet. Youn', young; also early. "The day's yet young," i.e. not far advanced. Shakespeare sometimes uses "young" for 11 early." Thus in Rom. and Jul. I. i. 160-170— Is the day so young ? and in King Henry VIIL, 3, 2, 40-50— Marry, this is yet but young, and may be left To some ears unrecounted. Yow, you. Zad, exact. Clark. 56 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. ADDENDA. Hock or Hock at, to jeer at. "This word occurs frequently in The Times Report of an Essex libel case tried at the last assizes before Mr. Justice Hawkins." Notes and Queries, 5th S. xi. 245 (29th March, 1879). Manningtree Ox. Manningtree and the neighbourhood are famous for richness of pasture. The farms thereabouts are chiefly tenanted by graziers. Some ox was, I suppose, roasted there on an occasion of public festivity, or exposed for money to public show. See Steevens's Note on 1st part K. Hen. IV. II. 4. " Why dost thou converse with that brunk of humours, that bolting-hutch of beastliness, that swollen parcel of dropsies, that huge bombard of sack, that stuffed cloak-bag of guts, that roasted Maningtree ox with the pudding in his belly, that reverend vice, that grey in- iquity, that father ruffian, that vanity in years ? " See also Newes from Hell brought by the Devil's Carrier, by Thomas Decker, 1606 ; Decker's Seven Deadly Sinnes of London, 1607 ; Heywood's Apology for Actors, 1612 ; and The Choosing of Valentines, a poem by Thos. Nashe, MS. in the Library of the Inner Temple, No. 538, vol. xliii. Snickups, a kind of sneezing fit. " The turkeys are dying very much of the snickups." See Notes and Queries, 5th S. xii. 45. Swedge, meadow land, where it is easy to pull up the grass, he best land for keeping geese on. See Notes and Queries, 5th S. xii. 45. Three-acre Land. In the sixteenth century Canvey belonged chiefly to the Baker and Appleton families. By deed dated 9th A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 57 April, Sir Henry Appleton and others, owners of the lands, here gave one-third thereof in fee simple to Joas Croppenburgh, a Dutchman skilled in making dikes, in consideration of his securing the whole island from the overflowing of the sea, which was then usually overflowed at every spring tide, at his own costs, which was effected by raising round it the high embankments which still preserve it from inundation, except during very high tides, when some parts of it are overflowed. This agreement was by consent made an order or decree of the Court of Chancery, on the 27th February, 1622-3, and a third of these lands still goes to the repairs of the sea walls : hence the term three-acre land is appli- cable, not only to land held in this way at Canvey, but also to land held in other parts of Essex. See Hist, of the County. Weavers' Beef of Colchester, Colchester sprats. "That is, sprats caught thereabouts, and brought thither in incredible abundance ; whereon the poor weavers are frequently fed." Grose. In Spitalfields, London, they call a sprat a weaver's bullock. Yange-Monday. The old parish register of Stifford contains the entry of a baptism on Yange-Monday, 1586. This term is probably a corruption of Yang-Monday. Compare Gang Week, that is, Rogation Week. " Rogation Week in the N. of England is called Gang Week, i.e. Gangtide, from the ganging or going on procession, &c. ; for gang there, as in the old Saxon, signifies to go." Blount. Gang Week [q.d. going on walking], the time when the bounds of the parish are lustrated or gone over by the parish officers ; Rogation Week. Bailey. u Gang-flower, a flower which flourishes in Rogation Week." Bailey. 0. E. gange, to go, going. 58 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. PROVERBS, SAYINGS, &c All is on a rhe. " Even to this day " observes Harrison, p. 46 11 I have observed that when the lower grounds by rage of water have beene overflowen, the people beholding same have said all is on a rhe, as if they should have said all is now a river." This observation is copied by Stowe. Halliwell. " Ree, a river or flood, 'all is in a ree,' i.e. overflowed with water." Wright. Bailey has " Ree, as all is on a ree, all is on the river, or over- flowed with water, Essex, of Gr. pscv, to flow." It comes rather from L. rivus, a river. As wise as Waltham's calf [who went 9 miles to suck a bull and came home as dry as he went, adds Howell, Paroimiographia, 1659, p, 6]. Mr. Vincent S. Lean says, " here the addition is a perversion of the original meaning, which is a fling at the monks for their foolish preaching. The calf may have belonged to Waltham Abbey; or can the miraculous image there have been in view? As wyse as Walton's calfe, Must preche a Goddes halfe In the pulpit solemnely. Skelton, Colin Clout, I. 811, Dyce's Edit. Not Walton, as Mr. Hazlitt (Collection) prints it, p. 446. A third party called in to mediate by the husband excuses himself : — Ye will me to a thankeless office here, And a busy officer I may appeere. And Jacke out of office she may bid me walke, And thinke me as wise as Waltam's calfe, to take, Or that of his charge, havyng therein nought to doo. J, Heiwood, Dialogue, 1566, 11. &. A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 59 A curious passage occurs in Buttes, Dyetfs Dry Dinner, 1599, la, after a dispraise of veal : ' Essex calfes the pioverb praiseth, and some one of the mind that Waltone calf was also that countrey man.' Davies (of Hereford, Scourge of Folly, 1611) has this proverb (ep. 366) in the expanded form." Conf. Notes and Queries, 5th S. x. 10. Broken-backed graves. Some years since, when taking church notes in Barnstable Hundred, the rector of one of the churches directed my attention to various graves depressed in the centre. These, said he, my sexton affirms invariably indicate that the person buried died of consumption ; and that all who die of that disease have sooner or later " broken-backed graves." Of course it is obvious enough the depression is occasioned by the decay of the coffin, or the natural sinking of the loose earth, and is not confined to graves of consumptive persons, although the sexton, from long experience, strenuously vouches the contrary. East Anglian N. and Q., No. 2, p. 15. Braintree saying :— Baintree for the pure, And Booking for the poor ; Cogshall for the jeering town, And Kelvedon for the whore. Dovercourt. " There is the phrase Dovercourt : all talkers and no hearers. At Dovercourt, near Harwich, a court is annually held, which, as it consists chiefly of seamen, the irre- gularity described in the proverb is likely to prevail. Keeping Dovercourt is said to mean making a great noise, and the explanation is said to have arisen from the fact that Dovercourt was formerly celebrated for its scolds." Tusser (p. 12) men- tions a Dovercourt beetle, i.e. one that could make a loud noise." There is a proverb, Dover Court; all speakers and no hearers. The legend is that Dovercourt Church once possessed 60 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. a miraculous cross which spoke, thus noticed in the Collier of Croydon : — And how the rood of Dovercourt did speak, . Confirming his opinions to he true. So that it is possible, as Nares suggests, that this church was the scene of confusion alluded to in the proverb. Foxe (Marty- rology, vol. ii. 302) states that " a rumour was spread that no man could shut the door, which therefore stood open night and day ; and that the resort of people to it (the church) was much and very great." The proverb has been very long current. It is alluded to in an old copy of verses inscribed on the walls of St. Peter's belfry at Shaftesbury, and quoted at the word clamour — But when they clam, the harsh sound spoils the sport, And 'tis like women weeping Dover Court. So in Stephenson's Norfolk Drollery, 1673 — I'm not a man ordain'd for Dover Court, For I'm a hearer still where I resort. And even as late as Queen Anne's time, in Mr. Bramston's Art of Politics — Church nor church-matters ever turn to sport, Nor make St. Stephen's Chapel Dover Court. Dodsley's Coll. of Poems, Vol. i. See also Nares's Glossary, Halliwell, Wright (Prov. Diet.), and Ray, p. 246. Every dog has his day, and a cat two Sundays. Fox's sleep (to be in a). " A few days ago I heard a working man, a native of Essex, who had spent the greater part of his life there, say, ' I was in a fox's sleep,' his meaning evidently being that he kept his eyes shut and pretended to be asleep, when all A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 61 the while he .was listening to what was said around him." Dr. F. Chance, Notes and Queries, 5th S. iv. 286. Giving the straight tip. " This phrase is largely used in rural townships and villages of Essex, where it evidently means speaking plainly and decisively, ' delivering an ultimatum, as Cuthbert Bede tersely defines it, and also something more ; and the ' straight tip/ as given at Dunmow and within a considerable radius, not only means a direct reply without either evasion or reservation, but also a spirit of indifference and defiance — very often an insult is intended." J, W. Savill. See Notes and Queries, 5th S. ix. 498. Go to Romford to have your backsides new bottomed. Rom- ford being formerly famous for breeches-making, a man going there was thus jocosely advised to provide himself with a pair of new breeches. Good elm, good barley ; good oak, good wheat. Where the soil is thin and will only support forest trees in particular places, the cultivators are careful not to plough too deep, hence the above proverb. Wright, Hist. Essex. Lying by the wall. If any one is dead, he or she is said " to lie by the wall." It is generally said of an uninterred corpse. " Lying by the wall " implies that one is dead, but not yet buried. In the Dutch is a phrase which seems somewhat akin, aan de laager wol zyn, to be bronght to a low ebb." Notes and Queries, 2nd S. vi. 152, 480. The exact phrase in the mouth of a Suffolk peasant would be, " he lay by the walls." A correspondent of Notes and Queries says, M it may be a corrupted form of some expression in which occurred the A. S. wcel, death ; Gen. wasles, so meaning ' he is laid down by death.' " It is, however, a well- known fact that those about to die generally turn the face to the 62 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. wall. Mention is made of it in the Scriptures., In Isaiah, xxxviii. 1, 2, we read, "In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came unto him, and said unto him, Thus said the Lord, Set thine house in order : for thou shalt die, and not live. Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed unto the Lord." Compare II. Kings xx. 1 , 2, and II. Chron. xxxii. 24. " The beds of the Hebrews were placed with their sides against the wall of the chamber, which illustrates this expression of Heze- kiah's turning his face to the wall to pray." Fleury. See Doyly and Mant's ed. of the Bible. Moon and mushrooms. There is a feeling in some parts of the country, founded upon the result of long observation, that the growth of mushrooms is influenced by the changes of the moon ; that towards and at the full of the moon mushrooms show them- selves, the crop declining when she begins to wane. Mr. F. Phillott has, for convenience sake, reducecf this piece of folk-lore to the following formula : — When the moon is at the full, Mushrooms you may freely pull ; But when the moon is on the wane, "Wait ere you think to pluck again. See Notes and Queries, 2nd S. x. 247. Not to have her change, &c. In the neighbourhood of Fobbing, and doubtless ill other parts of the country, when the peasants wish to express . that a woman has not much nous, they say " she has not got her change." When speaking of a man, they say, " he has not got all his buttons." It at first struck me that the last phrase might be compared with what the host says of Mark Fenton (M. W. W., ii. 2, 67): " Tis in his buttons: he will carry't ;" but, as Mr. Knightley remarks, " It is in his buttons " seems to mean it is in his doublet, which is buttoned A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. 63 on him, i.e. it is in him, he is able to accomplish it." Compare however the Scotch synonyms, "he wants twopence o' the shilling," "he's no a' there." Peculiarities of the three counties : Essex miles, Suffolk stiles, Norfolk wiles, Many men beguiles. East Anglian N. and Q., No, 1, Oct. 1858. Put the miller's eye out, to overdo with water or milk ; to make a pudding, &c, too thin. In Derbyshire, when the house- wife, in mixing her dough, or, as they call it there, paste, puts too much water to her flour, she says she has " drowned the miller." Jamieson says the primary meaning of this phrase is used in regard to the baking, when too much water is put in, and there is not meal enough to bring the dough to a proper consis- tence ; and also to the operation of making punch or toddy, when more water is poured in than corresponds to the quantity of spirituous liquor. In short, the saying is applied to anything which, however acceptable in itself, defeats the end for which it is desired, by its excess or exuberance. The saying seems to be from Scotland. An old Scotch proverb says, * O'er muckle water around the miller.' Millers (of water-mills, almost the only kind known in Scotland) are supposed to be always anxious about a supply of water — To them the breath of life. But, as there may be too much even of a good thing, this proverb was intended no doubt to inculcate moderation on that honest fraternity. The miller was, either actually or practically " drowned in his dam," as u the weaver was hanged on his yarn," and " the devil flew away with the little tailor." And from this unhappy fate it has become a custom, whenever too much water is applied, to quote or allude to the above proverb. 64 A GLOSSARY OF ESSEX. Scare a job. A phrase implying that the job will be nearly finished, and tantamount to the expression, "making it look foolish." Halliwell. From scare, to frighten. Ugley. It is said of this village — Ugly church, ugly steeple, Ugly parson, ugly people. Witch bottle. During the recent alterations of a house in King Street, Saffron Walden, the workmen came upon an old witch bottle imbedded about 18in. below the floor, and very near the fireplace. It contained some water, about fourteen horse- nails, and twenty thorns. It is supposed to be upwards of two centuries old. Some curious old carvings on stone and oak were also discovered, probably of Elizabethan period. Notes and Queries, 4th S. vi. 114. In same series, No. 271, will be found a notice of another witch jug also discovered at Saffron Walden, embedded in the chalk. It is there stated that it was customary about the year 1610 to place under the entrance-door a jug filled with horseshoe nails, to prevent the entrance of witches. THE END. CHARLM JONKS, PRINTER, WEST HARDING STREET. WORKS PUBLISHED BY Dr. CHARNOCK, F.S.A. Price 12s., demy Svo, cloth lettered, LOCAL ETYMOLOGY: a Derivative Dictionary of Geographical Names. Houlston & Sons, 7, Paternoster Square. Price 14s., demy Svo, c?o^ lettered, VERBA NOMINALIA; or, Words derived from Proper Names. Trubner & Co., Ludgate Hill. Price Is. &d., extra cloth lettered, LUDUS PATRONYMICUS; or, the Etymology of curious Surnames. Trubner & Co., Ludgate Hill. Price 2s. 6d., paper cover, THE PEOPLES OP TRANSYLVANIA. Trubner & Co., Ludgate Hill. Price 7s. Qd., extra cloth lettered. PATRONYMICA CORNU-BRITANNICA; or, the Etymology of Cornish Surnames. 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