Part 62 (2/2)

RAILS. See HEAD RAILS. A dish of rails; a lecture, jobation, or scolding from a married woman to her husband.

RAINBOW. Knight of the rainbow; a footman: from being commonly clothed in garments of different colours. A meeting of gentlemen, styled of the most ancient order of the rainbow, was advertised to be held at the Foppington's Head, Moorfields.

RAINY DAY. To lay up something for a rainy day; to provide against a time of necessity or distress.

RAKE, RAKEh.e.l.l, or RAKESHAME. A lewd, debauched fellow.

RALPH SPOONER. A fool.

RAM CAT. A he cat.

RAMMISH. Rank. Rammish woman; a st.u.r.dy virago.

RAMMER. The arm. The busnapper's kenchin seized my rammer; i.e. the watchman laid hold of my arm. CANT.

TO RAMP. To s.n.a.t.c.h, or tear any thing forcibly from the person.

RAMSHACKLED. Out of repair. A ramshackled house; perhaps a corruption of RANSACKED, i.e. plundered.

RANDLE. A set of nonsensical verses, repeated in Ireland by schoolboys, and young people, who have been guilty of breaking wind backwards before any of their companions; if they neglect this apology, they are liable to certain kicks, pinches, and fillips, which are accompanied with divers admonitory couplets.

RANDY. Obstreperous, unruly, rampant.

RANGLING. Intriguing with a variety of women.

RANK. Stinking, rammish, ill-flavoured; also strong, great.

A rank knave; a rank coward: perhaps the latter may allude to an ill savour caused by fear.

RANK RIDER. A highwayman.

RANTALLION. One whose s.c.r.o.t.u.m is so relaxed as to be longer than his p.e.n.i.s, i.e. whose shot pouch is longer that the barrel of his piece.

RANTIPOLE. A rude romping boy or girl; also a gadabout dissipated woman. To ride rantipole; the same as riding St. George. See ST. GEORGE.

RANTUM SCANTUM. Playing at rantum scantum; making the beast with two backs.

To RAP To take a false oath; also to curse. He rapped out a volley; i.e. he swore a whole volley of oaths. To rap, means also to exchange or barter: a rap is likewise an Irish halfpenny. Rap on the knuckles; a reprimand.

RAPPAREES. Irish robbers, or outlaws, who in the time of Oliver Cromwell were armed with short weapons, called in Irish RAPIERS, used for ripping persons up.

RAPPER. A swinging great lie.

RAREE SHEW MEN. Poor Savoyards, who subsist by shewing the magic lantern and marmots about London.

RASCAL. A rogue or villain: a term borrowed from the chase; a rascal originally meaning a lean shabby deer, at the time of changing his horns, p.e.n.i.s, &c. whence, in the vulgar acceptation, rascal is conceived to signify a man without genitals: the regular vulgar answer to this reproach, if uttered by a woman, is the offer of an ocular demonstration of the virility of the party so defamed. Some derive it from RASCAGLIONE, an Italian word signifying a man.

without t.e.s.t.i.c.l.es, or an eunuch.

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