Part 22 (1/2)

And over their tea, and m.u.f.fins, and crumpets, Circulate many a scandalous word, And whisper tales they could only have heard Through some such Diabolical Trumpets!

GLOSSARY

{114} And, in old English could be placed like ”also” in different parts of a sentence. Thus, in Nymphidia, ”She hies her then to Lethe spring, A bottle and thereof doth bring.”

{129} Atalantis, ”As long as Atalantis shall be read.” Atalantis was a book of Court scandal by Mrs. De la Riviere Manley, in four volumes, ent.i.tled ”Secret Memoirs and Manners of several Persons of Quality of both s.e.xes from the New Atalantis, an Island in the Mediterranean.” Mrs. Manley died in 1724.

{94h} Bauzon, badger. French, bausin.

{147a} Billies, fellows, used rather contemptuously.

{147f} Blellum, idle talker.

{150a} Boddle, a Scottish copper coin worth the third part of an English halfpenny; said to be named after the Mint-master who first coined it, Bothwell.

{150h} Bore, hole in the wall.

{91e} But, ”without,” ”but merriness,” without mirth.

{152d} Byke, hive.

{150f} Cantrip, charm, spell. Icelandic, gandr, enchantment; gand- reithr was the witches' ride.

{83} Can'wick Street, Candlewick, where now there is Cannon Street.

{86a} Champarty, Champartage, was a feudal levy of a share of profit from the ground (campi pars), based originally upon aid given to enable profit to be earned. Thus it became a law term for right of a stranger to fixed share in any profits that on such condition he helped a litigant to win.

{85b} Chiche vache, lean cow. French chiche, Latin ciccus, wretched, worthless; from Greek kikkos, the core of a pomegranate.

Worth no more than a pomegranate seed.

{94i} c.o.c.kers, rustic half-boots.

{151g} Coft, bought. German, kaufte.

{82b} Copen, buy. Dutch, koopen.

{94j} Cordiwin, or cordewane, Cordovan leather.

{89} Coueyn, coveyne convening or conspiring of two or more to defraud.

{94f} Crank, lively. A boat was ”crank” when frail, lightly and easily tossed on the waves, and liable to upset. Prof. Skeat thinks that the image of the tossed boat suggested lively movement.

{151c} Crees.h.i.+e flannen, greasy flannel.

{151e} c.u.mmock, a short staff with a crooked head.

{151f} Cutty, short; so cutty pipe, short pipe.

{85a} Darrain, decide. To ”arraign” was to summon ad rationes to the pleadings. To darraign was derationare, to bring them to a decision.

{86b} Defy, digest. As in the Vision of Piers Plowman ”wyn of Ossye Of Ruyn and of Rochel, the rost to defye.”

Latin, defio = deficio, to make one's self to be removed from something, or something to be removed from one's self. To defy in the sense of challenging is a word of different origin, diffidere, to separate from fides, faith, trust, allegiance to another.

{91d} Degest, orderly. To ”digest” is to separate and arrange in an orderly manner.

{150e} Dirl, vibrate, echo.

{147b} Drouthy, droughty, thirsty.

{151a} Duddies, clothes.

{152e} Eldritch, also elrische, alrische, alry, having relation to elves or evil spirits, supernatural, hideous, frightful.

{152f} Ettle, endeavour, aim. Icelandic, aetla, to mean anything, design, have aim, is the Scottish ettle.

{108d} Fire-drake, dragon breathing out fire.

{91b} Flicht and wary, fluctuate and change.

{92b} Frawfull fary, froward tumult.

{152c} Fyke, fuss.

{30} Fytte, a song, canto. First English, fit, a song.

When Wisdom ”thas fitte asungen haefde” had sung this song. King Alfred's Boethius.