1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue Part 77

SUNDAY MAN. One who goes abroad on that day only, for fear of arrests.

SUNNY BANK. A good fire in winter.

SUNs.h.i.+NE. Prosperity.

SUPERNACOLUM. Good liquor, of which there is not even a drop left sufficient to wet one's nail.

SUPOUCH. A landlady of an inn, or hostess.

SURVEYOR OF THE HIGHWAYS. One reeling drunk.

SURVEYOR OF THE PAVEMENT. One standing in the pillory.

SUS PER COLL. Hanged: persons who have been hanged are thus entered into the jailor's books.

SUSPENCE. One in a deadly suspence; a man just turned off at the gallows.

SUTRER. A camp publican: also one that pilfers gloves, tobacco boxes, and such small moveables.

SWABBERS. The ace of hearts, knave of clubs, ace and duce of trumps, at whist: also the lubberly seamen, put to swab, and clean the s.h.i.+p.

SWAD, or SWADKIN. A soldier. CANT.

To SWADDLE. To beat with a stick.

SWADDLERS. The tenth order of the canting tribe, who not only rob, but beat, and often murder pa.s.senges. CANT.

Swaddlers is also the Irish name for methodist.

SWAG. A shop. Any quant.i.ty of goods. As, plant the swag; conceal the goods. Rum swag; a shop full of rich goods.

CANT.

SWAGGER. To bully, brag, or boast, also to strut.

SWANNERY. He keeps a swannery; i.e. all his geese are swans.

SWEATING. A mode of diminis.h.i.+ng the gold coin, practiced chiefly by the Jews, who corrode it with aqua regia. Sweating was also a diversion practised by the bloods of the last century, who styled themselves Mohocks: these gentlemen lay in wait to surprise some person late in the night, when surrouding him, they with their swords p.r.i.c.ked him in the posteriors, which obliged him to be constantly turning round; this they continued till they thought him sufficiently sweated.

SWEET. Easy to be imposed on, or taken in; also expert, dexterous clever. Sweet's your hand; said of one dexterous at stealing.

SWEET HEART. A term applicable to either the masculine or feminine gender, signifying a girl's lover, or a man's mistress: derived from a sweet cake in the shape of a heart.

SWEETNESS. Guinea droppers, cheats, sharpers. To sweeten to decoy, or draw in. To be sweet upon; to coax, wheedle, court, or allure. He seemed sweet upon that wench; he seemed to court that girl.

SWELL. A gentleman. A well-dressed map. The flashman bounced the swell of all his blunt; the girl's bully frightened the gentleman out of all his money.

SWELLED HEAD. A disorder to which horses are extremely liable, particularly those of the subalterns of the army.

This disorder is generally occasioned by remaining too long in one livery-stable or inn, and often arises to that height that it prevents their coming out at the stable door.

The most certain cure is the unguentum aureum--not applied to the horse, but to the palm of the master of the inn or stable. N. B. Neither this disorder, nor its remedy, is mentioned by either Bracken, Bartlet, or any of the modern writers on farriery.

SWIG. A hearty draught of liquor.

SWIGMEN. Thieves who travel the country under colour of buying old shoes, old clothes, &c. or selling brooms, mops, &c. CANT.

TO SWILL. To drink greedily.

SWILL TUB. A drunkard, a sot.

SWIMMER. A counterfeit old coin.

SWIMMER. A s.h.i.+p. I shall have a swimmer; a cant phrase used by thieves to signify that they will be sent on board the tender.

TO SWING. To be hanged. He will swing for it; he will be hanged for it.

SWING TAIL. A hog.

TO SWINGE. To beat stoutly.

SWINGING. A great swinging fellow; a great stout fellow.

A swinging lie; a l.u.s.ty lie.

SWINDLER. One who obtains goods on credit by false pretences, and sells them for ready money at any price, in order to make up a purse. This name is derived from the German word SCHWINDLIN, to totter, to be ready to fall; these arts being generally practised by persons on the totter, or just ready to break. The term SWINDLER has since been used to signify cheats of every kind.

SWIPES. Purser's swipes; small beer: so termed on board the king's s.h.i.+ps, where it is furnished by the purser.

SWISH TAIL. A pheasant; so called by the persons who sell game for the poachers.

TO SWIVE. To copulate.

SWIVEL-EYED. Squinting.

SWIZZLE. Drink, or any brisk or windy liquor. In North America, a mixture of spruce beer, rum, and sugar, was so called. The 17th regiment had a society called the Swizzle Club, at Ticonderoga, A. D. 1760.

SWORD RACKET. To enlist in different regiments, and on receiving the bounty to desert immediately.

SWOP. An exchange.

SYEBUCK. Sixpence.

SYNTAX. A schoolmaster.

TABBY. An old maid; either from Tabitha, a formal antiquated name; or else from a tabby cat, old maids being often compared to cats. To drive Tab; to go out on a party of pleasure with a wife and family.

TACE. Silence, hold your tongue. TACE is Latin for a candle; a jocular admonition to be silent on any subject.

TACKLE. A mistress; also good clothes. The cull has tipt his tackle rum gigging; the fellow has given his mistress good clothes. A man's tackle: the genitals.

TAFFY, i.e. Davy. A general name for a Welchman, St.

David being the tutelar saint of Wales. Taffy's day; the first of March, St. David's day.