A New and Comprehensive Vocabulary of the Flash Language, James Hardy Vaux [famous ebook reader TXT] 📗
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common to include constables of any description under this title.
TRICK. See DO THE TRICK.
TRIG: a bit of stick, paper, etc., placed by thieves in the keyhole of,
or elsewhere about, the door of a house, which they suspect to be
uninhabited; if the trig remains unmoved the following day, it is a proof
that no person sleeps in the house, on which the gang enter it the
ensuing night upon the screw, and frequently meet with a good booty, such
as beds, carpets, etc., the family being probably out of town. This
operation is called trigging the jigger.
TRY IT ON: to make all attempt, or essay, where success is doubtful. So
to try it on with a woman, signifies to attempt her chastity.
TURN UP: to desist from, or relinquish, any particular habit or mode of
life, or the further pursuit of any object you had in view, is called
turning it up. To turn up a mistress, or a male acquaintance, is to drop
all intercourse, or correspondence, with them. To turn up a particular
house, or shop, you have been accustomed to use, or deal at, signifies to
withdraw your patronage, or custom, and visit it no more. To quit a
person suddenly in the street, whether secretly or openly, is called
turning him up. To turn a man up sweet, is to get rid of him effectually,
but yet to leave him in perfect good humour, and free from any suspicion
or discontent; this piece of finesse often affords a field for the
exercise of consummate address, as in the case of turning up a flat,
after having stript him of all his money at play, or a shopkeeper, whom
you have just robbed before his face of something valuable, upon the
pinch, or the hoist.
TURNED UP: a person acquitted by a jury, or discharged by a magistrate
for want of evidence, etc., is said to be turned up. See SWELL.
TURNIPS: to give any body turnips signifies to turn him or her up, and
the party so turned up, is said to have knap’d turnips.
TURN UP A TRUMP: to be fortunate in getting a good stake, or by any other
means improving your finances.
TWIG: any thing accomplished cleverly, or as it should be, is said to be
done in twig, in good twig, or in prime twig. A person well dress’d is
said to be in twig. See DROP, GAMMON THE TWELVE, and OUT OF TWIG.
TWISTED: hanged.
TWO POLL ONE. See BRIDGE.
TYE IT UP: to tye up any particular custom, practice, or habit, is
synonymous with knifeing, stowing, turning it up, or stashing it. To 0’e
it up is a phrase, which, used emphatically, is generally understood to
mean a course of depredation and wickedness. See SQUARE, and DO THE
TRICK.
UNBETTY: to unlock. See BETTY.
UNDUB: to unlock, unfasten, etc. See DUB UP.
UNPALLED: a thief whose associates are all apprehended, or taken from him
by other means, is said to be unpalled, and he is then obliged to work
single-handed.
UNSLOUR: to unlock, unfasten, or unbutton. See SLOUR. Speaking of a
person whose coat is buttoned, so as to obstruct the access to his
pockets, the knucks will say to each other, the cove is dour’d up, we
must unslour him to get at his kickseys.
UNTHIMBLE: to unthimble a man, is to rob, or otherwise deprive him of his
watch.
UNTHIMBLED: having been divested of one’s watch.
UP IN THE STIRRUPS: a man who is in swell street, that is, having plenty
of money, is said to be up in the stirrups.
UPON THE CROSS. See Cross.
UPON THE SQUARE. See SQUARE.
UPON THE SUIT, etc. See SUIT.
UPPER-BEN, UPPER-BENJAMIN, UPPER-TOG, a great-coat.
VARDO: a waggon.
VARDO-GILL: a waggoner.
WACK: to share or divide any thing equally, as wack the blunt, divide the
money, etc.
WACK: a share or equal proportion, as give me my wack, that is, my due
part.
WALKER: an ironical expression, synonymous with bender, and used in the
same manner.
WALKING-DISTILLER. See CARRY THE KEG.
WANTED: when any of the traps or runners have a private information
against a family person, and are using means to apprehend the party, they
say, such a one is wanted; and it becomes the latter, on receiving such
intimation to keep out if the way, until the stink is over, or until he
or she can find means to stash the business through the medium of Mr.
Palmer, or by some other means.
WATER-SNEAK: robbing ships or vessels on a navigable river, or canal, by
getting on board unperceived, generally in the night. The water-sneak, is
lately made a capital offence.
WEAR IT: to wear it upon a person, (meaning to wear a nose, or a conk,)
is synonymous with nosing, conking, splitting, or coming it, and is
merely one of those fanciful variations so much admired by flash people.
WEAR THE BANDS. See BANDS.
WEDGE: silver; as a wedge-feeder, a silver spoon, etc.; but silver coin,
as well as silver plate, are both comprehended under the name of wedge.
See RIDGE and SPEAK TO.
WEED: tobacco.
WEED: to pilfer or purloin a small portion from a large quantity of any
thing; often done by young or timid depredators, in the hope of escaping
detection, as, an apprentice or shopman will weed his master’s lob, that
is, take small sums out of the till when opportunity offers, which sort
of peculation may be carried on with impunity for a length of time; but
experienced thieves sometimes think it good Judgment to weed a place, in
order that it may be good again, perhaps for a considerable length of
time, as in the instance of a warehouse or other depot for goods, to
which they may possess the means of access by means of a false key; in
this ease, by taking too great a swag, at first, the proprietors would
discover the deficiency, and take measures to prevent future depredation.
To weed the swag is to embezzle part of the booty, unknown to your palls,
before a division takes place, a temptation against which very few of tm
family are proof, if they can find an opportunity. A flash-cove, on
discovering a deficiency in his purse or property, which he cannot
account for, will declare that he, (or it, naming the article,) has been
weeded to the ruffian.
WEEDING DUES: speaking of any person, place, or property, that has been
weeded, it is said weeding dues have been concerned. See DUES.
WEIGH FORTY: term used by the police, who are as well versed in flash as
the thieves themselves. It is often customary with the traps, to wink at
depredations of a petty nature, and for which no reward would attach, and
to let a thief reign unmolested till he commits a capital crime. They
then grab him, and, on conviction, share (in many cases) a reward of
40l., or upwards; therefore these gentry will say, Let him alone at
present, we don’t want him till he weighs his weight, meaning, of course,
forty pounds.
WELL: to well your accomplice, or put him in the well, is explained under
the word GARDEN, which see.
WHIDDLE: to speak of, or mention any thing, as, Don’t you whiddle about
so and so, that is, don’t mention it.
WHIDDLER: a talkative or tell-tale person, who is not fit to be trusted
with a secret.
WHIDS: words. See CRACK A WHID.
WHISTLERS. See BROWNS AND WHISTLERS.
WIN, or WINCHESTER: a penny.
WIND: a man transported for his natural life, is said to be lag’d for his
wind, or to have knap’d a winder, or a bellowser, according to the humour
of the speaker.
WOOLLY-BIRDS: sheep.
WORK. To work upon any particular game, is to practise generally, that
species of fraud or depredation, as, He works upon the crack, he follows
housebreaking, etc. An offender having been detected in the very fact,
particularly in cases of coining, colouring base-metal, etc., is
emphatically said to have been grab’d at work, meaning to imply, that the
proof against him being so plain, he has no ground of defence to set up.
WRINKLE: to lie, or utter a falsehood.
WRINKLE: an untruth.
WRINKLER: a person prone to lying; such a character is called also a
gully, which is probably an abbreviation of Gulliver, and from hence, to
gully signifies to lie, or deal in the marvellous.
YACK: a watch (obsolete.)
YARN: yarning or spinning a yarn is a favourite amusement among
flash-people; signifying to relate their various adventures, exploits,
and escapes to each other. This is most common and gratifying, among
persons in confinement or exile, to enliven a dull hour, and probably
excite a secret hope of one day enjoying a repetition of their former
pleasures. See BONED. A person expert at telling these stories, is said
to spin a fine yarn. A man using a great deal of rhetoric, and exerting
all his art to talk another person out of any thing he is intent upon,
the latter will answer, Aye, Aye, you can spin a good yarn, but it won’t
do; meaning, all your eloquence will not have the desired effect.
YELLOW: jealous; a jealous husband is called a yellow gloak.
YOKUFF: a chest, or large box.
YORK: To stare or look at any person in an impertinent manner, is termed
yorking; to york any thing, in a common sense, is to view, look at, or
examine it.
YORK: a look, or observation; a flash-cove observing another person (a
flat) who appears to notice or scrutinize him, his proceedings, or the
company he is with, will say to his palls, That cove is yorking as strong
as a horse, or, There is York-street concerned.
YOUKELL: a countryman, or clown.
YOURNABS: yourself; an emphatical term used in speaking to another person.
FINIS.
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