Chapter D: =Dachshund.= German for “badger-dog.” (1)

=Daffodil.= An English corruption of the French _d’Asphodel_.

=Dagonet.= The pseudonym of Mr George R. Sims in _The Referee_, after
the jester at the Court of King Arthur.

=Daguerreotype.= An early process of photography discovered by L. J. M.
Daguerre.

=Dahlgreen Gun.= After its inventor, an officer in the United States
Navy.

=Dahlia.= Introduced to Europe from Mexico in 1784 by Andrew Dahl, the
Swedish botanist.

=Daisy.= From the Anglo-Saxon _dæges eye_, or “day’s eye,” on account of
its sunlike appearance.

=Dakota.= From the Dacoits, a tribe of Indians found there.

=Dale Road.= From the residence of Canon Dale, poet, and Vicar of St
Pancras.

=Dalmatian.= A species of dog bred in Dalmatia.

=Dalston.= The town in the dale when the north of London was more or
less wooded.

=Damage.= See “What’s the Damage?”

=Damascenes.= From Damascus, famous for its plums.

=Damascus.= From the Arabic name of the city, _Dimiskesh-Shâm_.

=Damascus Blade.= From Damascus, a city world famous for the temper of
its sword blades.

=Damask.= First made at Damascus in Syria.

=Damask Rose.= Introduced to Europe from Damascus.

=Damassin.= A Damask cloth interwoven with flowers of gold or silver.

=Dame School.= The old name for a girls’ school taught by a spinster or
dame.

=Damsons.= Properly _Damascenes_, from Damascus.

=Dancing Chancellor.= Sir Christopher Hatton so pleased Queen Elizabeth
by his dancing at a Court masque that she made him a Knight of the
Garter; subsequently he became Lord Chancellor of England.

=Dandelion.= A corruption of the French _dent de lion_, from its fancied
resemblance to a lion’s tooth.

=Dandy.= From the French _dandin_, silly fellow, ninny.

=Dantzic.= Expresses the town settled by the Danes.

=Danvers Street.= From Danvers House, in which resided Sir John Danvers,
to whom the introduction of the Italian style of horticulture in
England was due.

=Darbies.= A pair of handcuffs, in allusion to Darby and Joan, who were
inseparable.

=Dardanelles.= After the city on the Asiatic side founded by Dardanus,
the ancestor of Priam, the last king of Troy.

=Dark and Bloody Ground.= Kentucky, the great battle-ground of the
Indians and white settlers, as also that of the savage tribes
amongst themselves.

=Darmstadt.= The _stadt_, or town, on the Darm.

=Dartford.= From the Saxon _Darentford_, the fort on the Darent.

=Dartmoor.= The moor in which the River Dart takes its rise.

=Dartmouth.= On the estuary of the River Dart.

=Dauphin.= The title borne by the eldest son of the King of France until
1830, from the armorial device of a _delphinus_, or dolphin.

=Davenport.= After the original maker.

=Davies Street.= After Mary Davies, heiress of the manor of Ebury,
Pimlico.

=Davis Strait.= After the navigator who discovered it.

=Davy Jones’s Locker.= Properly “Duffy Jonah’s Locker.” _Duffy_ is the
ghost of the West Indian Negroes; Jonah, the prophet cast into the
sea; and “locker,” the ordinary seaman’s chest.

=D. D. Cellars.= See “Dirty Dick’s.”

=Dead as a Door Nail.= The reflection that, if a man were to be knocked
on the head as often as is the “nail” on which a door knocker rests,
he would have very little life left in him, easily accounts for this
saying.

=Dead Beat.= Prostrate from fatigue, incapable of further exertion. Also
the name of an American drink of whisky and ginger-soda after a hard
night’s carousal.

=Deadheads.= In America persons who enjoy the right of travelling on a
railway system at the public expense; in this country actors and
pseudo “professionals,” who pass into places of amusement without
paying. The origin of the term is as follows:--More than sixty years
ago all the principal avenues of the city of Delaware converged to a
toll gate at the entrance to the Elmwood Cemetery Road. The cemetery
having been laid out long prior to the construction of the plank
road beyond the toll gate, funerals were allowed to pass through the
latter toll free. One day as Dr Price, a well-known physician,
stopped to pay his toll he observed to the gatekeeper: “Considering
the benevolent character of the profession to which I have the
honour to belong, I think you ought to let me pass toll free.” “No,
no, doctor,” the man replied; “we can’t afford that. You send too
many deadheads through here as it is!” The story travelled, and the
term “Deadheads” became fixed.

=Dead Reckoning.= Calculating a ship’s whereabouts at sea from the
log-book without aid from the celestial bodies.

=Dead Sea.= Traditionally on the site of the city of Sodom. Its waters
are highly saline, and no fish are found in them.

=Dean Street.= After Bishop Compton, who, before he became Dean of the
Savoy Chapel, held the living of St Anne’s, Soho.

=Dean’s Yard.= Affords access to the residence of the Dean of
Westminster, which, with the cloisters, belonged to the abbots prior
to the Reformation.

=Death or Glory Men.= The 17th Lancers, from their badge, a Death’s head
superposed on the words “Or Glory.”

=De Beauvoir Town.= From the manorial residence of the De Beauvoirs.

=Deccan.= From the Sanskrit _Dakshina_, the south, being that portion of
Hindustan south of the Vindhya Mountains.

=December.= The tenth month of the Roman Calendar when the year was
reckoned from March.

=Decemvir.= One of the ten legislators of Rome appointed to draw up a
code of laws.

=Decoration Day.= 30th May, observed in the United States for decorating
the graves of the soldiers who fell in the struggle between the
North and South.

=Deemster.= See “Doomster.”

=Dehaley Street.= From the residence of the Dehaleys.

=Delaware.= After the Governor of Virginia, Thomas West, Lord Delaware,
who died on board his vessel while visiting the bay in 1610.

=Del Salviati.= The assumed name of the famous Italian painter Francesco
Rossi, in compliment to his patron, Cardinal Salviati, who was born
in the same year as himself.

=Demijohn.= A corruption of _Damaghan_, in Persia, a town anciently
famous for its glass-ware.

=Democracy.= From the Greek _demos_, people, and _kratein_, to rule.
Government by the people.

=Denbigh.= From _Dinbach_, the Celtic for “a little fort.”

=Denmark.= Properly _Danmark_, the mark or boundary of the land of the
Danes.

=Depot.= The American term for a railway station.

=Deptford.= The deep ford over the Ravensbourne.

=Derby.= Saxon for “deer village.” The Derby stakes at Epsom were
founded by Edward Smith Stanley, Earl of Derby, in 1780.

=Derrick.= The old name for a gibbet and now for a high crane. So called
after a seventeenth-century hangman at Tyburn.

=Derry Down.= The opening words of the Druidical chorus as they
proceeded to the sacred grove to gather mistletoe at the winter
solstice. _Derry_ is Celtic for “grove.”

=Dessborough Place.= From Dessbrowe House, in which resided the
brother-in-law of Oliver Cromwell.

=Detroit.= French for “strait.”

=Deuteronomy.= A Greek word signifying the second giving of the Law by
Moses.

=Devereaux Court.= See “Essex Street.”

=Devil’s Sonata.= One of Tartini’s most celebrated compositions. He
dreamt that the Evil One appeared to him playing a sonata on the
violin. At its conclusion his visitor asked: “Tartini, canst thou
play this?” Awaking with his mind still full of the grotesque music,
Tartini played it over, and then recorded it permanently on paper.

=Devil to Pay.= When money was lost by unsuccessful litigation it passed
into the hands of lawyers, who were thought to spend it where they
spent much of their time--viz. at the Devil Tavern in Fleet Street.
The money, therefore, went to the Devil.

=Devizes.= From the Latin _Devisæ_, denoting the point where the old
Roman road passed into the district of the Celts.

=Devon.= After a Celtic tribe, the _Damnonii_.

=Devonshire House.= The town house of the Duke of Devonshire.

=Devonshire Square.= From the mansion of William Cavendish, Earl of
Devonshire, who died here in 1628.

=Diamond King.= The late Mr Alfred Beit, the South African financier,
whose wealth rivalled that of the Rothschilds.

=Dickey.= A shirt front, which often has to do duty for a clean shirt.
So called from the German _decken_, to hide.

=Diddler.= A schemer, an artful dodger. After Jeremy Diddler, the chief
character in the old farce, “Raising the Wind.”

=Die Hards.= The 57th Foot. When the regiment was surrounded at Albuera,
their Colonel cried: “Die hard, my lads; die hard!” And fighting,
they died.

=Digger Indians.= Tribes of the lowest class who live principally upon
roots. They have never been known to hunt.

=Diggings.= A Bohemian term for “lodgings.” Not from the Californian
gold diggings, as generally supposed, but from the Galena lead
miners of Wisconsin, who called both their mines and their
underground winter habitations “diggings.”

=Dime.= A ten-cent piece, from the French _dixme_, or _dîme_,
tenth--_i.e._ of a dollar.

=Dimity.= First brought from Damietta, Egypt.

=Dine with Duke Humphrey.= An old saying of those who were fated to go
dinnerless. When the “Good Duke Humphrey,” son of Henry IV., was
buried at St Albans, a monument to his memory was to be erected in
St Paul’s Cathedral. At that time, as for long afterwards, the nave
of our national fane was a fashionable promenade. When the
promenaders left for dinner, others who had no dinners to go to
explained that they would stay behind in order to look for the Good
Duke’s monument.

=Dining-room Servant.= An Americanism for waiter or male house servant.

=Diorama.= See “Panorama.”

=Dirty Dick’s.= The noted tavern in Bishopgate, said to have been
associated with Nathaniel Bentley, the miser, who never washed
himself. As a matter of fact, Dirty Dick was an ironmonger in
Leadenhall Street. After his death his effects were bought and
exhibited at the Bishopgate tavern, together with his portrait as a
sign.

=Dirty Shirts.= The 101st Foot, who were hotly engaged at the battle of
Delhi in their shirt sleeves.

=Dissenters.= Synonymous with the Nonconformists. Those who dissented
from the doctrines of the Church of England and those likewise who,
at a later period, separated from the Presbyterian Church of
Scotland.

=Distaffs’ Day.= The old name for 7th January, when, Christmas being
over with Twelfth Night, women returned to their distaffs or
spindles.

=Divan.= A Turkish word signifying a Council of State, from the fact
that the Turkish Council Chamber has low couches ranged round its
walls, plentifully supplied with cushions. The name has been
imported into Western Europe specifically to imply a low-cushioned
sofa or couch.

=Dixie’s Land.= The Negroes’ paradise in slavery days. Dixie had a tract
of land on Manhattan Island. He treated his slaves well, but as they
increased sold many of them off to masters further afield. They
always looked back to Dixie’s Land as an ideal locality, associated
with heaven, and when one of them died his kith and kin said he had
gone to Dixie’s Land.

=Dizzy.= The nickname of Benjamin Disraeli, afterwards Earl of
Beaconsfield, the great political opponent of Mr Gladstone.

=Doctor.= There are three kinds of Doctors--of Law, Physic, and
Divinity. The first and the last are essentially University degrees,
with which the vulgar orders of the people have little or no
acquaintance. They know only of one “Doctor,” the medical
practitioner, and since he wears a frock coat and a silk hat he is
entitled to all the respect that they can pay him.

=Doctors’ Commons.= Anciently a college for Professors of Canon and
Civil Law, who dined in common on certain days in each term, similar
to students at the Inns of Court before they are called to the Bar.

=Dog and Duck.= A tavern sign indicative of the old sport of duck
hunting by spaniels in a pond.

=Dog-cart.= Originally one in which sportsmen drove their pointers and
setters to the field.

=Dog his Footsteps.= To follow close to his heels like a dog.

=Dog in the Manger.= From the old story told of the dog who did not
require the hay for himself, yet refused to allow the ox to come
near it.

=Dog Rose.= From the old idea that the root of this rose-tree was an
antidote for the bite of a mad dog.

=Dog Watch.= A corruption of “Dodge Watch,” being a watch of two hours
only instead of four, by which _dodging_ seamen gradually shift
their watch on successive days.

=Dolgelley.= Celtic for “dale of hazels.”

=Dollar.= From the German Thaler, originally Joachims-Thaler, the silver
out of which this coin was struck having been found in the Thal or
Valley of St Joachim in Bohemia.

=Dollars and Dimes.= An Americanism for money generally. See “Dime.”

=Dolly Shop.= The old name for a rag shop which had a black doll over
the door for a sign. At one time old clothes were shipped to the
Negroes in the southern states of America.

=Dolly Varden.= The name of a flowered skirt, answering to the
description of that worn by Dolly Varden in Dickens’s “Barnaby
Rudge.” This dress material became very popular after the novel was
published. It also gave rise to a song, of which the burden was:
“Dressed in a Dolly Varden.”

=Dolphin.= A gold coin introduced by Charles V. of France, also Dauphin
of Vienne.

=Dominica.= Expresses the Spanish for Sunday, the day on which Columbus
discovered this island.

=Dominicans.= Friars of the Order of St Dominic; also called Black
Friars, from their habits.

=Dominoes.= A game invented by two French monks, who amused themselves
with square, flat stones marked with spots. The winner declared his
victory by reciting the first line of the Vesper service: “Dixit
Dominus Domino Meo.” When, later, the game became the recreation of
the whole convent, the Vesper line was abbreviated into “Domino,”
and the stones themselves received the name of “Dominoes.”

=Don.= A corruption of the Celtic _tain_, river.

=Donatists.= A sect of the fourth century, adherents of Donatus, Bishop
of Numidia.

=Doncaster St Leger.= The stakes at Doncaster races founded by Colonel
Anthony St Leger in 1776.

=Donegal.= Gaelic for the “fortress of the west”--viz. Donegal Castle,
held by the O’Donnels of Tyrconnel.

=Donet.= The old name for a Grammar, after Donatus, the grammarian and
preceptor of St Jerome.

=Donkey.= An ass, from its _dun_ colour.

=Don’t care a Dam.= When this expression first obtained currency a dam
was the smallest Hindoo coin, not worth an English farthing.

=Don’t care a Jot.= See “Iota.”

=Doomster.= The official in the Scottish High Court who pronounced the
doom to the prisoner, and also acted as executioner. In Jersey and
the Isle of Man a judge is styled a “Deemster.”

=Dope Habit.= An Americanism for the morphia habit. “Dope” is the
Chinese word for opium. This in the United States is now applied to
all kinds of strong drugs or bromides prepared from opium.

=Dorcas Society.= From the passage in Acts ix. 39: “And all the widows
stood by him weeping, and showing the coats and garments which
Dorcas made while she was with them.”

=Dorchester.= The Roman camp in the district of the _Dwr-trigs_ or water
dwellers. See “Dorset.”

=Dorset.= The Anglo-Saxon _Dwrset_, or water settlement, so called from
the British tribe the _Dwr-trigs_, “water dwellers,” who peopled it.

=Dorset Square.= After Viscount Portman, the ground landlord, who,
before he was raised to the peerage, was for many years Member for
Dorsetshire.

=Dorset Street.= From the mansion and grounds of the Earl of Dorset of
the Restoration period. Here stood also the Dorset Gardens Theatre.

=Doss.= Slang for a sleep, a shakedown. From the old word _dossel_, a
bundle of hay or straw, whence was derived _Doss_, a straw bed.

=Doss-house.= A common lodging-house. See “Doss.”

=Douay Bible.= The Old Testament translation of the Latin Vulgate
printed at the English College at Douay, France, in 1609.

=Doublet.= So called because it was double lined or wadded, originally
for purposes of defence.

=Douglas.= From its situation at the juncture of the two streams, the
_Dhoo_, black, and _Glass_, grey.

=Douro.= From the Celtic _Dwr_, water.

=Dover House.= The residence of the Hon. George Agar Ellis, afterwards
Lord Dover.

=Dover Street.= After Henry Jermyn, Lord Dover, who died at his
residence here in 1782.

=Dowager.= The widow of a person of high rank, because she enjoyed a
substantial dower or dowry for her maintenance during life.

=Dowgate.= From the Celtic _Dwr_, water. Hence a water gate on the north
bank of the Thames.

=Downing Street.= From the mansion of Sir George Downing, M.P., of the
Restoration period.

=Down with the Dust.= A gold miner’s expression in the Far West, where
money is scarce and necessary commodities are in general bartered
for with gold dust.

=Doyley.= From the Brothers Doyley, linen drapers in the Strand, who
introduced this species of table napery.

=Do your Level Best.= This expression means that, while striving to the
utmost you must also act strictly straightforward.

=Drachenfels.= German for “dragon rocks.” Here Siegfried, the hero of
the Niebelungenlied, slew the dragon.

=Draft on Aldgate Pump.= A punning phrase for a worthless bill or
cheque.

=Draggletail.= A slovenly woman who allows her skirts to draggle or
trail in the mire of the street.

=Dragoman.= From the Turkish _drukeman_, an interpreter. A dragoman is
in the East what a “Cicerone” is in Italy and elsewhere in Western
Europe.

=Dragoons.= From the ancient musket called a dragon, or “spitfire.” The
muzzle was embellished with a representation of a dragon.

=Draper.= One who dealt in cloth for draping only, as distinct from a
mercer, milliner, or mantle-maker.

=Drapers’ Gardens.= The property of the Drapers’ Company, whose hall is
situated here.

=Drat it.= A corruption of “Odd rot it,” from the old oath, “God rot
them.”

=Drawer.= The old name for an inn or tavern keeper’s assistant, who drew
the beer from the casks.

=Drawing-room.= Originally “Withdrawing-room” to which the ladies
withdrew after dinner while the gentlemen sat over their wine.

=Draw it mild.= Originally a tavern phrase, when anyone preferred
ordinary ale to hot spiced liquor.

=Draw the Long Bow.= In allusion to the exaggerated skill of the English
archers prior to the introduction of gunpowder.

=Dress Circle.= That portion of a theatre which, before the introduction
of stalls, was set apart for the superior sections of the audience.

=Dressed up to the Knocker.= To the extreme height of his resources.
Before the establishment of the modern police system door knockers
were placed as high as possible to prevent them from being wrenched
off by sportive wags after nightfall.

=Dresser.= The kitchen sideboard, on which the meat was dressed before
serving it up in the dining-chamber. The collection of cups, plates,
and dishes which distinguishes a dresser originally had a place on a
wide shelf or board over this meat dresser; hence cup-board.

=Drinks like a Fish.= Ready to swallow any quantity of liquor that may
be offered. A great many fish have their mouths wide open whilst
swimming.

=Drive a Bargain.= An expression meaning to knock down the original
price asked, in punning allusion to “driving” a nail.

=Drop o’ the Crater.= See “Mountain Dew.”

=Druid.= In the Celtic _Derwydd_, derived from _dewr_, oak, and _gwydd_,
knowledge. A priest who worshipped and offered sacrifices under an
oak.

=Drum.= The name for a fashionable evening party of bygone days, from
the noise made by the card players.

=Drummers.= An Americanism for commercial travellers, who are engaged in
beating up trade.

=Drunkard’s Cloak.= A large wooden crinoline that hung from a drunkard’s
neck to the ground, causing every bone in his body to ache owing to
the weight resting on his shoulders. The instrument resembled an
inverted flower pot, having a hole in the top for his head to be
thrust through. Under this drastic treatment he soon became sober.

=Drunk as a Fiddler.= The fiddler was generally incapable of discoursing
further music half way through the night’s jollification, because
the dancers freely plied him with drink.

=Drunk as a Lord.= When George the Third was King, and long afterwards,
the fine old English gentleman acted up to his character by using
strong language and imbibing strong potations. To be “drunk as a
lord” was the surest mark of gentility, and a “three bottle man” a
pattern of sobriety. After dining it was considered no disgrace to
roll helplessly under the table.

=Drury Lane.= From Drury House, the residence of Sir William Drury,
_temp._ William III.

=Dublin.= From _Dubh-linn_, “black pool.”

=Dub Up.= An expression derived from the very general custom of dubbing
or touching a man on the shoulder when arresting him for debt.

=Ducat.= Duke’s money, anciently struck in the Duchy of Apulia, Sicily.

=Duchess Street.= After Lady Cavendish, who became the wife of the
second Duke of Portland.

=Ducking Stool.= An instrument for the punishment of scolding wives.
This public ducking in a pond effectually served to cool their
temper for the time being.

=Duck’s Foot Lane.= Properly “Duke’s Foot Lane,” the footway leading
from the town house of the Earls of Suffolk down to the Thames.

=Dude.= An American name for a fop, derived from a very old English
word, “dudes,” whence we have the slang term “Duds,” for clothes.

=Dudley.= From the castle built by Dodo, a Saxon prince, and _ley_,
“meadow.”

=Duds.= See “Dude.”

=Dug-out.= A Far West Americanism for a boat or canoe hewn out of a
large tree log.

=Dukeries.= That portion of Nottinghamshire distinguished for the number
of ducal residences, of which Welbeck Abbey is perhaps the most
admired.

=Duke Street.= In Aldgate, after the Dukes of Norfolk. Near Smithfield,
the ancient property of the Dukes of Brittany. In Grosvenor Square,
after the Duke of Cumberland. Off Langham Place, after the Duke of
Portland. Near Manchester Square, after the Duke of Manchester. In
the Strand, after George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham.

=Dulwich.= The corruption of _Dalewich_, the village in the dale.

=Duma.= Russian for Parliament or popular representation.

=Dumb Ox.= One of the sobriquets of St Thomas Aquinas, from the silence
with which he pursued his studies. His master, Albertus Magnus,
however, predicted that “this dumb ox will one day fill the world
with his bellowing.”

=Dumping.= A word which has come into prominence relative to Mr
Chamberlain’s Fiscal Policy. In various forms the verb _dump_ may be
met with in Teutonic and Scandinavian tongues, meaning to “pitch
down,” “throw down in a lump,” etc. etc. A “Dump Cart” in America is
one that tilts up in front, and so “dumps” its load behind.

=Dun.= A persistent creditor. After Joe Dun, a noted bailiff, who never
failed to bring a debtor to book. People used to say: “Why don’t you
Dun him for the debt?” meaning they would send Joe Dun to make him
pay or arrest him.

=Dunce.= From John Duns Scotus, who, it is said, gave no proof of his
remarkable attainments in his early scholastic days.

=Dundee.= A corruption of _Duntay_, the hill fort on the Tay.

=Dunedin.= See “Edinburgh.”

=Dungeness.= A corruption of _Danger Ness_, the Headland of Danger.

=Dunkirk.= Expresses the “Church in the Dunes,” or sand-hills, built by
St Eloi in the seventh century.

=Durham.= A corruption of _Dunholm_, from its situation on a hill
surrounded by the river.

=Dusseldorf.= The village on the Dussel.

=Dutchman.= A contemptuous epithet applied to our phlegmatic enemies
during the wars with Holland.

=Dyers’ Buildings.= The site of an ancient almshouse of the Dyers’
Company.

E

=Eagle.= An inn sign, the cognisance of Queen Mary.

=Earl Street.= After Charles Marsham, Earl of Romney.

=Earl’s Court.= From the Earl of Warwick, whose estate it was until, by
the marriage of the Dowager Countess of Warwick with Lord Holland,
it passed into her husband’s family.

=East Anglia.= A name still popular as defining the eastern counties.
This was one of the seven divisions or petty kingdoms of England
under the Angles or Saxons.

=Eastcheap.= The eastern _chepe_, or market, of the city of London.

=Easter.= From the Teutonic _Ostara_, goddess of light or spring;
rendered by the Anglo-Saxons _Eastre_. This great spring festival
lasted eight days.

=Easter Island.= The name given to it by Jacob Roggevin when he visited
the island on Easter Sunday, 1722.

=East Sheen.= A name reminiscent of the original designation of
“Richmond.”

=Eat Dirt.= An Americanism for a confession of penitence or absolute
defeat in an argument.

=Eat Humble Pie.= In the days of sumptuous banquets of venison the lords
of the feast reserved to themselves the flesh of the deer. The
huntsmen and retainers had to be content with the heart, liver, and
entrails, collectively called the “umbles,” which were made into
monster pies.

=Eat my own Words.= To take them back again, to retract a statement.

=Eaton Square.= From Eaton Hall, near Chester, the seat of the Duke of
Westminster, the ground landlord.

=Eau de Cologne.= A scent prepared at Cologne. The city itself is not
sweet to the nostrils; it has been said that forty different smells
may be distinguished there.

=Eavesdropper.= A corruption of _Eavesdripper_, one who, listening under
the eaves of a house, caught the drips from the roof when it chanced
to be raining.

=Ebro.= After the _Iberi_, who spread themselves over the country from
the banks of this river. See “Iberia.”

=Ebury Square.= From the ancient manor of Eabury Farm, inherited by Mary
Davies, and which, by her marriage, passed into the possession of
the Grosvenor family.

=Eccleston Square.= From Eccleston, Cheshire, the country seat of the
Grosvenors.

=Ecuador.= Expresses the Spanish for Equator.

=Edgar Atheling.= Signifies “Edgar of noble descent.”

=Edinburgh.= The fortress or burgh built by Edwin, King of Northumbria.
The Scots called it _Dunedin_.

=Edinburgh of America.= Albany, in the state of New York, so called on
account of its magnificent public buildings and its commanding
situation.

=Edmonton.= In Anglo-Saxon days _Edmund’s Town_.

=Edmund Ironside.= So called from the suit of chain mail that he wore.
Notwithstanding this protection he was treacherously murdered after
a reign of nine months only.

=Edward the Confessor.= The title bestowed upon the King of the
Anglo-Saxons at his canonisation, on account of his remarkable
asceticism, since, although he made the daughter of Earl Godwin his
queen, he denied himself what are styled conjugal rights.

=Edward the Martyr.= Murdered at the instance of his stepmother at Corfe
Castle after having reigned scarcely three years.

=Eel Pie Island.= From the invariable dinner dish served up to river
excursionists.

=Effra Road.= At Camberwell, from the little river of the same name, now
converted into a sewer.

=Egalité.= The name assumed by Philippe, Duc d’Orleans, the father of
Louis Philippe, King of France, when, siding with the Republican
Party in 1789, he accepted their motto: “Liberty, Fraternity, and
Equality.” Four years later he met his death by the guillotine.

=Ehrenbreitstein.= Expresses the German for “Honour’s Broad Stone.” The
castle stands on a precipitous rock, which well merits the
description of the “Gibraltar of the Rhine.”

=Eisteddfod.= Celtic for a gathering of Welsh bards, from _eistodd_, to
sit. As of old, the annual “Eisteddfod” is held for the
encouragement of national music.

=Eldorado.= California. _Eldorado_ expresses the Spanish for “golden
region.”

=Electic Philosophers.= Those who, agreeably to the Greek _ek-lego_, to
pick out, selected what was best in the different schools or
systems, and so built up one of their own.

=Elephant and Castle.= The famous landmark in South London derived its
sign from the arms of the Cutlers’ Company. A tavern in St Pancras
parish took its sign from the skeleton of an elephant, beside which
was a flint-headed spear, dug up in the neighbourhood. The
connection between these and the battle fought by the followers of
Queen Boadicea against the Roman invaders was unmistakable.

=Elephant stepped on his Purse.= An Americanism implying that a creditor
or some unlucky speculation has squeezed all the money out of a man.

=Elgin Marbles.= Brought from Greece by the seventh Earl of Elgin.
Acquired by the nation for the British Museum in 1816.

=Elia.= The pseudonym of Charles Lamb for his “Essays” contributed to
_The London Magazine_. This was the name of a gay, light-hearted
foreigner, who fluttered about the South Sea House at the time when
Lamb was a clerk there. At the moment of penning his signature to
the first essay he bethought himself of that person, and substituted
the name of _Elia_ for his own.

=Eltham.= Anciently _Ealdham_, “the old home.” Here Anthony Bec, the
“Battling Bishop of Durham,” built himself a palace midway in the
thirteenth century. After his death it fell to the Crown, and became
a Royal residence, until the time of James I. The original
Banqueting-Hall, used in modern days as a barn, may yet be seen.

=Ely Place.= Marks the site of the residence of the Bishops of Ely.

=Ember Days.= This term has no connection with embers or sackcloth and
ashes as a penitential observance. The Saxons called them _Ymbrine
dagas_, or “running days,” because they came round at regular
seasons of the year.

=Emerald Isle.= Ireland, from its fresh verdure, due to its shores being
washed by the warm waters of the “Gulf Stream.”

=Empire Day.= May 24th, formerly the Queen’s Birthday. In the last days
of Victoria the British Empire was consolidated through the
assistance lent by the Colonies to the Mother Country in the South
African War. When, therefore, King Edward VII. came to the throne,
the former Queen’s Birthday was invested with a greater significance
than of old.

=Empire State.= New York, which, owing to position and commercial
enterprise, has no rival among the other states of the Union.

=Empire State of the South.= Georgia, in consequence of its rapid
industrial development.

=Ena Road.= In honour of Princess Ena, the consort of the young King of
Spain.

=Encore.= From the Latin _hauc horam_, till this hour, still, again.

=Encyclopædia.= A book containing general or all-round instruction or
information, from the Greek _enkylios_, circular or general, and
_paideia_, instruction. An epitome of the whole circle of learning.

=Endell Street.= After the name of the builder. This is one of the few
streets in London that has preserved its old characteristics,
steadfastly refusing to march with the times.

=England.= In the time of Alfred the Great our country was styled
_Engaland_, or the land of the Engles or Angles, who came over from
Jutland.

=Englishman’s House is his Castle.= By the law of the land a bailiff
must effect a peaceable entrance in order to distrain upon a
debtor’s goods; therefore the latter is, as it were, sufficiently
secure in his own fortress if he declines to give the enemy
admittance.

=Ennis.= Expresses in Ireland, like _Innis_, the Celtic for an island.
Both these words enter largely into Irish place-names.

=Enniskillen.= The kirk town on an island, the Celtic _kil_, originally
implying a hermit’s cell, and later a chapel.

=Ennismore Place.= After Viscount Ennismore, Earl of Listowel, the
ground landlord.

=Enough is as good as a Feast.= Because at no time can a person eat more
than enough.

=Enrol.= See “Roll Call.”

=Entente Cordiale.= Expresses the French for cordial good will.

=Entire.= A word still to be met with on old tavern signs. It meant
different qualities of ale or beer drawn from one cask.

=Entrées.= French for entries or commencements. Those made dishes are
served after the soups, as an introduction to the more substantial
portions of the repast, the joints.

=Epicure.= After Epicurus, a Greek philosopher, who taught that pleasure
and good living constituted the happiness of mankind. His followers
were styled Epicureans.

=Epiphany.= From the Greek _Epiphaneia_, an appearance, a showing;
relative to the adoration of the Magi, who came from the East twelve
days after the birth of the Saviour.

=Epsom Salts.= From the mineral springs at Epsom.

=Equality State.= Wyoming, where, first among the communities of the
world, women were accorded the right to vote.

=Erie.= Indian for “Wild Cat,” the fierce tribe exterminated by the
Iroquois.

=Escurial.= Properly _Escorial_, Spanish for “among the rocks.” King
Philip II. built this superb convent and palace after the battle of
St Quentin, in the course of which he had been obliged to bombard a
monastery of the Order of St Jerome. He dedicated it to St Lawrence.
He caused the structure to be in the form of a gridiron, the symbol
of the Saint’s martyrdom.

=Esk.= A river name derived from the Celtic _uisg_, water.

=Esquimaux.= An Alonquin Indian term signifying “eaters of raw flesh.”

=Essex.= The kingdom of the East Saxons under the Heptarchy.

=Essex Street.= From the mansion of Robert Devereaux, Earl of Essex, the
Parliamentary General in Cromwell’s time.

=Ethelred the Unready.= From his incapacity and unwillingness to accept
_rede_, or counsel.

=Ethiopia.= From the Greek _aithein_, to burn, and _ops_, the face.
Hence “the country of the blacks.”

=Etiquette.= A French word for “label.” Formerly a ticket or card of
instructions was handed to visitors on ceremonial occasions.
Nowadays such rules as pertain to deportment or decorum are supposed
to enter into the education of all well-bred persons.

=Etna.= From the Phœnician _attuna_, a furnace.

=Eton.= The Anglo-Saxon _Eyton_, “island town.”

=Ettrick Shepherd.= The literary sobriquet of James Hogg, the poet, of
Ettrick, Selkirkshire.

=Europe.= From the Greek _euros_, broad, and _ops_, the face; literally
“the broad face of the earth.”

=Euston Road.= From the seat of the Earl of Euston at Thetford, Norfolk,
the ground landlord.

=Evacuation Day.= November 25th, observed in the United States as
commemorating the evacuation of New York city by the British after
the War of Independence, 1783.

=Evangelist.= From the Greek _euanggelion_, “good news.” One of the four
writers of the Gospels of the New Testament.

=Evelyn Street.= From the residence of John Evelyn, the diarist. One of
his descendants, the Rev. W. J. Evelyn, of Wolton, built the church
of St Luke, Deptford, in 1872.

=Everglade State.= Florida, from its tracts of land, covered with water
and grass, called Everglades.

=Ex.= Another form of the Celtic _uisg_, water.

=Exchequer.= The table of this Court was formerly covered with checkered
cloth, so called from the Old French _eschequier_, chess board.

=Executive City.= Washington, which contains the White House, the
official residence of the President of the Republic, the House of
Representatives, and the Senate Chamber.

=Exellers.= The 40th Foot, from the Roman numerals XL.

=Exeter.= Called by the Saxons _Exancester_, or the Roman camp town on
the Exe.

=Exeter College.= Founded at Oxford by Walter Stapleton, Bishop of
Exeter and Lord Treasurer of England, in 1316.

=Exeter Street.= From the mansion and grounds of the Earl of Exeter, the
eldest son of the great Lord Burleigh.

=Exhibition Road.= This wide thoroughfare formed the eastern boundary of
the plot of ground purchased by the Commissioners for the Great
Exhibition of 1862.

=Exodus.= The Scriptural narrative of the departure of the Israelites
from the Land of Bondage.

=Eye.= Expresses the Anglo-Saxon for island. The river Waveney surrounds
the town.

=Eye-opener.= An American drink of mixed spirits as a remedy for
drowsiness.

F

=Face the Music.= To bear the jeers and taunts of those who laugh at us.

=Factory King.= Richard Oastler of Bradford, the promoter of the “Ten
Hours’ Bill.”

=Fag.= Slang for a cigarette, derived from the fag end--_i.e._ fatigued
or spent end--of a cigar. Also a small boy who acts as a drudge in
the service of another at a public school, so called from the
Anglo-Saxon _fæge_, weak, timid.

=Fair Cop.= Thieves’ slang for a smart capture by the police. Whereas
another would say “The game’s up!” a thief admits that he has been
fairly caught by the expression “It’s a fair cop.” See “Cop.”

=Fair Maid of Kent.= Joan, the beautiful and only daughter of the Earl
of Kent, who became the wife of Edward the Black Prince.

=Fair Street.= A name left us as a reminder of a once celebrated fair on
the Southwark bank of the Thames.

=Faith Healers.= A sect which upholds the doctrine of healing the sick
by prayer and anointing with oil in the name of the Lord, as set
forth in James v. 13-15.

=Faix.= An Irishman’s exclamation for “Faith” or “In Faith.”

=Fake.= To make-believe or cheat. An actor is said to “fake up” an
article of costume out of very sorry materials, which at a distance
looks like the real thing. A photographer can “fake” a spirit photo
by means of two distinct plates. Food also is largely “faked.” The
word is derived from “Fakir.”

=Fakir.= From the Arabic _fakhar_, poor.

=Falcon Square.= From an ancient hostelry, “The Castle and Falcon,” hard
by in Aldersgate Street.

=Falernian.= A celebrated wine, extolled by Horace, Virgil, and other
Latin authors, prepared from grapes grown in the district of
Falernicum.

=Fall.= An Americanism for autumn, in allusion to the fall of the
leaves.

=Fallopian Tubes.= Said to have been discovered by Gabriel Fallopius,
the eminent Italian anatomist of the sixteenth century. They were,
however, known to the ancients.

=Falls City.= Louisville, in the state of Kentucky, because it overlooks
the falls of the Ohio River.

=Falmouth.= A seaport at the mouth of the Fale.

=Family Circle.= This expression had a literal meaning in the time of
the Normans, when the fire occupied the centre of the floor, and the
smoke found its vent through a hole in the roof. In Germany and
Russia the domestic apartments are economically warmed by an
enclosed stove in the centre. Amongst ourselves the phrase “sit
_round_ the fire” only conveys a half-truth.

=Fancy Drink.= An Americanism for a concoction of various spirits, as
distinguished from a Straight Drink of one kind.

=Fandago.= Spanish for a “lively dance.”

=Farmer George.= George III., on account of his dress, manners, and
bucolic sporting inclinations.

=Farm Street.= From an old farm, on the land of Lord Berkeley of
Stratton in the time of Charles I.

=Faro.= So called from a representation of Pharaoh on one of the cards
originally.

=Farringdon Road.= After William Farringdon, citizen and goldsmith, who,
for the sum of twenty marks, in 1279 purchased the Aldermanry of the
ward named after him.

=Farthing.= From the Anglo-Saxon _feorthling_, a little fourth. In olden
times penny pieces were nicked across like a Good Friday bun; so
they could be broken into halves and fourths as occasion required.

=Farthingale.= A corruption of Verdingale, from the French _vertugarde_,
a guard for modesty. Queen Elizabeth is said to have introduced this
hooped petticoat in order to disguise her figure.

=Farthing Poet.= The sobriquet of Richard Horne, who published his chief
poem, “Orion,” at one farthing, so that it should not want for
buyers.

=Fastern’s E’en.= The Scottish description of Shrove Tuesday, being the
eve of the Lenten Fast.

=Father of Believers.= Mohammed, because he established and promulgated
the faith of the Moslem, or “true believers.”

=Father of the Music Halls.= The late William Morton, manager of the
Palace Theatre of Varieties, and founder of the earliest London
Music Hall, “The Canterbury,” in the Westminster Bridge Road, which
dates from the year 1848.

=Fathers of the Church.= The great doctors or theological writers of the
period from the first to the seventh centuries of Christianity. See
“Apostolic Fathers.”

=Faugh-a-Ballagh Boys.= The 87th Foot, from their battle cry.

=Feast of Lanterns.= A Chinese festival which occurs on the fifteenth
day of the first moon of the year. Walking by the side of a
beautiful lake one night the daughter of a mandarin fell in, and was
drowned. When her father heard of the accident he, attended by all
his household, carrying lanterns, rushed to the spot. On the
anniversary he caused fires to be lighted beside the lake, and
invited all the people of the country round about to offer up
prayers for the safety of her soul. In course of time the solemn
character of the gathering was forgotten, and the day has ever since
been observed as a national holiday.

=Feast of Tabernacles.= Commemorative of the forty years’ wandering of
the Israelites in search of the Promised Land, during which long
period they dwelt in temporary huts or tabernacles, formed of tree
branches covered with leaves. Even at the present day the Jews at
least take their meals in temporary structures covered with leaves
throughout the nine days of the festival.

=Feather in my Cap.= An expression derived from a custom of the North
American Indians, who stuck a fresh feather in their head-dress for
every one of their enemies slain in battle.

=Feathers.= An inn sign originally, when the painted device appeared in
place of the mere name, signifying the “Plume of Feathers,” or
“Prince of Wales’s Feathers,” the crest of Edward the Black Prince.

=February.= From the Latin _februare_, to purify, this being the month
appointed by the Romans for the festival of the _Februalia_ of
purification and expiation.

=Federal States.= During the American Civil War the Treaty States of the
North, which resisted the Separatist or Confederate States in the
South.

=Feel Peckish.= See “Keep your Pecker up.”

=Fellah.= Arabic for agriculturist or peasant. In the plural, “El
Fellahin,” the term is specifically applied to the labouring
population of Egypt.

=Fenchurch Street.= From an ancient church in the fens or marshy ground
through which ran the Lang Bourne from Beach Lane to the Wall brook
behind the Stocks Market, where the Mansion House now stands.

=Fenians.= Said to express the Gaelic for “hunters,” but the greater
likelihood is that this secret society took the name of the _Finna
Eirinii_, ancient organisation of Irish militia, so called after
Fion MacCumhal, the hero of legendary history.

=Fetter Lane.= A corruption of “Fewters Lane,” from the Norman-French
_faitour_, an evil-doer, on account of the idle vagabonds who
infested it in days when this lane led to some pleasure gardens.

=Feuilleton.= Expresses the French for a small leaf. Like the serial
stories nowadays in many English newspapers, articles of a
non-political character were introduced in the French _Journal des
Debatés_ as long ago as the commencement of the nineteenth century,
these being separated from the news by a line towards the bottom of
each page.

=Fez.= From Fez in Morocco, whence this red cap of the Turks was
introduced into the Ottoman Empire.

=F. F. V.= Initials well understood in America, implying the “First
Families of Virginia.”

=Fiddler’s Money.= A threepenny piece. Originally it was a small coin
paid by each of the dancers to the fiddler at a merry-making.

=Fifth Monarchy Men.= Religious fanatics of the time of Charles I. who
proclaimed the second coming of Christ to establish the fifth
monarchy, or millennium. The four previous great monarchies of the
world were the Assyrian, Persian, Macedonian, and Roman.

=Fifty Club.= A social club founded in 1899 by G. C. Paterson,
incidentally for the entertainment of its members on the attainment
of their fiftieth birthday.

=Fighting Fifth.= The 5th Foot, on account of their prowess during the
Peninsular War.

=Fighting Fitzgerald.= George Robert Fitzgerald, a noted gamester and
duellist of the eighteenth century, with whom no one ever picked a
quarrel without falling by his hand. A sure shot and an expert
swordsman, he was a man to be feared by all.

=Fight Shy.= Originally a prize-fighting expression, when one of the
combatants betrayed a lack of courage.

=Filberts.= After St Philibert, on whose feast day, 22nd August, the
nutting season commenced.

=Filibuster.= A Spanish and French corruption of the German _freibeter_,
derived from the Dutch _vlie-boot_, or fly-boat, a small clipper
vessel. This was introduced into England during the wars with the
Low Countries. The word Freebooter claims the same origin.

=Finality John.= The sobriquet of John Russell, afterwards Earl Russell,
from his conviction that the passing of the Reform Bill of 1832
would be a _finality_ to the universal Suffrage Question.

=Finch Lane.= Properly Finke Lane, after Sir Richard Finke, who resided
in it, and rebuilt the church of St Bennet on the site of the
present Royal Exchange. A tradesman in Cheapside rejoices in the
possession of the full name of this vanished church, St
Bennet-Finke.

=Fingal’s Cave.= That of Fion MacCumhal, abbreviated into Fingal, a
celebrated legendary hero.

=Finland.= Properly _Fenland_, the land of lakes and marshes. The native
name of the country is _Suomesimaa_, the watered land of the
_Suomes_.

=Finsbury.= From the Anglo-Saxon _Fensbury_, the town among the fens or
marshes.

=Finsbury Pavement.= The first London thoroughfare where the paving of
the side walk with flagstones was introduced.

=Fire dogs.= These adjuncts to an old-fashioned fireplace received their
name from the small dog that was anciently imprisoned in a wheel at
one end of the spit. Three hours of this canine exercise were
required to prepare the roast beef of Old England for the table. If
the dog refused to exert himself a live coal was put inside the
wheel to accelerate his movements.

=Fire Water.= The North American Indian designation of rum, and ardent
spirits generally.

=Fire Worshippers.= The Parsees, who worship the sun as the symbol of
the Deity.

=First Gentleman of Europe.= The complimentary sobriquet of George IV.,
owing to his rank, personal attractions, and the ability, as became
a gentleman of the period, of telling good stories well.

=Firth of Forth.= _Firth_ expresses the Gaelic for an estuary or arm of
the sea. Forth is the name of the river.

=Fish Street Hill.= From the fishmongers who first congregated here in
the reign of Edward I. The Hall of the Fishmongers’ Company stands
at the foot of London Bridge.

=Fit-up.= In theatrical parlance the entire appurtenances of a stage,
excepting the floor only, carried from town to town, and fitted up
in Town Halls, Assembly-rooms, and Corn Exchanges.

=Fitzroy Square.= From one of the family names of the ground landlord.

=Fives.= An old game at ball, usually played by five on each side. The
“court” consists of a roomy space with a high wall at one end.

=Fixings.= An Americanism for dress ornaments or accessories; house,
hotel, or theatre embellishments and decorations generally.

=Flamingo.= From the bright red colour of this tropical bird.

=Flanders.= From the native name _Vländergau_, the country of the
Vländer, who from the earliest period of their history were ruled by
counts.

=Flannelled Fools.= An opprobrious epithet bestowed upon the English
people on account of their all-pervading sport of cricket by Rudyard
Kipling. It gave rise to much acrimony at the time, and tended to
lessen his popularity as a writer.

=Flash Jewellery.= Spurious, not what it pretends to be. Like a flash of
fire, its brilliance is only fleeting.

=Flask Walk.= In this pleasant lane stands the old hostelry “The Flash.”

=Fleet Road.= All that is left us to remind one of the clear stream
which coursed through the meadows down to Holborn (the Old Bourne)
and Clerkenwell, emptying itself into the Thames in what is now
Bridge Street, Blackfriars.

=Fleet Street.= The River Fleet, which in old days was navigable from
the Thames as far as what is now Ludgate Circus. The old English
word _Fleot_ expressed a tidal stream deep enough for vessels to
float in.

=Fleetwood Road.= Here stood Fleetwood House, the residence of Charles
Fleetwood, the Parliamentary General.

=Fleshly School of Poetry.= That of the sensuous order, popularised by
Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Swinburne, and Morris.

=Flint.= From the flint or quartz which abounds in this country.

=Floralia.= A Roman festival in honour of Flora, commencing 28th April
and terminating 2nd May. It was said to have been instituted at the
command of an oracle with a view of obtaining from the goddess the
protection of blossoms.

=Florence.= Expresses “The City of Flowers.”

=Florida.= Named by Ponce de Leon from the twofold circumstance of his
landing upon it on _Pascua Florida_, or Easter Sunday, and the
luxuriance of its vegetation.

=Florin.= A silver coin of the value of two shillings, originally struck
at Florence. It still bears on its reverse side a representation of
a lily, symbolical of “The City of Flowers.”

=Flower Sermon.= An annual observance at the Church of St Katherine
Cree, Leadenhall Street, inaugurated by the rector, the Rev. Dr
Whittemore, in 1853. The flowers of the earth form the text; the
pulpit is richly adorned with flowers; and every member of the
congregation brings a bouquet. The idea of the flower service, if
not the sermon, has been largely copied in various parts of the
country.

=Flunkey.= From the French _flanquer_, the henchman or groom who ran at
the flank or side of his mounted master.

=Fly.= Provincial for a hansom cab. When one looks at such a hackney
carriage it suggests a sedan-chair on wheels. Such a vehicle,
introduced at Brighton for invalids, was a great favourite with
George IV. then Prince of Wales, who often requisitioned it for a
night frolic. Called by him on account of its lightness a
“fly-by-night,” its name became abbreviated into a “fly.”

=Fly Posting.= A showman’s phrase for small bills posted hurriedly in
all possible conspicuous places under cover of night.

=Fly-up-the-Creeks.= The people of Florida, who were wont to disappear
on the approach of strangers.

=F. M. Allen.= The pseudonym of Mr Edward Downey at the time when he was
also a publisher. F. M. Allen was his wife’s maiden name.

=Foley Street.= After the town house of Lord Foley.

=Fontagne.= A wire structure for raising the hair of ladies, introduced
by the Duchesse de Fontagne, one of the mistresses of Louis XIV. of
France.

=Fontinalia.= Roman festivals in honour of the nymphs of wells and
fountains. It was from these that the English and French custom of
“Well Dressing” in the month of May found its origin.

=Foolscap.= A size of paper which from time immemorial has had for its
watermark a fool’s cap and bells.

=Footpad.= Originally a thief or highway robber who wore padded shoes.

=Fop.= From the German and Dutch _foppen_, to jeer at, make a fool of.
This word must be very old, since Vanbrugh gave the name of Lord
Foppington to a conceited coxcomb in this comedy “The Relapse,”
1697.

=Forecastle.= The quarters apportioned to the seamen in the fore end of
a vessel. Anciently the whole forward portion bore the name of
_Aforecastle_ on account of “The Castle” or State Cabin erected in a
castle-like form in the centre.

=Forefathers’ Day.= December 21st, commemorated in the New England
States on account of the landing of the Pilgrim Fathers in 1620.

=Forest City.= Cleveland (Ohio) and Portland (Maine), on account of the
trees which characterise their beautiful avenues.

=Forest Gate.= The district which in modern times has sprung up south of
the old gate leading into Epping Forest. A representation of the
gate appears on the curtain of the local public hall, or, as it is
now styled, “The Grand Theatre.”

=Forest Hill.= A name reminiscent of days when this portion of South
London as far as Croydon was forest land.

=Fore Street.= The street in front of the London Wall, the Barbican or
watch-tower, and Cripple Gate.

=Forget-me-not.= A flower emblematical of friendship or a keepsake. The
story goes that a German knight, walking on the banks of the Danube
with his lady, undertook, at her request, to gather a tuft of
_Mysotis palustris_, growing in the water. Encumbered by his armour,
he was carried away by the stream, and sank, after having thrown the
flowers to his mistress, exclaiming: “_Vergess mein nicht!_”

=Forlorn Hope.= From the German _verloren_, lost. A company of soldiers
ordered upon such a perilous enterprise, that there is small hope of
their return.

=Formosa.= A Portuguese word signifying “beautiful.”

=Fortino.= A clipped phrase in several of the states of North America,
from “For aught I know.”

=Foster Lane.= From the Church of St Vedast, the name of a Bishop of
Arras. How Vedast came to be Anglicised into Foster is not
explained.

=Foul-weather Jack.= Commodore John Byron, the circumnavigator of the
eighteenth century. Whenever he put out to sea he was sure to
experience foul weather.

=Four Hundred.= The Select or “Smart” Society of New York city.

=Fourteen Hundred.= The cry raised when a stranger is discovered in the
Stock Exchange, whereupon he is immediately hustled out. This had
its origin in the circumstance that for a great many years the
recognised full membership on ’Change was 1399.

=Fourth Estate.= The Press. Edward Burke referred to the Reporters’
Gallery as more powerful than the three great estates of the
realm--viz. the Lords Spiritual, the Lords Temporal, and the
Commons.

=Fox in the Hole.= An inn or tavern sign contiguous to the hunting
field.

=Frame House.= The American term for a house built of timber. Chinatown,
or the Chinese quarter of the city of San Francisco, was entirely
constructed of “frame houses.”

=Franc.= A silver coin of Franconia or France.

=France.= Anciently _Franconia_, the country of the Franks, so called
from the _franca_, a kind of javelin with which they armed
themselves when this people effected the conquest of Gaul.

=Franciscans.= Friars of the Order of St Francis of Assisi. Originally
the Grey Friars, their habits are now brown. One of the rules laid
down by their pious founder was that the brethren should always be
clad like the poorest of the poor. He selected the loose sack of
grey, undyed wool, bound round the waist by a cord of the Umbrian
Shepherds. Towards the close of the fifteenth century the better
classes affected gaudy colours, and the poorer orders, imitating
them so far as the use of dyed materials was concerned, took to
wearing garments of sober brown. Hence the change in the colour of
the Franciscan habit.

=Frankincense.= Incense brought to the East from “Franconia.”

=Freak Dinner.= A latter-day term, arising out of the examples set by
American millionaires to outdo all previous attempts in the way of
sumptuous banquets. There have been dinners costing £100 per head.
To please the eye, champagne has been made to flow wastefully from a
fountain. The name is, however, more correctly applied to the scenic
embellishments, as when the banqueting-chamber of the Gaiety
Restaurant was converted into a South African mining tent, and real
Kaffirs were the waiters, to remind the diners of the mode by which
they had acquired their wealth.

=Freebooter.= See “Filibuster.”