Chapter D: =Dachshund.= German for “badger-dog.” (3)

=Hearse.= From the French _herse_ and German _hirsch_. Both these terms
expressed a harrow or triangular candlestick set at the head of a
coffin at a funeral service in church. At a later period they
implied a sepulchral mound temporarily distinguished by a triangular
stake setting forth a number or other identification mark. The
modern application of the term to a vehicle specially designed for
the conveyance of a body to the grave was an easy transition.

=Heart-breakers.= Artificial ringlets formerly worn by ladies to enhance
their beauty. It is said that the most inveterate woman-hater was
not proof against the attraction of these Heart-breakers.

=Heathen.= Literally a dweller on a heath in the open country. The
Romans applied the term to those who, having no communion with the
dwellers in cities, were cut off from all knowledge of their
complicated system of mythology. When Rome became converted to
Christianity the untutored inhabitants of the country at large were
the last to receive the Gospel. A heathen nation therefore, in a
religious sense, is one far removed from civilisation, which offers
a fruitful field for missionary work.

=Heaven-sent Minister.= William Pitt, first Earl of Chatham, one of the
most eminent statesmen that England has ever possessed. His intense
love of his own country prompted him to measures which made the
success of British arms pre-eminent. Had his colleagues during the
later portion of his career been actuated by the same patriotism as
himself, and heeded his warnings, our American colonies might never
have separated from the Mother Country.

=Heavy Hill.= Holborn Hill, because the hearts of those riding in the
fatal cart to the place of execution at Tyburn were heavily laden.

=“He” Bible.= The first edition of the Authorised Version, containing a
typographical error in Ruth iii. 15: “And _he_ went into the city.”
The subsequent edition, published in the same year, in which the
passage was rectified, became known as “The ‘She’ Bible.”

=Hebrews.= Said to be descendants of Eber, the great-grandson of Shem,
one of the ancestors of Abraham. The greater probability, however,
is that the term has been derived from the native _ebher_, the
region on the other side--_i.e._ of the Euphrates.

=Hebrides.= Expresses the “Western Isles” of the Norwegians.

=Hector.= To swagger, bully, treat with insolence, after Hector, the
celebrated Trojan warrior. From the known character of this hero of
antiquity it is not easy to conceive that he could ever have been a
braggart. The inference is rather that this word in its accepted
sense was derived from the brutal manner in which Achilles treated
the body of Hector after he had slain him in single combat.

=Hedge Priest.= Specifically in Ireland an itinerant cleric unattached
to any mission; one admitted to Holy Orders without having studied
theology.

=Hedge School.= An open-air school in the poor rural districts of
Ireland beside a hedge.

=Heel of Achilles.= When Thetis, the mother of Achilles, dipped her son
in the River Styx to make him invulnerable the water laved every
portion of his body save that by which she held him. It was
accordingly in the heel that he received his mortal wound.

=Heir Apparent.= The rightful heir to the crown, whose succession is
beyond a doubt provided he survives the reigning monarch.

=Heir-Presumptive.= The presumed heir to the crown provided no child in
the direct line of succession is born to supersede his claim.

=Heligoland.= Danish for “Holy Land,” which name was bestowed upon it
after the conversion of its people by St Willibrod in the seventh
century. A great many conventual establishments sprang up on the
soil, but the encroachments of the sea had swept them away by the
seventeenth century. Prior to their conversion the _Anglii_ were
wont to repair to this isle from the opposite mainland for the
worship of the goddess Hertha, also known as Foseta, of whose temple
it is said some ruins yet remain.

=Heliotrope.= From the Greek _helios_, sun, and _tropos_, to turn. The
flowers of this plant are said always to turn towards the sun.

=Hello Girls.= A nickname popularly bestowed upon the telephone girls in
the Post Office Department at St Martin’s-le-Grand.

=Hellespont.= The older name of the “Dardanelles,” where Helle in
fleeing from her stepmother was drowned. This occurred at the point
where Xerxes with his army had crossed the strait on a temporary
bridge.

=Hell Kettles.= Three very deep pits full of water at Oxenhall, Durham.
The people of the neighbourhood declare them to be bottomless. They
are really disused coal pits, the water in which cannot be drained
off.

=Helmuth the Taciturn.= The sobriquet of Count Von Moltke, Field Marshal
of the German Empire, on account of his habitual reserve.

=Helot.= The name given by the Spartans to a slave from the Greek town
of _Helos_, whose inhabitants they reduced to slavery.

=Henbane.= A plant which is poisonous to poultry.

=Henchman.= A corruption of “Haunchman,” the groom or servant who out of
doors was in constant attendance upon his master at the flank or
haunches of his horse. See “Flunkey.”

=Heneage Lane.= After the residence of Sir Thomas Heneage, Chancellor of
the Duchy of Lancaster in the sixteenth century.

=Henrietta Street.= In Covent Garden, after Henrietta Maria, Queen of
Charles I. On the north side of Oxford Street, after Henrietta
Cavendish, who, by her marriage, carried not only a goodly portion
of the Cavendish estate, but also that of her father, Lord Holles,
into the Harley family.

=Henry Irving.= See “Irving.”

=Heptarchy.= The Saxon division of England comprising Kent, Sussex,
Wessex, Essex, East Anglia, Mercia, and Northumbria, each having
originally its own ruler.

=Herculaneum.= The foundation of this buried city was by the Romans
traditionally ascribed to Hercules.

=Hereford.= Expresses the Saxon for “army ford” over the River Wye.
During the Heptarchy this was the military headquarters of Mercia.

=Heroic Verse.= That usually selected for epic poetry, since the
exploits of Achilles at the siege of Troy were set forth by Homer in
hexameters.

=Hertford.= Originally “Hartford,” being the ford of the River Lea
crossed by harts.

=He’s a Brick.= This expression, if not quite as old as the hills,
carries us back to the time of Plutarch, who in his “Lives” gives
the following account of its origin:--“On a certain occasion, an
ambassador from Epirus paid a visit to Argesilaus, King of Sparta,
on a mission of diplomatic importance. By that monarch he was shown
over the capital. But the ambassador failed to see any massive walls
reared to defend the city, and openly expressed his astonishment to
the King. ‘Sire!’ he said, ‘I have visited most of your principal
towns, and find no walls reared for defence. Why is this?’ ‘Indeed,
Sir Ambassador,’ Argesilaus replied, ‘thou canst not have looked
carefully. Come with me to-morrow, and I will show thee the walls of
Sparta.’ On the following morning the King conducted his guest out
upon the plains, where his army was drawn up in full battle array,
and, proudly pointing to the serried host, he exclaimed: ‘There, Sir
Ambassador, thou beholdest the walls of Sparta--ten thousand men,
and every man a brick!’”

=He’s joined the Majority.= See “Gone over to the Majority.”

=Hessel Street.= The recent change from Morgan Street to Hessel Street
in Stepney is accounted for by the discovery that here a celebrated
character, in the person of Phœbe Hessel, was born. For many
years she served as a private soldier in the Fifth Regiment of Foot,
and fought at the Battle of Fontenoy, in which engagement she was
wounded. A long inscription on her tombstone in Brighton churchyard
would have us believe that she was at the time of her death, 21st
December 1821, no less than one hundred and eight years of age.

=Hessian.= An Americanism for a hireling, a fighter for pay, a mercenary
politician. The Hessian soldiers have always been ready to enlist in
a foreign service for pay.

=Hessian Fly.= An insect which has caused the utmost destruction among
young wheat in North America, so called because it was said to have
been introduced by the Hessian troops in their horse straw during
the Revolution.

=Hetman.= The Russian title of the general or headman of the Cossacks,
derived from the Tartar _Ataman_. This too supplies the origin of
the German _Hauptmann_, captain, chief, or headman of a village.

=Hibernia.= See “Ireland.”

=Hickory.= See “Old Hickory.”

=Hicksite Friends.= An American offshoot of the Society of Friends or
Quakers under Elias Hicks in 1827.

=Highbury.= From the _bury_ or enclosed land belonging to the Knights of
St John of Jerusalem in Clerkenwell. In 1271 they built a priory
here, of which the barn remained standing until modern days.
Compared with the low-lying district round about, this was elevated
ground.

=Highbury Barn.= Originally a cake and ale house contiguous to the
ancient barn of the Clerkenwell Priory. This place of public resort
developed into a theatre in 1865; subsequently it degenerated into a
dancing saloon, and was finally abolished in 1875.

=Highfalutin.= A corruption of “high-flighting.” This word originated in
the western states of North America.

=Highgate.= The village that sprang up around the ancient toll gate on
the road from London to Barnet. The tolls levied here were for the
benefit of the Bishop of London. Even in our time this elevated
situation commands a good view of London. The absurd ceremony of
“swearing on the horns” was formerly imposed on all travellers
passing through the gate.

=High Seas.= The great ocean highways out of sight of land and common to
mariners of all nations.

=High Tea.= A substantial meat tea towards the close of the day in place
of the fashionable set dinner. This is the invariable custom in
Germany. In English it is usual to designate such a meal as a “Knife
and Fork Tea.” See “High Time.”

=High Time.= A phrase employed in the same sense as High Street, High
Seas, Highway, etc.--_i.e._ great. The German word for wedding is
_Hochzeit_, literally a “high time.” In America the expression for a
festive occasion or a pleasurable trip is “a good time.”

=Hilary Term.= In law the sittings of the Courts from 11th to 13th
January, so called from the festival of St Hilary, Bishop of
Poitiers, on the latter date.

=Hill Street.= See “Hay Hill.”

=Himalaya Mountains.= From the Sanskrit _hima_, snow, and _alaya_,
abode.

=Hinde Street.= After James Hinde, a speculative builder, who more than
a century ago laid out many of the streets now covering what was the
estate of Marylebone Park.

=Hindustan.= Agreeably to the Persian _stan_, the country traversed by
the Hindu or Indus; both terms are derived from the Sanskrit
_Sindhu_, “great river.”

=Hippodrome.= Expresses the Greek for a race-course, from _hippos_, a
horse, and _dromos_, a course.

=Hippocras.= A cordial of spiced wine, so called by the apothecaries
because it was supposed to have been made from the prescription of
Hippocrates, the Father of Medicine.

=His Nibs.= A corruption of “His Nobs”; used ironically for “His
Highness” in reference to a parvenu or a conceited upstart.

=Hispania.= See “Spain.”

=Hoboken.= Indian for the “smoke pipe,” or pipe of peace. This was the
place where the chiefs first met the white settlers, and while
passing round the calumet entered into a friendly treaty.

=Hobson’s Choice.= In the seventeenth century Tobias Hobson kept a
livery stable at Cambridge. When the students at the University
wished to hire a horse for the day he led out the occupant of the
first stall. If they demurred, he said abruptly: “It’s this one or
none.” So Hobson’s choice settled the question.

=Hock.= The general name for Rhenish wines, but properly that made at
Hockheim on the Maine.

=Hockey.= Expresses the diminutive of _hook_, the club used in this game
being only slightly hooked at the end.

=Hocking.= See “Hock Tuesday.”

=Hockley.= Anglo-Saxon for a miry field. Clerkenwell was at one time
called “Hockley-in-the-Hole,” after a bear garden dating from the
Restoration period.

=Hock Tuesday.= Anciently a high festival throughout England, in
commemoration for the final expulsion of the Danes, who had ravaged
the eastern portions of our country for more than two centuries.
This occurred on Easter Tuesday 1074. Most of the Danes were
slaughtered off-hand by first hamstringing, or cutting their hams or
houghs, which prevented them from making for their boats; hence the
term _Hock_ for the festival. The English landlords levied what was
called “Hock Money” on this day from their tenants, in return for
which they treated them to a good supper. In modern times people
stopped pedestrians in the streets with ropes, and declined to
release them until they had parted with hock money.

=Hocus-pocus.= The gibberish of a conjurer when performing his tricks;
said to have been derived from one Ochus Bochus, a celebrated wizard
of Northern Europe, three centuries ago. The early conjurers were
thought to use these words as an invocation to this magician.
Nowadays our sleight-of-hand professors dispense with words, and
fire off a pistol, doubtless to prove that they can do the trick in
a crack.

=Hodge.= The generic name for a farm labourer; a corruption of _Hedger_.

=Hoist with his own Petard.= Caught in his own trap, blown up with his
own engine of destruction. The petard was an ancient infernal engine
filled with gunpowder; he who fired it stood in great danger of
sacrificing his own life.

=Holborn.= Anciently spelt “Holeburne,” the bourn or stream in a hollow.
This was the River Fleet, which had an outlet into the Thames.
Further north, in Clerkenwell, it was called “the River of Wells.”

=Holborn Bars.= The western limits of the city of London.

=Hold hard.= This exclamation, when the advice really means to stop or
“leave go,” sounds ridiculous. It originally meant, as it still does
in the Emerald Isle, to keep a firm hold with both hands on the back
rail of an Irish jaunting car lest the rider might be thrown out of
it.

=Hole in the Wall.= A tavern sign, derived from the fact that this house
was originally approached either through an opening made in the
ancient city wall or else through another house that stood in front
of it.

=Holiday.= The modern form of “Holy Day,” expressive of a great feast in
the Church calendar.

=Holland.= From the Danish _ollant_, “marshy ground.” The linen cloth of
the same name was first made in Holland.

=Holland Road.= From Holland House, the residence of Henry Rich, Earl of
Holland, _temp._ Charles I. By his marriage with the Dowager
Countess of Warwick, widow of Lord Holland, in 1710, Joseph Addison
became nominally master of this noble mansion, and here he died.

=Hollands.= See “Gin.”

=Holles Street.= In the West End, after John Holles, the last Duke of
Newcastle, whose only daughter by her marriage carried the entire
estate hereabouts into the possession of the Harleys. In Drury Lane,
the name given by Gilbert, Earl of Clare, whose house stood in what
became Clare Market, in honour of his uncle, Denzil, Lord Holles,
_temp._ Charles I.

=Holloway.= At one time a miry highway in a hollow between Highbury and
Highgate.

=Holloway College.= Founded in 1883 for the higher education of women at
Egham, Surrey, by Thomas Holloway, the pioneer of modern advertising
on a lavish scale.

=Hollyhock.= A species of mallow, called by the Anglo-Saxon _hoc_, and
first brought to Europe from the Holy Land. Hence _holy-hoc_.

=Holly Village.= A modern settlement at Highgate founded by the Baroness
Burdett Coutts-Bartlett but a short distance removed from her rural
retreat known as Holly Lodge.

=Holy Boys.= The regimental nickname of the 9th Foot, because they
sacked monasteries and sold Bibles in the street during the
Peninsular War.

=Holy Cross Day.= Otherwise the “Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross,”
14th September, commemorates, the restoration of the Cross of Christ
to Jerusalem, A.D. 628.

=Holy Land.= Palestine, the scene of the birth, life labours, and death
of the Redeemer.

=Holy Maid of Kent.= The name given to Elizabeth Barton, a poor Kentish
servant girl, who, subject to trances, foretold events, and
afterwards entered a convent at Canterbury. Her fame as a religious
enthusiast increased, until, for pronouncing sentence against the
divorce of Queen Catherine of Aragon, she, in company with five
monks, was hanged at Tyburn.

=Holyrood Palace.= This residence of the ancient kings of Scotland grew
out of the Abbey of the Holy Rood built by David I. as the permanent
abode of the Black Rood, brought to Scotland by St Margaret in 1070.
This precious relic was a piece of the true cross set in gold and
ebony. It fell into the hands of the English at the battle of
Neville’s Cross in 1344, after which all trace of it was lost. James
II. was born at Holyrood; here too he was buried. The foundations of
the new palace were laid by James IV. in 1500.

=Holywell.= From the miraculous well of St Winifred in Flintshire, the
scene of her martyrdom.

=Holywell Lane.= Here, in Shoreditch, stood an ancient Priory of Nuns of
St John the Baptist, in the grounds of which a “sweet, holy well”
was discovered.

=Holywell Street.= This now vanished thoroughfare, east of the Strand,
received its name from a Holy Well close to the Church of St Clement
Danes. That in Westminster marks the site of the town house of the
Grosvenors, whose rural estates lay around “Holywell” in Flintshire.

=Homely.= An Americanism for “plain,” “ugly;” applied to persons only.

=Home Office.= The official department of the Secretary for
Home--_i.e._, internal, Affairs.

=Homerton.= A corruption of “Heimathton,” which expressed the town that
grew out of the Saxon village styled _Heimath_, “home” or “native
country.”

=Honduras.= Spanish for “deep water.”

=Honey Lane.= In this lane stood an ancient market-house or hall for the
sale of honey. Owing to the dearness of sugar prior to the discovery
of America and the colonisation of the West Indies, honey was in
general request.

=Honeymoon.= From the custom of the Scandinavians, who drank Hydromel,
or diluted honey, for thirty days after a marriage feast.

=Honiton Lace.= A superior kind of “Pillow Lace” made at Honiton in
Devonshire. This industry was introduced into England by the
Lollards, _temp._ Elizabeth.

=Honor Oak.= From the famous boundary oak beneath which Queen Elizabeth
once dined. Prior to that event it bore the name of Gospel Oak,
under whose shade, in common with all other parish boundary oaks,
the Gospel was read there once a year.

=Hoodlum.= A street rough, originally a product of San Francisco,
but now common in New York and most cities of the American
Union. The origin of the term was thus accounted for by _The
Congregationalist_, 26th September 1877: “A newspaper man in San
Francisco, in attempting to coin a word to designate a gang of
young street Arabs under the beck of one named ‘Muldoon,’ hit
upon the idea of dubbing them _Noodlums_--that is, simply
reversing the leader’s name. In writing the word the strokes of
the _N_ did not correspond in height, and the compositor, taking
the _N_ for an _H_, printed it _Hoodlum_. ‘Hoodlum’ it is, and
probably ever will be.”

=Hoodman Blind.= The ancient form of the game of “Blind Man’s Buff.”
Instead of being bandaged the Blind Man had the hood, which everyone
wore, drawn over his eyes.

=Hook it.= A variant of “Sling your Hook.”

=Hook of Holland.= From the Dutch _hoek_, a cape, a corner. The same
perverted designation obtained in all the early Dutch settlements of
New York State, notably “Sandy Hook.”

=Hooligan.= A London rough. This term is of quite modern date, and
clearly an adaptation of that which has become common all over the
United States. See “Hoodlum.”

=Hooter.= A United States corruption of _iota_. The people of New York
State in particular are addicted to the saying: “I don’t care a
hooter whether I do or not.” “This note isn’t worth a hooter,” etc.

=Hoosier State.= Indiana, from the nickname given to its people.
“Hoosier” is really a corruption of _Husher_, touching the power of
a bully to silence a stranger. The Hoosiers are noted for their
brusque manners. The state is also called “Hoosierdom.”

=Hopkinsians.= An American Calvinistic sect named after their founder,
Samuel Hopkins of Connecticut.

=Hornbill.= A bird distinguished for a horny excrescence on its bill.

=Horn Book.= A primitive text-book for children. It was really no book
at all, but a piece of paper containing the alphabet, the nine
digits, and at times the Lord’s Prayer, mounted on a small flat
board, over which was stretched a transparent sheet of horn; below
was a handle to hold it by.

=Hornpipe.= A lively sailor’s dance, which had its origin in the west of
England to the accompaniment of a Welsh musical instrument of the
same name composed of a wooden pipe with a horn at each end.

=Hornsey.= A corruption of “Harringsey,” a watered meadow of hares.

=Horse Chestnut.= Some say this term is a corruption of “Coarse
Chestnut,” in contradistinction to the edible chestnut; others that
these chestnuts were formerly ground up and given to horses for
food.

=Horseferry Road.= Where horses were conveyed across the Thames on a
ferry boat in bygone times.

=Horse Latitudes.= A portion of the Atlantic distinguished for its
tedious calms, where old navigators were wont to throw overboard the
horses they had to transport to the West Indies in order to lighten
the ship.

=Horsleydown.= A corruption of “Horsadown”; formerly a down or hilly
ground used for grazing horses.

=Horse Marines.= There can be no Horse Marines; but the 17th Lancers
were at one time made to bear this opprobrious nickname from the
circumstance that two men of this regiment had originally served as
Marines on board the _Hermione_ in the West Indies.

=Horse Shoe.= A large public-house at the Oxford Street end of Tottenham
Court Road, this sign being derived from the trade mark of Messrs
Meux’s brewery adjoining.

=Hose.= From the Icelandic _hosa_, stocking.

=Hosier Lane.= From the hosiers who congregated in it.

=Hospice.= From the Latin _hospes_, a stranger, guest. This term is now
confined to an Alpine retreat for the reception of travellers.
Elsewhere the French word Hospital obtains for any establishment set
apart for the temporary accommodation of the poor. Formerly,
however, it implied a lazar-house or a refuge for fallen women; in
its modern sense a hospital is exclusively an institution for the
sick poor.

=Hospice of St Bernard.= See “Bernardine Hospice.”

=Hospital.= See “Hospice.”

=Hostelry.= From the old French _hostellerie_, an inn, through the Latin
_hospes_, a stranger, a guest. The modern French form is “Hotel,”
which implies not only an establishment for the entertainment of
travellers, but also a superior house or palace.

=Hotel.= See “Hostelry.”

=Hotel des Invalides.= A magnificent establishment in Paris, originally
designed as an asylum for invalided and disabled soldiers by Henry
IV. in 1596. Prior to that time no provision existed for warriors
who had spent their best energies in their country’s service save
the charity of the monastic institutions.

=Hotspur.= The surname of Harry Percy, on account of his mad courage
when mounted on his charger. A man of fiery, ungovernable temper is
said to be “a regular Hotspur.”

=Houndsditch.= The dry ditch outside the city wall which was made the
receptacle for all kinds of refuse, and dead dogs in particular.

=Houp la.= This exclamation on the part of a circus ringmaster as the
signal for an equestrienne to leap over horizontal barriers or
through paper hoops has been derived from the Californian stage
drivers’ ejaculation to their horses.

=Housemaids’ Knee.= Housemaids are specially liable to this affection of
the sac under the knee-pan through kneeling on hard or damp floors.

=House of Keys.= The Representative Council of the Isle of Man, so
called from the Manx _Kiare-as-feed_, four and twenty, this being
the number appointed by statute to form the “Court of Tynwald.”
Tynwald is an artificial mound in the centre of the island whence a
new law has from time immemorial been promulgated.

=Housewarming.= The name given to a party or reception of guests on
taking possession of a newly built mansion. This was of old a winter
function, when the lighting of large fires in all the rooms for the
occasion proved serviceable in drying the plastered walls and
ceilings.

=Howard Street.= From the town house and grounds of the Howards, Dukes
of Norfolk and Earls of Arundel and Surrey, that stood on the large
plot of ground now covered by the four streets bearing these names.

=Howitzer.= A German cannon, properly called a _haubitze_, from the
Bohemian term _haufnice_, a sling.

=Hoxton.= Little more than a hundred years ago this district bore the
name of _Hogsdon_ on account of the great number of pigs bred here.
Hog Lane still exists off the High Street.

=Hub.= The proud pet name of the city of Boston, the social centre of
the United States, in the same sense as the hub is a centre for a
wheel. The origin of the term is ascribed to Dr Oliver Wendell
Holmes who, in one of his books spoke of the State House at Boston
as “the hub of the solar system.”

=Hudibrastic Verse.= That which is in imitation of the measure and
doggerel style of Samuel Butler’s “Hudibras.”

=Hudson River.= After Captain Henry Hudson, who discovered it in 1609. A
year later, when searching for a north-west passage, he navigated
the bay and the strait named in his honour.

=Huggin Lane.= After Hugan, a wealthy citizen who resided here, _temp._
Edward I.

=Huguenots.= The name borne by the adherents of the Reformation in
France, after Hugh, a Genevese Calvinist, their leader, and the
German _eidgenossen_, confederates.

=Hull.= From the river upon which it stands. Its ancient name was
Kingston-upon-Hull, a town founded by Edward I. in 1299.

=Hull Cheese.= A strong ale for which the “Good Old Town of Hull” was at
one time famous. To “eat Hull cheese” was to get incontinently
drunk.

=Hull, Hell, and Halifax.= In olden times, before Kingston-upon-Hull
could be approached direct from the Humber, the River Hull was
navigable, as now, only at high water, and even then it required
very skilful pilotage on account of the many sandbanks at its mouth;
it was therefore dreaded by seafaring men. Taylor, the Water Poet,
wrote: “From Hull, Hell, and Halifax, good Lord, deliver us!” The
reference to Halifax arose out of the knowledge that in his day a
man could be executed there for stealing property to the value of
thirteen pence halfpenny. See “Halifax Gibbet Law.”

=Humanitarians.= Those who believe in the complete humanity of Christ,
namely--that He was capable of committing sin like any other mortal.

=Humble Bee.= A corruption of “Humming Bee.”

=Humbug.= The old mode of expressing approbation of a speech or at the
play was by humming, but since the sincerity of this form of
applause could not always be relied upon, intermingled as it may
have been with suppressed murmurs of disapproval, the word _Hum_
came to be applied to mock admiration or flattery, intended only to
deceive. Hence the saying: “That’s all hum.” The added word _Bug_ is
very old, signifying a frightful object, a thing to be shunned. To
humbug is to deceive; to prefer candour to humbug is to be proof
against flattery.

=Humming Bird.= So called from the sound caused by the rapid motion of
its wings in flight.

=Hummums.= A hotel in Covent Garden built on the site of a Persian or
Turkish sweating bath so called in the seventeenth century. The name
is Arabic.

=Hundred.= A Saxon subdivision of the English shires said to have been
introduced by Alfred the Great. Each hundred comprised a colony of
“ten times ten” families--that is to say, ten divisions of ten
freeholders and their dependents in each. In all then there were one
hundred champions to defend the common cause. In legal and
ecclesiastical documents relative to lands such property is still
said to be situate in a particular “hundred” as well as parish.

=Hungary.= The country of the Huns, who swarmed over from Asia and
expelled the Goths from this portion of Europe in the fourth
century. When first heard of in China, about a hundred years
previous, the natives designated them _Hiong-nu_, signifying
“Giants.” These Huns were really the Mongolian race still known as
the _Kalmucks_. The suffix _gary_ is a Western modification of the
Teutonic _gau_, district or country.

=Hungary Water.= A perfume, properly called “The Queen of Hungary’s
Water” from the circumstance that the recipe had been given by a
hermit to one of the queens of Hungary.

=Hung on Wires.= An American expression for one suffering from “nerves,”
a nervous or fidgety person.

=Huns.= See “Hungary.”

=Huntingdon.= Expresses the shire most favoured for hunting, this being
anciently a vast deer forest.

=Hurly-burly.= An expression derived from the tumult of ancient warfare,
with especial reference to the hurling of spears and battle-axes.
The witches in _Macbeth_ say:

“When the hurly-burly’s done,
When the battle’s lost and won.”

=Huron.= This lake was so called by the French settlers on account of
the profusion of hair of the Indian tribe, the Wyandots, whom they
encountered on its shores. _Hure_ is French for “head of hair.”

=Hurrah.= This exclamation is from the Scandinavian _Hurra_, said to
have been originally _Thor-aie_, an invocation to the god Thor for
aid in battle, just as the battle cry of the Normans was _Ha-Rou_,
in honour of Rollo.

=Hurricane.= From the West Indian _urican_, “a violent wind.” The word
was introduced to Europe by seamen, and so became incorporated in
various languages.

=Hurry up.= An exclamation derived, both in England and America, from
the custom of eating-house keepers anxious to expedite the service
from the kitchens below stairs.

=Husbands’ Boat.= The steamboat by which city men and others go down to
Margate for the week-end holiday in order to join their families who
are staying there for the season.

=Hussar.= Expresses the Hungarian for a “twenty-paid soldier”--_husz_
meaning twenty, and _ar_ the price of. When Matthias Corvinus
ascended the throne of the Magyars he decreed that, in order to
provide a regular cavalry, each twenty families must enrol and equip
one mounted soldier free of all cost to the State. An interesting
point in connection with the uniform of the Hussar regiments
everywhere was that they always allowed the right sleeve of the
upper jacket to hang loose on their backs. This was only in keeping
with the general custom of the Magyar peasantry, who had the right
arm free on all occasions.

=Hussites.= The Protestants of Bohemia, after John Huss, the Reformer.

=Hussy.= A corruption of “housewife.” The epithet now implies a
slatternly sort of woman.

=Hustings.= The ancient name for the Court of Aldermen in the city of
London. In modern days it came to imply the platform from which
candidates for election delivered their addresses to the populace.
The word _Husting_ expressed the Anglo-Saxon for a council-house:
from the Scandinavian _hus_, house, and _thing_, an assembly.

=Hustler.= An Americanism for a smart, energetic tradesman, more
especially a caterer or restaurateur, who hustles about and never
keeps his customers waiting. The word “Hustle” comes from the Dutch
_hutselen_, to shake together or to and fro.

=Hyacinth.= According to the Greek fable this flower sprang from the
blood of the beautiful youth Hyacinthus, who, having aroused the
jealousy of Zephyr, received his death-blow at her hands by casting
Apollo’s quoit at his head.

=Hyde Park.= Anciently described as the Hyde Manor belonging to the
Abbots of St Peter’s, Westminster.

=Hyde Park Corner.= Of old the western extremity of London, defined by a
toll gate.

=Hydro.= Short for a hydropathic establishment.

=Hythe.= From the Anglo-Saxon _hithe_, a haven.