Sportsman's slang; a new dictionary of terms used in the affairs of the turf, the ring, the chase and the cock-pit, with those of bon-ton and the varieties of life / interspersed with anecdotes and whimsies, with tart quotations and rum-ones, with examples, proofs and monitory precepts, useful and proper for novices, flats and yokels, by Jon Bee [pseud].

  • Badcock, John, active 1816-1830
Date:
1825
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Sportsman's slang; a new dictionary of terms used in the affairs of the turf, the ring, the chase and the cock-pit, with those of bon-ton and the varieties of life / interspersed with anecdotes and whimsies, with tart quotations and rum-ones, with examples, proofs and monitory precepts, useful and proper for novices, flats and yokels, by Jon Bee [pseud]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    occupation. A new race of Physicians discovered and dis- closed the fact, that their predecessors had been but novices —their patients fiats and yokels ; the Lawyers practised new quiddities, and reversed the old pleadings ; Chemistry was completely capsized (including le bouleversment desfrangais); and as for Trade, it slept, and had slept on, but for the lawyer’s help : he stepped in, however, officiously, and poor Trade died within his grasp—at his office, in B. R. or C. B. New Editors then became necessary for this new state of things ; and Bartholomew Parr, and T. Edlin Tomlins, Dr. Chenevix, and ’Squire Dickinson, repaired the rents which Time had made, modernised the antiquated cut of their pre- decessors habiliments, and introduced the more modern slang of their respective avocations.® In the midst of all this redundancy, who took in charge to elucidate and bring to the standard the all-important affairs of the Turf l What stagyrite settled those of the Ring, putting down his thoughts in alphabetic order?—- None. The Chase lay scattered through massy tomes, or pined in puny manuals to this hour, f The Pit, and its in- mates, remained in utter darkness as to one order of its sports, neither Billy, Charley, Rolfe, or Tim, knowing their way about, literally;]: Old Fleming, or Nash, although taking the lead as doodle-doo men, neither could or would expound or explain. Excepting a small tract or two on cocking—gll the irons were the slangs, and the slang •weavers' language was of course slangous, or partaking much, if not wholly, of the slangs. So much for the derivation of the word Slang: John Nichols hath used it, and §o hath Jon Bee ; and both must be wrong—or both right “ to a T ” Never did Whitter make out a better Ca«e, in Etymologicon Magnum ; and, we leave the learned doctor to prove how it happened that the word Slang was subsequently applied, or misapplied, by many who could read books, but understood little of the ordinary talk of life; neither of that language which pertained to the Turf, the Stud, the Chase, or the Ring —which they equally termed the Slang of each particular species of sport. However settled, we submit, Domine gratia. * Even these last named are fast passing away,like thec baseless fabric of a vision;’ and they of the present era will see spring up new mushroom Editors, who will ‘ stick to the Author’ (like the polecat to the coney, battening upon its vital fluid) and overlay his matter until he get buried in emend at a et corrigenda. t What signifies alluding to Taplin, but to bestow a line upon an arrant offender; the old anonymous Sportsman’s Dictionary (in 4to.) was never compiled up to the mark of excellency of its own date; and Time has heaped his dull oblivious years both upon this and that. J Harlequin Billy, vulgarly called White, Charley Eastup, Jem Rolfe and Timothy Arrowsmith. Y. Fleming hath relaxed.—See Pit, in Diet.