gold.
NAB [nob], a heade.
NABCHET, a hat or cap.
NASE, dronken.
NOSEGENT, a nunne.
PALLYARD, a borne beggar [who counterfeits sickness, or incurable sores. They are mostly Welshmen, Harman says].
PARAM, mylke.
PATRICO, a priest.
PATRICOS KINCHEN, a pygge [a satirical hit at the church, Patrico meaning a parson or priest, and Kinchen his little boy or girl].
PEK [peckish], meat.
POPPELARS, porrage.
PRAT, a buttocke.
PRATLING-CHETE, a toung.
PRAUNCER, a horse.
PRIGGER OF PRAUNCERS, be horse stealers, for to prigge signifieth in their language to steale, and a Prauncer is a horse, so being put together, the matter was playn. [Thus writes old Thomas Harman, who concludes his description of this order of “pryggers,” by very quietly saying, “I had the best gelding stolen out of my pasture, that I had amongst others, whyle this book was first a printing.”]
PRYGGES, dronken Tinkers, or beastly people.
QUACKING-CHETE, a drake or duck.
QUAROMES, a body.
QUIER [queer], badde [see what has been previously said about this word].
QUYER CRAMP-RINGES, boltes or fetters.
QUIER CUFFIN, the iustice of peace.
QUYER-KYN, a pryson house.
RED SHANKE, a drake or ducke.
ROGER, a goose.
ROME, goode [now curious, noted, or remarkable in any way. Rum is the modern orthography].
ROME BOUSE [rum booze], wyne.
ROME MORT, the Queene [Elizabeth].
ROME VYLE [or Rum-ville], London.
RUFF PECK, baken [short bread, common in old times at farm houses].
RUFFMANS, the woods or bushes.
SALOMON, a alter or masse.
SKYPPER, a barne.
SLATE, a sheete or shetes.
SMELLING CHETE, a nose.
SMELLING CHETE, a garden or orchard.
SNOWT FAYRE [said of a woman who has a pretty face or is comely].
STALL [to initiate a beggar or rogue into the rights and privileges of the canting order. Harman relates, that when an upright-man, or initiated, first-class rogue, “mete any beggar, whether he be sturdy or impotent, he will demand of him whether ever he was ‘stalled to the roge’ or no. If he say he was, he will know of whom, and his name yt stalled him. And if he be not learnedly able to show him the whole circumstance thereof, he will spoyle him of his money, either of his best garment, if it be worth any money, and haue him to the bowsing ken: which is, to some typpling house next adjoyninge, and layth there to gage the best thing that he hath for twenty pence or two shillings: this man obeyeth for feare of beatinge. Then dooth this upright man call for a gage of bowse, which is a quarte potte of drink, and powres the same vpon his peld pate, adding these words, – I, G. P. do stalle the, W. T. to the Roge, and that from henceforth it shall be lawfull for thee to cant, that is to aske or begge for thi liuiug in al places.” Something like this treatment is the popular idea of Freemasonry, and what schoolboys term “freeing.”]
STAMPES, legges.
STAMPERS, shoes.
STAULING KEN, a house that will receyue stollen wares.
STAWLINGE-KENS, tippling houses.
STOW YOU [stow it], hold your peace.
STRIKE, to steale.
STROMMELL, strawe.
SWADDER, or Pedler [a man who hawks goods].
THE HIGH PAD, the highway.
THE RUFFIAN CLY THEE, the devil take thee.
TOGEMANS [togg], a cloake.
TOGMAN, a coate.
TO BOWSE, to drinke.
TO CANTE, to speake.
TO CLY THE GERKE, to be whipped.
TO COUCH A HOGSHEAD, to lie down and slepe.
TO CUTTE, to say [cut it is modern slang for “be quiet”].
TO CUT BENE WHYDDES, to speake or give good words.
TO CUTTE QUYER WHYDDES, to giue euil words or euil language.
TO CUT BENLE, to speak gentle.
TO DUP YE GYGER [jigger], to open the dore.
TO FYLCHE, to robbe.
TO HEUE A BOUGH, to robbe or rifle a boweth [booth].
TO MAUNDE, to aske or require.
TO MILL A KEN, to robbe a house.
TO NYGLE [coition].
TO NYP A BOUNG [nip, to steal], to cut a purse.
TO SKOWER THE CRAMPRINGES, to weare boltes or fetters.
TO STALL, to make or ordain.
TO THE RUFFIAN, to the Devil.
TO TOWRE, to see.
TRYNING [trine], hanging.
TYB OF THE BUTERY, a goose.
WALKING MORTE, womene [who pass for widows].
WAPPING [coition].
WHYDDES, wordes.
WYN, a penny.
YANNAM, bread.
Turning our attention more to the Cant of modern times, in connection with the old, we find that words have been drawn into the thieves’ vocabulary from every conceivable source. Hard or infrequent words, vulgarly termed crack-jaw, or jaw-breakers, were very often used
