Chapter 14

Great bronze valves embossed with Tomyris.Tennyson,The Princess, v.

Great bronze valves embossed with Tomyris.

Tennyson,The Princess, v.

[I] was shown the seath and cruel mangling madeBy Tomyris on Cyrus, when she cried,“Blood thou didst thirst for; take thy fill of blood!”Dantê,Purgatory, xii (1308).

[I] was shown the seath and cruel mangling made

By Tomyris on Cyrus, when she cried,

“Blood thou didst thirst for; take thy fill of blood!”

Dantê,Purgatory, xii (1308).

Ton-Iosalwas so heavy and unwieldy that when he sat down it took the whole force of a hundred men to set him upright on his feet again.--The Fiona.

If Fion was remarkable for his stature, ... in weight all yielded to the celebrated Ton-Iosal.--J. Macpherson,Dissertation on Ossian.

Ton-Thena(“fire of the wave”), a remarkable star which guided Larthon to Ireland, as mentioned in Ossian’sTem´ora, vii., and called inCathlin of Clutha, “the red traveller of the clouds.”

Tonio, a young Tyrolese, who saved Maria, the sutler-girl, when on the point of falling down a precipice. The two, of course, fall in love with each other, and the regiment, which had adopted the sutler-girl, consents to their marriage, provided Tonio will enlist under its flag. No sooner is this done than the marchioness of Berkenfield lays claim to Maria as her daughter, and removes her to the castle. In time, the castle is besieged and taken by the very regiment into which Tonio had enlisted, and, as Tonio had risen to the rank of a French officer, the marchioness consents to his marriage with her daughter.--Donizetti,La Figlia del Reggimento(1840).

Tonna(Mrs.), Charlotte Elizabeth (1792-1846).

Tonto(Don Cherubin), canon of Tole´do, the weakest mortal in the world, though, by his smirking air, you would fancy him a wit. When he hears a delicate performance read, he listens with such attention as seems full of intelligence, but all the while he understands nothing of the matter.--Lesage,Gil Blas, v. 12 (1724).

Tonton, the smallest dog that ever existed. When the three princes of a certain king were sent to procure the tiniest dog they could find, as a present to their aged father, the White Cat gave the youngest of them a dog, so small that it was packed in wadding in a common acorn shell.

As soon as the acorn was opened, they all saw a little dog laid in cotton, and so small it might jump through a finger-ring without touching it.... It was a mixture of several colors; its ears and long hair reached to the ground. The prince set it on the ground, and forthwith the tiny creature began to dance a saraband with castanets.--Comtesse D’Aunoy,Fairy Tales(“The(“TheWhite Cat,” 1682)

Tony Lumpkin, a young booby, fond of practical jokes, and low company. He was the son of Mrs. Hardcastle by her first husband.--Goldsmith,She Stoops to Conquer(1773).

Tony Tyler, on the editorial staff of theTecumseh Chronicle. “He knows about eighteen hundred times as much as Samboye (managing editor) does, only somehow, he hasn’t the faculty of putting it on paper. Too much whiskey!”--Harold Frederic, Seth’s Brother’s Wife (1886).

Toodle, engine-fireman, an honest fellow, very proud of his wife, Polly, and her family.

Polly Toodle, known by the name of Richards, wife of the stoker. Polly was an apple-faced woman, and was mother of a large, apple-faced family. This jolly, homely, kind-hearted matron was selected as the nurse of Paul Dombey, and soon became devotedly attached to Paul and his sister, Florence.

Robin Toodle, known as “The Biler,” or “Rob the Grinder,” eldest son of Mrs. Toodle, wet-nurse of Paul Dombey. Mr. Dombey gets Robin into an institution called “The Charitable Grinders,” where the worst part of the boy’s character is freely developed. Robin becomes a sneak, and enters the service of James Carker, manager of the firm of Dombey and Son. On the death of Carker, Robin enters the service of Miss Lucretia Tox.--C. Dickens,Dombey and Son(1846).

Toom Tabard(“empty jacket”), a nickname given to John Balliol, because his appointment to the sovereignty of Scotland was an empty name. He had the royal robe or jacket, but nothing else (1259, 1292-1314).

Tooth Worshipped(A). The people of Ceylon worship the tooth of an elephant; those of Malabar, the tooth of a monkey. The Siamese once offered a Portuguese 700,000 ducats for the redemption of a monkey’s tooth.

Tooth-picks.The Romans used tooth-picks made of mastic wood, in preference to quills; hence, Rabelais says that Prince Gargantua “picked his teeth with mastic tooth-pickers” (s’escuroit les dents avecques ung trou de lentisce), bk. i. 23.

Lentiscum melius; sed si tibi frondea cuspisDefuerit, dentes, penna, levare potes.Martial,Epigrams, xx. 24.

Lentiscum melius; sed si tibi frondea cuspis

Defuerit, dentes, penna, levare potes.

Martial,Epigrams, xx. 24.

Toots(Mr.), an innocent, warm-heartedyoung man, just burst from the bonds of Dr. Blimber’s school, and deeply in love with Florence Dombey. He is famous for blushing, refusing what he longs to accept, and for saying, “Oh, it is of no consequence.” Being very nervous, he never appears to advantage, but in the main, “there were few better fellows in the world.”

“I assure you,” said Mr. Toots, “really I am dreadfully sorry, but it’s of no consequence.”--C. Dickens,Dombey and Son, xxviii. (1846).

Topas(Sir), a native of Poperyng, in Flanders; a capital sportsman, archer, wrestler, and runner. Chaucer calls him “Sir Thopas” (q.v.).

Topas(Sir). Sir Charles Dilke was so called by theArmy and Navy Gazette, November 25, 1871 (1810-1869).

Topham(Master Charles), usher of the black rod.--Sir W. Scott,Peveril of the Peak(time, Charles II.).

Topsy, a young slave-girl, who never knew whether she had either father or mother, and being asked by Miss Ophelia St. Clare, how she supposed she came into the world, replied, “I ’spects I growed.”--Harriet Beecher Stowe,Uncle Tom’s Cabin(1852).

Tor(Sir), the natural son of King Pellinore, and the wife of Aries, the cowherd. He was the first of the knights of the Round Table.--Sir. T. Malory,History of Prince Arthur, i. 24 (1470).

Toralva(The licentiate), mounted on a cane, was conveyed through the air with his eyes shut; in twelve hours he arrived at Rome, and the following morning returned to Madrid. During his flight he opened his eyes once, and found himself so near the moon that he could have touched it with his finger.--Cervantes,Don Quixote, II. iii. 5 (1615). (SeeTorralba.)

Tordenskiol[Tor´.den.skole], or the “Thunder-Shield.” So Peder Wessel, vice-admiral of Denmark (in the reign of Christian V.), was called. He was brought up as a tailor, and died in a duel.

From Denmark thunders Tordenskiol;Let each to heaven commend his soul,And fly.Longfellow,King Christian[V.].

From Denmark thunders Tordenskiol;

Let each to heaven commend his soul,

And fly.

Longfellow,King Christian[V.].

Torfe(Mr. George), provost of Orkney.--Sir W. Scott,The Pirate(time, William III.).

Tormes(Lazarillo de), by Diego Hurtado de Mendoza (sixteenth century); a kind of Gil Blas, whose adventures and roguish tricks are the first of a very popular sort of novel called theGusto Picaresco. Lesage has imitated it in hisGil Blas, and we have numberless imitations in our own language. (SeeTyll Owlyglass.)

The ideal Yankee, in whom European prejudice has combined the attractive traits of a Gines de Passamonte, a Joseph Surface, a Lazarillo de Tormes, a Scapin, a Thersitês, and an Autolycus.--W. H. Hurlburt.

⁂“Gines de Passamonte,”inDon Quixote, by Cervantes; “Joseph Surface,” inThe School for Scandal, by Sheridan; “Scapin,” inLes Fourberies de Scapin, by Molière; “Thersitês,” in Homer’s Iliad, i.; “Autolycus,” in theWinter’s Tale, by Shakespeare.

Tormot, youngest son of Torquil, of the Oak (foster-father of Eachin M’Ian).--Sir W. Scott,Fair Maid of Perth(time, Henry IV.).

Torquato, that is, Torquato Tasso, the Italian poet, author ofJerusalem Delivered(1544-1595). After the publication of his great epic, Tasso lived in the court of Ferrara, and conceived a violent passion for Leonora, one of the duke’s sisters, but fled, in 1577, to Naples.

Torquato’s tongueWas tuned for slavish pæans at the throneOf tinsel pomp.Akenside,Pleasures of Imagination, ii. (1744).

Torquato’s tongue

Was tuned for slavish pæans at the throne

Of tinsel pomp.

Akenside,Pleasures of Imagination, ii. (1744).

Torquil of the Oak, foster-father of Eachin M’Ian. He was chief of the clan Quhele, and had eight sons, the finest men in the clan. Torquil was a seer, who was supposed to have communication with the invisible world, and he declared a demon had told him that Eachin or Hector M’Ian, was the only man in the two hostile clans of Chattan and Quhele who would come off scathless in the approaching combat (ch xxvi.).--Sir W. Scott,Fair Maid of Perth(time, Henry IV.).

A parallel combat is described inThe Cid. When Sancho of Castile was stabbed by Bellĭdo of Zamora, Diego Ordoñez, of the house of Lara, challenged five of the knights of Zamora to a single combat. Don Arias Gonzalo and his four sons accepted the challenge. Pedro Arias was first slain, then his brother, Diego. Next came Herman, who received a mortal wound, but struck the charger of Diego Ordoñez. The charger, furious with pain, carried its rider beyond the lists, and the combat was declared to be drawn.

Torralba(Dr.), carried by the spirit Cequiel from Valladŏlid to Rome and back again in an hour and a half. He was tried by the Inquisition for sorcery (time, Charles V.).--Joseph de Ossau Pellicer (seventeenth century). (SeeToralva.)

Torre(Sir), son of Sir Bernard, baron of Astolat. His brother was Sir Lavaine, and his sister Elaine “the lily maid of Astolat.” He was blunt-mannered, but not without kindness of heart.--Tennyson,Idylls of the King(“Elaine”).

The word “Torre” is a blunder for Tirre. Sir Torre or Tor, according to Arthurian legend, was the natural son of Pellinore, king of Wales, “begotten of Aries’ wife, the cowherd” (pt. ii. 108). It was Sir Tirre who was the brother of Elaine (pt. iii. 122).--Sir T. Malory,History of Prince Arthur(1470).

Tor´rismond, general of the forces of Aragon. He falls in love with Leonora, the usurping queen, promised in marriage to Bertran, prince of the blood-royal, but she falls in love with Torrismond, who turns out to be the son of Sancho, the deposed king. Ultimately Sancho is restored, and Leonora is married to Torrismond.--Dryden,The Spanish Fryar(1680),

Torso Farne´se(3syl.), Dircê and her sons, the work of Apollonius and Tauriscus of Rhodes.

Toshach Beg, the “second” of M’Gillie Chattanach, chief of the clan Chattan, in the great combat.--Sir W. Scott,Fair Maid of Perth(time, Henry IV.).

Tottenham in Boots, a popular toast in Ireland in 1734. Mr. Tottenham gave the casting vote which threw out a Government bill very obnoxious to the Irish, on the subject of the Irish parliament. He had come from the country, and rushed into the House, without changing his boots just in time to give his vote, which prevented the bill from passing by a majority of one.

Totterly(Lord), an Adonis of 60, and aci-devant Jeune Homme.--C. Selby,The Unfinished Gentleman.

Touchet[Too-shay]. When Charles IX. introduced Henri of Navarre to Marie Touchet, the witty Navarrese made this anagram of her name,Je charme tout.

Touchetts(The).Mrs. Touchett, “plain-faced old woman, without coquetry, and without any great elegance, but with an extreme respect for her own motives. Mrs. Touchett might do a great deal of good, but she never pleases.” She lives in Florence, her husband in London.

Mr. Touchett, “a gentle, refined, fastidious old man, combining consummate shrewdness with a sort of fraternizing good humor.” His feeling about his own position in the world is of the democratic sort.

Ralph Touchett, philosophical invalid, whose interest in his cousin Isabel is believed by most people to be brotherly. In order that she may not feel obliged to marry for a support, he persuades his father to divide his (Ralph’s) inheritance into two equal parts and give one-half, unconditionally, to Isabel. She is married for this fortune, and, a miserable woman, comes against her husband’s will, to see her cousin die happy because she is with him.--Henry James, Jr.,Portrait of a Lady(1881).

Touchfaucet(Captain), in Picrochole’s army, taken captive by Friar John. Being presented to Grangousier and asked the cause of his king’s invasion, he replied, “To avenge the injury done to the cake-bakers of Lernê” (ch. 25, 26). Grangousier commanded his treasurer to give the friar 62,000 saluts (£15,500) in reward, and to Touchfaucet he gave “an excellent sword of a Vienne blade, with a gold scabbard, and a collar of gold weighing 702,000 merks (576,000 ounces), garnished with precious stones, and valued at £16,000 sterling, by way of present.” Returning to King Picrochole, he advised him to capitulate, whereupon Rashcalf cried aloud, “Unhappy the prince who has traitors for his counsellors!” and Touchfaucet, drawing “his new sword,” ran him through the body. The king demanded who gave him the sword, and being told the truth, ordered his guards “to hew him in pieces.”--Rabelais,Gargantua, i. 45-47 (1533).

Touching for the King’s Evil.It is said that scrofulous diseases were at one time very prevalent in the island, and that Edward the Confessor, in answer to earnest prayer, was told it would be cured by the royal touch. Edward, being gifted with this miraculous power, transmitted it as an heir-loom to his successors. Henry VII. presented each person touched with a small coin, called a touch-piece or touch-penny.

Charles II. of England, during his reign, touched as many as 92,107 persons; the smallest number (2983) being in the year 1669, and the largest number in 1684, when many were trampled to death (see Macaulay’sHistory of England, xiv.). In these “touchings,” John Brown, a royal surgeon, superintended the ceremony. (SeeMacbeth, act iv. sc. 3.)

Prince Charles Edward, who claimed to be prince of Wales, touched a female child for the disease in 1745.

The French kings claimed the same divine power from Anne of Clovis,A.D.481. And on Easter Sunday, 1686, Louis XIV. touched 1600, using these words,Le roy te touche, Dieu te guerisse.

⁂ Dr. Johnson was the last person touched. The touch-piece given to him has on one side this legend,Soli Deo gloria, and on the other side,Anna D: G. M. BR. F: et H. REG.(“Anne, by the grace of God, of Great Britain, France and Ireland, queen”).

Our good Edward he, the Confessor and king ...That cancred evil cured, bred ’twixt the throat and jaws,When physic could not find the remedy nor cause ...He of Almighty God obtained by earnest prayer,This tumor by a king might curêd be alone,Which he an heir-loom left unto the English throne.Drayton,Polyolbion, xi. (1613).

Our good Edward he, the Confessor and king ...

That cancred evil cured, bred ’twixt the throat and jaws,

When physic could not find the remedy nor cause ...

He of Almighty God obtained by earnest prayer,

This tumor by a king might curêd be alone,

Which he an heir-loom left unto the English throne.

Drayton,Polyolbion, xi. (1613).

Touchstone, a clown filled with “quips and cranks and wanton wiles.” The original of this character was Tarlton, the favorite court jester of Queen Elizabeth.--Shakespeare,As You Like It(1598).

His famous speech is “the seven degrees of affront:” (1) theretort courteous, (2) thequip modest, (3) thereply churlish, (4) thereproof valiant, (5) thecounter-check quarrelsome, (6) thelie circumstantial, (7) thelie direct(act v. sc. 4).

Touchwood(Colonel), “the most passionate, impatient, unreasonable, good-natured man in Christendom.” Uncle of Major and Clarissa Touchwood.

Sophia Touchwood, the colonel’s daughter, in love with her cousin, Major Touchwood. Her father wants her to marry Colonel Clifford, but the colonel has fixed his heart on Clarissa, the major’s sister.

Major Touchwood, nephew of Colonel Touchwood, and in love with his cousin, Sophia, the colonel’s daughter. He fancies that Colonel Clifford is his rival, but Clifford is in love with Clarissa, the major’s sister. This error forms the plot of the farce, and the mistakes which arise when the major dresses up to pass himself off for his uncle constitute its fun and entanglement.

Clarissa Touchwood, the major’s sister, in love with Colonel Clifford. They first met at Brighton, and the colonel thought her Christian name was Sophia; hence the major looked on him as a rival.--T. Dibdin,What Next?

Touchwood(Lord), uncle of Melle´font (2syl.).

Lady Touchwood, his wife, sister of Sir Paul Pliant. She entertains a criminal passion for her nephew, Mellefont, and, because he repels her advances, vows to ruin him. Accordingly, she tells her husband that the young man has sought to dishonor her, and when his lordship fancies that the statement of his wife must be greatly overstated, he finds Mellefont with Lady Touchwood in her own private chamber. This seems to corroborate the accusation laid to his charge, but it was an artful trick of Maskwell’s to make mischief, and in a short time a conversation which he overhears between Lady Touchwood and Maskwell reveals the whole infamous scheme most fully to the husband.--Congreve,The Double Dealer(1700).

(Lord and Lady Touchwood must not be mistaken forSir GeorgeandLady Frances Touchwood, who are very different characters.)

Their Wildairs, Sir John Brutes, Lady Touchwoods and Mrs Frails, are conventional reproductions of those wild gallants and demireps which figure in the licentious dramas of Dryden and Shadwell.--Sir W. Scott,The Drama.

⁂ “Wildair,” inThe Constant Couple, by Farquhar; “Brute,” inThe Provoked Wife, by Van Brugh; “Mrs. Frail,” inLove for Love, by Congreve.

Touchwood(Sir George), the loving husbandof Lady Frances, desperately jealous of her, and wishing to keep her out of all society, that she may not lose her native simplicity and purity of mind. Sir George is a true gentleman of most honorable feelings.

Lady Frances Touchwood, the sweet, innocent wife of Sir George Touchwood. Before her marriage she was brought up in seclusion in the country, and Sir George tries to keep her fresh and pure in London.--Mrs. Cowley,The Belle’s Stratagem(1780).

Touchwood(Peregrine), a touchy old East Indian, a relation of the Mowbray family.--Sir W. Scott,St. Ronan’s Well(time, George III.).

Tough(Mr.), an old barrister.--Sir W. Scott,Redgauntlet(time, George III.).

Touran.The death of the children of Touran forms one of the three tragic stories of the ancient Irish. The other two areThe Death of the Children of LirandThe Death of the Children of Usnach.

Tournemine(3syl.), a Jesuit of the eighteenth century, fond of the marvellous.“Il aimait le merveilleux et ne renonçait qu’avec peine à y croire.”

Il ressemble à Tournemine,Il croit ce qu’il imagine.French Proverb.

Il ressemble à Tournemine,

Il croit ce qu’il imagine.

French Proverb.

Touthope(Mr.), a Scotch attorney and clerk of the peace.--Sir W. Scott,Rob Roy(time, George I.).

She ordered the fellow to be drawn through a horse-pond, and then to be well rubbed down with an oaken towel.--The Adventure of My Aunt.

Tower of Hunger(The), Gualandi, the tower in which Ugolino with his two sons and two grandsons were starved to death in 1288.--Dantê,Inferno(1300).

Tower of London(The), was really built by Gundulphus, bishop of Rochester, in the reign of William I., but tradition ascribes it to Julius Cæsar.

Ye towers of Julius, London’s lasting shame.Gray,The Bard(1757).

Ye towers of Julius, London’s lasting shame.

Gray,The Bard(1757).

Tower of Vathek, built with the intention of reaching heaven, that Vathek might pry into the secrets seen by Mahomet. The staircase contained 11,000 stairs, and when the top was gained, men looked no bigger than pismires, and cities seemed mere bee-hives.--Beckford,Vathek(1784).

Townley Mysteries, certain religious dramas; so called, because the MS. containing them belonged to P. Townley. These dramas are supposed to have been acted at Widkirk Abbey, in Yorkshire. In 1831, they were printed for the Surtees Society under the editorship of the Rev. Joseph Hunter, and J. Stevenson. (SeeCoventry Mysteries.)

Townley(Colonel), attached to Berinthia, a handsome young widow, but in order to win her he determines to excite her jealousy, and therefore pretends love to Amanda, her cousin. Amanda, however, repels his attentions with disdain; and the colonel, seeing his folly, attaches himself to Berinthia.--Sheridan,A Trip to Scarborough(1777).

Townley(Lord) a nobleman of generous mind and high principle, liberal and manly. Though very fond of his wife, he insists on a separation because she is so extravagant and self-willed. Lady Townlysees at length the folly of her ways, and promises amendment, whereupon the husband relents and receives her into favor again.

Lady Townly, the gay, but not unfaithful young wife of Lord Townley, who thinks that the pleasure of life consists in gambling; she “cares nothing for her husband,” but “loves almost everything he hates.” She says:

I dote upon assemblies; my heart bounds at a ball; and at an opera, I expire. Then I love play to distraction; cards enchant me; and dice put me out of my little wits.--Vanbrugh and Cibber,The Provoked Husband, iii. 1 (1728).

(Mrs. Pritchard, Margaret Woffington, Miss Brunton, Miss M. Tree, and Miss E. Tree, were all excellent in this favorite part.)

Tox(Miss Lucretia), the bosom friend of Mr. Dombey’s married sister (Mrs. Chick). Miss Lucretia was a faded lady, “as if she had not been made in fast colors,” and was washed out. She “ambled through life without any opinions, and never abandoned herself to unavailing regrets.” She greatly admired Mr. Dombey, and entertained a forlorn hope that she might be selected by him to supply the place of his deceased wife. Miss Tox lived in Princess’s Place, and maintained a weak flirtation with a Major Bagstock, who was very jealous of Mr. Dombey.--C. Dickens,Dombey and Son(1846).

Tozer, one of the ten young gentlemen in the school of Dr. Blimber, when Paul Dombey was there. A very solemn lad, whose “shirt-collar curled up the lobes of his ears.”--C. Dickens,Dombey and Son(1846).

Trabb, a prosperous old bachelor, a tailor by trade.

He was having his breakfast in the parlor behind the shop.... He had sliced his hot roll into three feather-beds, and was slipping butter in between the blankets.... He was a prosperous old bachelor, and his open window looked into a prosperous little garden and orchard, and there was a prosperous iron safe let into the wall at the side of the fireplace, and without doubt, heaps of his prosperity were put away in it in bags.--Dickens,Great Expectations(1860).

Traddles, a simple, honest young man, who believes in everybody and everything. Though constantly failing, he is never depressed by his want of success. He had the habit of brushing his hair up on end, which gave him a look of surprise.

At the Creakle’s school, when I was miserable, he [Traddles] would lay his head on the desk for a little while, and then, cheering up, would draw skeletons all over his slate.--C. Dickens,David Copperfield, vii.(1849).

Trade´love(Mr.), a broker on ’Change, one of the four guardians of Anne Lovely, the heiress. He was “a fellow that would out-lie the devil, for the advantage of stock, and cheat his own father in a bargain. He was a great stickler for trade, and hated every one that wore a sword” (act. i. 1). Colonel Feignwell passed himself off as a Dutch merchant named Jan van Timtamtirelereletta herr van Feignwell, and made a bet with Tradelove. Tradelove lost, and cancelled the debt by giving his consent to the marriage of his ward to the supposed Dutchman.--Mrs. Centlivre,A Bold Stroke for a Wife(1717).

Tragedy(Father of Greek), Thespis, a traditional actor of Athens. Æschylos is also called “The Father of Greek Tragedy” (B.C.525-426).

Tragedy of Gorboduc, otherwise entitled theTragedy of Ferrex and Porrex, the earliest English tragedy, was the joint production of Thomas Sackville, afterwardsLord Buckhurst, and earl of Dorset, and Thomas Norton, a Puritan clergyman. It was produced before Queen Elizabeth, at Whitehall, January 18, 1562. Sackville was already known as the most important of the writers who produced “The Mirror for Magistrates,” a collection of narratives of various remarkable English historical personages, which was first published in 1559. Norton had been associated with Sternhold and Hopkins in their metrical version of thePsalms. On the title-page of the first edition of Gorboduc, published in 1565, without the consent of the authors, it is stated that the first three acts were written by Norton and the last two by Sackville, but Charles Lamb expresses himself “willing to believe that Lord Buckhurst supplied the more vital parts.”

Trainband, the volunteer artillery, whose ground for practice was in Moorfields.

A trainband captain eke was he,Of famous London town.Cowper,John Gilpin(1782).

A trainband captain eke was he,

Of famous London town.

Cowper,John Gilpin(1782).

Trajan(The Second), Marcus Aurelius Claudius, surnamed Gothĭcus, noted for his valor, justice, and goodness (215, 268-270).

Trajan and St. Gregory.It is said that Trajan, although unbaptized, was delivered from hell in answer to the prayers of St. Gregory.

There was storied on the rockThe exalted glory of the Roman prince,Whose mighty worth moved Gregory to earn.His mighty conquest--Trajan, the emperor.Dantê,Purgatory, xi. (1308).

There was storied on the rock

The exalted glory of the Roman prince,

Whose mighty worth moved Gregory to earn.

His mighty conquest--Trajan, the emperor.

Dantê,Purgatory, xi. (1308).

Trajan and the Importunate Widow.One day a mother appeared before the Emperor Trajan, and cried, “Grant vengeance, sire! My son is murdered.” The emperor replied, “I cannot stop now; wait till I return.” “But, sire,” pleaded the widow, “if you do not return, who will grant me justice?” “My successor,” said Trajan. “And can Trajan leave to another the duty that he himself is appointed to perform?” On hearing this the emperor stopped his cavalcade, heard the woman’s cause, and granted her suit. Dantê tells this tale in hisPurgatory, xi.--John of Salisbury,Polycraticos de Curialium Nugis, v. 8 (twelfthtwelfthcentury).

Dion Cassius (Roman Historia, lxix.) tells the same story of Hadrian. When a woman appeared before him with a suit as he was starting on a journey, the emperor put her off, saying, “I have no leisure now.” She replied, “If Hadrian has no leisure to perform his duties, let him cease to reign!” On hearing this reproof he dismounted from his horse and gave ear to the woman’s cause.

A woman once made her appeal to Philip of Macedon, who, being busy at the time, petulantly exclaimed, “Woman, I have no time now for such matters.” “If Philip has no time to render justice,” said the woman, “then it is high time for Philip to resign!” The king felt the rebuke, heard the cause patiently, and decided it justly.

Tramecksan and Slamecksan, the High-heels and Low-heels, two great political factions of Lilliput. The animosity of these Guelphs and Ghibellines of punydom ran so high “that no High-heel would eat or drink with a Low-heel, and no Low-heel would salute or speak to a High-heel.” The king of Lilliput was a High-heel, but the heir-apparent a Low-heel.--Swift,Gulliver’s Travels(“Voyage to Lilliput.” iv., 1726).

Tramp(Gaffer), a peasant at the execution of old Meg Mudochson.--Sir W.Scott,Heart of Midlothian(time, George II.).

Tramtrist(Sir), the name assumed by Sir Tristram, when he went to Ireland to be cured of his wounds after his combat with Sir Marhaus. Here La Belle Isold (or Isold “the Fair”) was his leech, and the young knight fell in love with her. When the queen discovered that Sir Tramtrist was Sir Tristram, who had killed her brother, Sir Marhaus, in combat, she plotted to take his life, and he was obliged to leave the island. La Belle Isold subsequently married King Mark of Cornwall, but her heart was ever fixed on her brave young patient.--Sir T. Malory,History of Prince Arthur, ii. 9-12 (1470).

Tranchera, Agricane’s sword which afterwards belonged to Brandimart.--Ariosto,Orlando Furioso(1516).

Tra´nio, one of the servants of Lucentio, the gentleman who marries Bianca (the sister of Kathari´na, “the Paduan shrew”).--Shakespeare,Taming of the Shrew(1594).

Transfer, a usurer, who is willing to advance Sir George Wealthy a sum of money on these easy terms: (1) 5 per cent. interest; (2) 10 per cent. premium; (3) 5 per cent. for insuring the young man’s life; (4) a handsome present to himself as broker; (5) the borrower to pay all expenses; and (6) the loan not to be in cash but goods, which are to be taken at a valuation and sold at auction at the borrower’s sole hazard. These terms are accepted, and Sir George promises besides a handsomedouceurto Loader for having found a usurer so promptly.--Foote,The Minor(1760).

Transformations.In the art of transformation, one of the most important things was a ready wit to adopt in an instant some form which would give you an advantage over your adversary; thus, if your adversary appeared as a mouse, you must change into an owl, then your adversary would become an arrow to shoot the owl, and you would assume the form of fire to burn the arrow, whereupon your adversary would become water to quench the fire; and he who could outwit the other would come off victorious. The two best examples I know of this sort of contest are to be found, one in theArabian Nights, and the other in theMabinogion.

The former is the contest between the Queen of Beauty and the son of the daughter of Eblis. He appeared as a scorpion, she in a moment became a serpent; whereupon he changed into an eagle, she into a more powerful black eagle; he became a cat, she a wolf; she instantly changed into a worm and crept into a pomegranite, which in time burst, whereupon he assumed the form of a cock to devour the seed, but it became a fish; the cock then became a pike, but the princess became a blazing fire, and consumed her adversary before he had time to change.--“The Second Calendar.”

The other is the contest between Caridwen and Gwion Bach. Bach fled as a hare, she changed into a greyhound; whereupon he became a fish, she an otter-bitch, he instantly became a bird, she a hawk; but he became as quick as thought a grain of wheat. Caridwen now became a hen, and made for the wheat-corn and devoured him.--“Taliesin.”

Translator-General.Philemon Holland is so called by Fuller, in hisWorthies of England. Holland translated Livy, Pliny, Plutarch, Suetonius, Xenophon,and several other classic authors (1551-1636).

Transome(Harold), takes a leading part in George Eliot’s novelFelix Holt.

Transome(Mrs). Mother of Harold.

Trapbois(Old), a miser in Alsatia. Even in his extreme age, “he was believed to understand the plucking of a ‘pigeon’ better than any man in Alsatia.”

Martha Trapbois, the miser’s daughter, a cold, decisive, masculine woman, who marries Richie Moniplies.--Sir W. Scott,The Fortunes of Nigel(time, James I.).

Trapper(The). One of the titles of Natty Bumpo, a character introduced into several of Cooper’s novels. InThe Pioneers, he bears his own name, in others he is “The Trapper,” “The Deerslayer,” “The Pathfinder,” “The Hawk-eye” and “Leatherstocking.”

Traveller(The). The scheme of this poem is very simple: The poet supposes himself seated among Alpine solitudes, looking down upon a hundred kingdoms. He would fain find some spot where happiness can be attained, but the natives of each realm think their own the best; yet the amount of happiness in each is pretty well equal. To illustrate this, the poet describes the manners and government of Italy, Switzerland, France, Holland, and England.--O. Goldsmith (1764).

Traveller(Mr.), the stranger who tried to reason with Mr. Mopes and bring him back to society, but found the truth of the tinker’s remark, “When iron is thoroughly rotten, you cannot botch it.”--C. Dickens,A Christmas Number(1861).

Travellers’ Tales.Marco Polo says,

“Certain islands lie so far north in the Northern Ocean, that one going thither actually leaves the pole-star a trifle behind to the south.”

A Dutch skipper told Master Noxon, the hydrographer of Charles II., that he had himself sailed two degrees beyond the pole.

Maundeville says, in Prester John’s country is a sea of sand which ebbs and flows in great waves without one drop of water. This sea, says the knight of St. Alban’s, men find full of right good fish of most delicious eating.

At the time of the discovery of America by Columbus, many marvellous tales were rife in Spain. It was said that in one part of the coast of El Nombre de Dios, the natives had such long ears that one ear served for bed and the other for counterpane. This reminds one of Gwevyl mab Gwestad, one of whose lips hung down to his waist, and the other covered his head like a cowl. Another tale was that one of the crew of Columbus had come across a people who lived on sweet scents alone, and were killed by foul smells. This invention was hardly original, inasmuch as both Plutarch and Pliny tell us of an Indian people who lived on sweet odors, and Democrĭtos lived for several days on the mere effluvia of hot bread. Another tale was that the noses of these smell-feeders were so huge that their heads were all nose. We are also told of one-eyed men; of men who carried their heads under one of their arms; of others whose head was in their breast; of others who were conquered, not by arms, but by their priests holding up before them a little ivory crucifix--a sort of Christian version of the taking of Jericho by the blast of the rams’ horns of the Levites in the time of Joshua.

Travels ... in Remote Nations,by “Lemuel Gulliver.” He is first shipwrecked and cast on the coast of Lilliput, a country of pygmies. Subsequently he is thrown among the people of Brobdingnag, giants of tremendous size. In his third expedition he is driven to Lapūta, an empire of quack pretenders to science and knavish projectors. And in his fourth voyage he visits the Houyhnhnms [Whin´.n´me], where horses were the dominant powers.--Dean Swift (1726).

Travers, a retainer of the earl of Northumberland.--Shakespeare,Henry IV.(1598).

Travers(Sir Edmund), an oldbachelorbachelor, the guardian and uncle of Lady Davenant. He is a tedious gossip, fond of meddling, prosy, and wise in his own conceit. “It is surprising,” he says, “how unwilling people are to hear my stories. When in parliament I make a speech, there is nothing but coughing, hemming, and shuffling of feet--no desire of information.” By his instigation, the match was broken off between his niece and Captain Dormer, and she was given in marriage to Lord Davenant, but it turned out that his lordship was already married, and his wife living.--Cumberland,The Mysterious Husband(1783).

Travia´ta, an opera, representing the progress of a courtezan. Music by Verdi, and libretto fromLa Dame aux Came´lias, a novel by Alexandre Dumasfils(1856).

Treachery of the Long-Knives(The). Hengist invited the chief British nobles to a conference at Ambresbury, but arranged that a Saxon should be seated beside each Briton. At the given signal, each Saxon was to slay his neighbor with his long knife, and as many as 460 British nobles fell. Eidiol, earl of Gloucester escaped, after killing seventy (some say 660) of the Saxons.--Welsh Triads.

Stonehenge was erected by Merlin, at the command of Ambrosius, in memory of the plot of the “Long-Knives.”... He built it on the site of a former circle. It deviates from older bardic circles, as may be seen by comparing it with Avebury, Stanton-Drew, Keswick, etc.--Cambrian Biography, art. “Merddin.”

Trecentisti, the Italian writers of the “Trecento” (thirteenth century). They were Dantê (1265-1321); Petrarch (1304-1374); Boccaccio (1313-1375), who wrote theDecameron. Among the famous artists were Giotto, Lorenzo Ghiberti, and Andre Orcagna. (SeeCinquecento, Seicento.)

In Italy he’d ape the Trecentisti.Byron,Don Juan, iii. 86 (1820).

In Italy he’d ape the Trecentisti.

Byron,Don Juan, iii. 86 (1820).

Tree(The Bleeding). One of the superstitous tales told of the marquis of Argyll, so hated by the royalists for the part he took in the execution of Montrose, was this: “That a tree on which thirty-six of his enemies were hanged was immediately blasted, and when hewn down, a copious stream of blood ran from it, saturating the earth, and that blood for several years flowed out from the roots.”--Laing,History of Scotland, ii. 11 (1800);State Trials, ii. 422.

Tree(The Poet’s), a tree which grows over the tomb of Tan-Sein, a musician at the court of [Mohammed] Akbar. Whoever chews a leaf of this tree, will be inspired with a divine melody of voice.--W. Hunter.

His voice was as sweet as if he had chewed the leaves of that enchanted tree, which grows over the tomb of the musician, Tan-Sein.--Moore,Lalla Rookh(1817).

Tree(The Singing), a tree, each leaf ofwhich was musical, and all the leaves joined together in delightful harmony.--Arabian Nights(“The Story of the Sisters who envied their Younger Sister”).

In theFairy Talesof the Comtesse D’Aunoy, there is a similar tale of a tree which bore “the singing apple,” but whoever ate of this fruit received the inspiration of poetry as well.--“Cherry and Fairstar.”

Tregeagle, the giant of Dosmary Pool, on Bodmin Downs (Cornwall). When the wintry winds blare over the downs, it is said to be the giant howling.

Trelawny Ballad(The), is by the Rev. R. S. Hawker, of Morwenstow.--Notes and Queries, 441 (June, 1876).

Tremor(Sir Luke), a desperate coward, living in India, who made it a rule never to fight, either in his own house, his neighbor’s house, or in the street. This prudent desperado is everlastingly snubbing his wife. (SeeTrippet.)

Lady Tremor, daughter of a grocer, and grandchild of a wig-maker. Very sensitive on the subject of her plebeian birth, and wanting to be thought a lady of high family.--Mrs. Inchbald,Such Things Are(1786).

Tremydd ap Tremhidydd, the man with the keenest sight of all mortals. He could discern “a mote in the sunbeam in any of the four quarters of the world.” Clustfein ap Clustfeinydd was no less celebrated for his acuteness of hearing, “his ear being distressed by the movement of dew, in June, over a blade of grass.” The meaning of these names is, “Sight, the son of Seer,” and “Ear, the son of Hearer.”--The Mabinogion(“Notes to Geraint,” etc., twelfth century).

Trenmor, great-grandfather of Fingal, and king of Morven (north-west of Scotland). His wife was Inibaca, daughter of the king of Lochlin or Denmark.--Ossian,Fingal, vi.

InTemora, ii. he is called the first king of Ireland, and father of Conar.

Trent(Fred), the scapegrace brother of little Nell. “He was a young man of one and twenty, well-made, and certainly handsome, but dissipated, and insolent in air and bearing.” The mystery of Fred Trent and little Nell is cleared up in ch. lxix.--C. Dickens,The Old Curiosity Shop(1840).

Tres(Scriptores): Richardus Corinensis, or Richard of Cirencester (fourteenth century); Gildus Badonicus; and Nennius Banchorensis; published by Professor Bertram (1757).

Tresham(Mr.), senior partner of Mr. Osbaldistone, Sr.--Sir W. Scott,Rob Roy(time, George I.).

Tresham(Richard), same as General Witherington, who first appears as Matthew Middlemas.

Richard Tresham, the son of General Witherington. He is also called Richard Middlemas.--Sir W. Scott,The Surgeon’s Daughter(time, George II.).

Tresham(Thorold, Lord), head of a noble family, whose boast was, that “no blot had ever stained their ’scutcheon,” though the family ran back into pre-historic times. He was a young, unmarried man, with a sister, Mildred, a girl of 14, living with him. His near neighbor, Henry, earl of Mertoun, asked permission to pay his addresses to Mildred, and Thorold accepted the proposal with much pleasure. Theold warrener next day told Thorold he had observed for several weeks that a young man climbed into Mildred’s chamber at night-time, and he would have spoken before, but did not like to bring his young mistress into trouble. Thorold wrung from his sister an acknowledgement of the fact, but she refused to give up the name, yet said she was quite willing to marry the earl. This Thorold thought would be dishonorable, and resolved to lie in wait for the unknown visitor. On his approach, Thorold discovered it was the earl of Mertoun, and he slew him, then poisoned himself, and Mildred died of a broken heart.--Robert Browning,A Blot on the ’Scutcheon.

Tressilian(Edmund), the betrothed of Amy Robsart. Amy marries the earl of Leicester, and is killed by falling into a deep pit, to which she has been cruelly inveigled.--Sir W. Scott,Kenilworth(time, Elizabeth).

Tre´visan(Sir), a knight to whom Despair gave a hempen rope, that he might go and hang himself.--Spenser,Faëry Queen, i. (1590).

Tribulation[Wholesome], a pastor of Amsterdam, who thinks “the end will sanctify the means,” and uses “the children of perdition” to promote his own object, which he calls the “work of God.” He is one of the dupes of Subtle, “the alchemist,” and his factotum, Face.--Ben Jonson,The Alchemist(1610).

Tribune of the People(The), John Bright (1811-1889).

Tricolor, the national badge of France since 1789. It consists of the Bourbonwhitecockade, and theblue and redcockade of the city of Paris combined. It was Lafayette who devised this symbolical union of king and people, and when he presented it to the nation, “Gentlemen,” said he, “I bring you a cockade that shall make a tour of the world.” (SeeStornello Verses.)

If you will wear a livery, let it at least be that of the city of Paris--blue and red, my friends.--Dumas,Six Years Afterwards, xv. (1846).

Tricoteuses de Robespierre(Les), Robespierre’s Knitters. During the sittings of the Convention and at those of the popular Clubs and the Revolutionary Tribunal, certain women were always seen knitting. Encouraged by the rabble they carried their insolence so far that they were called the Furies of the Guillotine. They disappeared with the Jacobins.--Bouillet,Dict. Universel.

Triermain(The Bridal of), a poem by Sir Walter Scott, in four cantos, with introduction and conclusion (1813). In the introduction, Arthur is represented as the person who tells the tale to Lucy, his bride. Gyneth, a natural daughter of King Arthur and Guendŏlen, was promised in marriage to the bravest knight in a tournament; but she suffered so many combatants to fall, without awarding the prize, that Merlin threw her into an enchanted sleep, from which she was not to wake till a knight as brave as those who had fallen claimed her in marriage. After the lapse of 500 years, Sir Roland de Vaux, baron of Triermain, undertook to break the spell, but had first to overcome four temptations, viz., fear, avarice, pleasure and ambition. Having come off more than conqueror, Gyneth awoke and became his bride.

Trifal´di(The countess), called “The Afflicted Duenna” of the Princess Antonomasia(heiress to the throne of Candaya). She was called Trifaldi from her robe, which was divided into three triangles, each of which was supported by a page. The face of this duenna was, by the enchantment of the giant, Malambru´no, covered with a large, rough beard, but when Don Quixote mounted Clavilēno, the Winged, “the enchantment was dissolved.”

The renowned knight, Don Quixote de la Mancha, hath achieved the adventure merely by attempting it. Malambruno is appeased, and the chin of the Dolorida dueña is again beardless.--Cervantes,Don Quixote, II. iii. 4, 5 (1615).

Trifal´dinof the “Bushy Beard” (white as snow), the gigantic squire of “The Afflicted Duenna,” the Countess Trifaldi.--Cervantes,Don Quixote, II. iii. 4 (1615).

Trifle(Miss Penelopé), an old maiden sister of Sir Penurious Trifle. Stiff as a ramrod, prim as fine airs and graces could make her, fond of long words, and delighting in phrases modelled in true Johnsonian ponderosity.

Trifle(Miss Sukey), daughter of Sir Penurious, tricked into marriage with Mr. Hartop, a young spendthrift, who fell in love with her fortune.

⁂ Sir Penurious Trifle is not introduced, but Hartop assumes his character, and makes him fond of telling stale and pointless stories. He addresses Sir Gregory as “you knight.”--Foote,The Knights(1754).

Trim(Corporal), Uncle Toby’s orderly. Faithful, simple-minded and most affectionate. Voluble in speech, but most respectful. Half companion, but never forgetting he is his master’s servant. Trim is the duplicate of Uncle Toby in delf. The latter at all times shows himself the officer and the gentleman, born to command and used to obedience, while the former always carries traces of the drillyard, and shows that he has been accustomed to receive orders with deference, and to execute them with military precision. It is a great compliment to say that the corporal was worthy such a noble master.--Sterne,The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy(1759).

Trimalchi, a celebrated cook in the reign of Nero, mentioned by Petronius. He had the art of giving to the most common fish the flavor and appearance of the best. Like Ude, in our own day, he said that “sauces are the soul of cookery, and cookery the soul of festivity,” or, as the cat’s-meat man observed, “’tis the seasonin’ as does it.”

Trin´culo, a jester.--Shakespeare,The Tempest(1609).

A miscarriage ... would (like the loss of Trinculo’s bottle in the horse-pond) be attended not only with dishonor but with infinite loss.--Sir W. Scott.

Trin´ket(Lord), a man of fashion and a libertine.

He is just polite enough to be able to be very unmannerly, with a great deal of good breeding; is just handsome enough to make him excessively vain of his person; and has just reflection enough to finish him for a coxcomb; qualifications ... very common among ... men of quality.--G. Colman,The Jealous Wife, ii. (1761).

Tri´nobants, people of Trinoban´tium, that is, Middlesex and Essex. Their chief town was Trin´ovant, nowLondon.

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