She falleth in her way with Weedon, where, ’tis said,St. Werburg, princely born--a most religious maid--From those peculiar fields, by prayer the wild geese drove.Drayton,Polyolbion, xxiii. (1622).
She falleth in her way with Weedon, where, ’tis said,St. Werburg, princely born--a most religious maid--From those peculiar fields, by prayer the wild geese drove.Drayton,Polyolbion, xxiii. (1622).
She falleth in her way with Weedon, where, ’tis said,St. Werburg, princely born--a most religious maid--From those peculiar fields, by prayer the wild geese drove.Drayton,Polyolbion, xxiii. (1622).
She falleth in her way with Weedon, where, ’tis said,
St. Werburg, princely born--a most religious maid--
From those peculiar fields, by prayer the wild geese drove.
Drayton,Polyolbion, xxiii. (1622).
Were-wolf(2syl.), a man-wolf, a man transformed into a wolf temporarily or otherwise.
Oft through the forest dark,Followed the weir-wolf’s bark.Longfellow,The Skeleton in Armor.
Oft through the forest dark,Followed the weir-wolf’s bark.Longfellow,The Skeleton in Armor.
Oft through the forest dark,Followed the weir-wolf’s bark.Longfellow,The Skeleton in Armor.
Oft through the forest dark,
Followed the weir-wolf’s bark.
Longfellow,The Skeleton in Armor.
Werner, the boy said to have been crucified at Bacharach, on the Rhine, by the Jews. (SeeHugh of Lincoln.)
The innocent boy who, some years back,Was taken and crucified by the JewsIn that ancient town of Bacharach.Longfellow,The Golden Legend(1851).
The innocent boy who, some years back,Was taken and crucified by the JewsIn that ancient town of Bacharach.Longfellow,The Golden Legend(1851).
The innocent boy who, some years back,Was taken and crucified by the JewsIn that ancient town of Bacharach.Longfellow,The Golden Legend(1851).
The innocent boy who, some years back,
Was taken and crucified by the Jews
In that ancient town of Bacharach.
Longfellow,The Golden Legend(1851).
WernerorKruitzner(Count of Siegendorf), father of Ulric. Being driven from the dominions of his father, he wandered about for twelve years as a beggar, hunted from place to place by Count Stral´enheim. At length, Stralenheim, travelling through Silesia, was rescued from the Oder by Gabor (aliasUlric), and was lodged in an old tumble-down palace, where Werner had been lodging for some few days. Here Werner robbed the count of a rouleau of gold, the next day the count was murdered by Ulric (without the connivance or even knowledge of Werner). When Werner succeeded to the rank and wealth of Count Siegendorf, he became aware that his son, Ulric, was the murderer, and denounced him. Ulric departed, and Werner said, “The race of Siegendorf is past.”--Byron,Werner(1821).
(This drama is borrowed from “Kruitzner, or The German’s Tale,” in Miss H. Lee’sCanterbury Tales, 1797-1805).
Werner.(SeeTrumpeter of Sackingen.)
Werther, a young German student, of poetic fancy and very sensitive disposition, who falls in love with Lotte (2syl.), the betrothed and afterwards the wife of Albert. Werther becomes acquainted with Lotte’s husband, who invites him to stay with him as a guest. In this visit his love blazes out into a terrible passion, and after vainly striving to fight it down, he puts an end to his misery by shooting himself.--Goethe,The Sorrows of Young Werther(1774).
⁂ Goethe represents himself, or rather one of the moods of his mind, in the character of Werther. The catastrophe, however, is borrowed from the fate of a schoolfellow of his named Jerusalem, who shot himself on account of a hopeless passionfor a married woman. “Albert” and “Lotte” were sketched from his friends Albert and Charlotte Kestner, a young couple with whom he had relations not unlike those of Werther in the early part of the story with the fictitious characters.
Werther of Politics.The marquis of Londonderry is so called by Lord Byron. Werther, the personification of maudlin sentimentality, is the hero of Goethe’s romance entitledThe Sorrows of Young Werther(1774).
It is the first time since the Normans that England has been insulted by aministerwho could not speak English, and that parliament permitted itself to be dictated to in the language of Mrs. Malaprop.... Let us hear no more of this man, and let Ireland remove the ashes of her Grattan from the sanctuary of Westminster. Shall the Patriot of Humanity repose by the Werther of Politics?--Byron,Don Juan(preface to canto vi., etc., 1824).
Wessel(Peder), a tailor’s apprentice, who rose to the rank of vice-admiral of Denmark, in the reign of Christian V. He was called Tor´denskiold (3syl.), corrupted into Tordenskiol (the “Thunder Shield”), and was killed in a duel.
North Sea! a glimpse of Wessel rentThy murky sky ...From Denmark thunders Tordenskiol;Let each to heaven commend his soul,And fly.Longfellow,King Christian[V.].
North Sea! a glimpse of Wessel rentThy murky sky ...From Denmark thunders Tordenskiol;Let each to heaven commend his soul,And fly.Longfellow,King Christian[V.].
North Sea! a glimpse of Wessel rentThy murky sky ...From Denmark thunders Tordenskiol;Let each to heaven commend his soul,And fly.Longfellow,King Christian[V.].
North Sea! a glimpse of Wessel rent
Thy murky sky ...
From Denmark thunders Tordenskiol;
Let each to heaven commend his soul,
And fly.
Longfellow,King Christian[V.].
West Indian(The), a comedy by R. Cumberland (1771). Mr. Belcour, the adopted son of a wealthy Jamaica merchant, on the death of his adopted father came to London, to the house of Mr. Stockwell, once the clerk of Mr. Belcour, senior. This clerk had secretly married Belcour’s daughter, and when her boy was born it was “laid as a foundling at her father’s door.” Old Belcour brought the child up as his own son, and at death “bequeathed to him his whole estate.” The young man then came to London as the guest of Mr. Stockwell, the rich merchant, and accidentally encountered in the street Miss Louisa Dudley, with whom he fell in love. Louisa, with her father, Captain Dudley, and her brother, Charles, all in the greatest poverty, were lodging with a Mr. Fulmer, a small bookseller. Belcour gets introduced, and, after the usual mistakes and hairbreadth escapes, makes her his wife.
Western(Squire), a jovial, fox-hunting country gentleman, supremely ignorant of book-learning, very prejudiced, selfish, irascible and countrified; but shrewd, good-natured, and very fond of his daughter, Sophia.
Philip, earl of Pembroke and Montgomery, was in character a Squire Western, choleric, boisterous, illiterate, selfish, absurd and cowardly.--Osborne,Secret History, i. 218.
Squire Western stands alone; imitated from no prototype, and in himself an inimitable picture of ignorance, prejudice, irascibility and rusticity, united with natural shrewdness, constitutional good humor, and an instinctive affection for his daughter.--Encyc. Brit., Art. “Fielding.”
Sophia Western, daughter of Squire Western. She becomes engaged to Tom Jones, the foundling.--Fielding,Tom Jones(1749).
There now are no Squire Westerns, as of old;And our Sophias are not so emphatic,But fair as them or fairer to behold.Byron,Don Juan, xiii. 110 (1824).
There now are no Squire Westerns, as of old;And our Sophias are not so emphatic,But fair as them or fairer to behold.Byron,Don Juan, xiii. 110 (1824).
There now are no Squire Westerns, as of old;And our Sophias are not so emphatic,But fair as them or fairer to behold.Byron,Don Juan, xiii. 110 (1824).
There now are no Squire Westerns, as of old;
And our Sophias are not so emphatic,
But fair as them or fairer to behold.
Byron,Don Juan, xiii. 110 (1824).
Westlock(John), a quondam pupil of Mr. Pecksniff (“architect and land surveyor”). John Westlock marries Ruth, the sister of Tom Pinch.--C. Dickens,Martin Chuzzlewit(1843).
Westmoreland, according to fable, is West-Mar-land. Mar or Marius, son of Arvirăgus, was king of the British, and overthrew Rodric, the Scythian, in the north-west of England, where he set up a stone with an inscription of this victory, “both of which remain to this day.”--Geoffrey,British History, iv. 17 (1142).
Westward Hoe, a comedy by Thomas Dekker (1607). The Rev. Charles Kingsley published a novel in 1854, entitledWestward Ho!orThe Voyages and Adventures of Sir Amyas Leigh in the Reign of Queen Elizabeth. (SeeEastward Hoe.)
Wetheral(Stephen), surnamed “Stephen Steelheart,” in the troop of Lord Waldemar Fitzurse (a baron following Prince John).--Sir W. Scott,Ivanhoe(time, Richard I.).
Wetherell(Elizabeth), Miss Susan Warner, authoress ofThe Wide, Wide World(1852),Queechy(1853), etc.
Wetzweiler(Tid), orLe Glorieux, the court jester of Charles, “The Bold,” duke of Burgundy.--Sir W. Scott,Quentin Durward(time, Edward IV.).
Whachum, journeyman to Sidrophel. He was Richard Green, who published a pamphlet of base ribaldry, calledHudibras in a Snare(1667).
A paltry wretch he had, half-starved,That him in place of zany served,Hight Whachum.S. Butler,Hudibras, ii. 3 (1664).
A paltry wretch he had, half-starved,That him in place of zany served,Hight Whachum.S. Butler,Hudibras, ii. 3 (1664).
A paltry wretch he had, half-starved,That him in place of zany served,Hight Whachum.S. Butler,Hudibras, ii. 3 (1664).
A paltry wretch he had, half-starved,
That him in place of zany served,
Hight Whachum.
S. Butler,Hudibras, ii. 3 (1664).
Whang, an avaricious Chinese miller, who, by great thrift, was pretty well off, but, one day, being told that a neighbor had found a pot of money which he had dreamt of, began to be dissatisfied with his slow gains, and longed for a dream also. At length the dream came. He dreamt there was a huge pot of gold concealed under his mill, and set to work to find it. The first omen of success was a broken mug, then a house-tile, and at length, after much digging, he came to a stone so large that he could not lift it. He ran to tell his luck to his wife, and the two tugged at the stone, but, as they removed it, down fell the mill in utter ruins.--Goldsmith,A Citizen of the World, lxx. (1759).
Wharton(Eliza), heroine of one of the first novels published in the United States, under the title ofThe Coquette, orThe History of Eliza Wharton, by Hannah Webster Foster (1797).
Whartons(The).Henry Wharton, young royalist captain, arrested as a spy while visiting his father’s house, which is within the American lines. He is assisted to escape by Harvey Birch.
Sarah Wharton, the elder daughter, has royalist proclivities;Francesis loyal to the colonial cause, and betrothed to Major Dunwoodie.
Mr. Wharton(père), fine specimen of the old English gentleman.--James Fenimore Cooper,The Spy(1821).
What Next?A farce by T. Dibdin. Colonel Clifford meets at Brighton two cousins, Sophia and Clarissa Touchwood, and falls in love with the latter, who is the sister of Major Touchwood, but thinks her Christian name is Sophia, and so is accepted by Sophia’s father, who is Colonel Touchwood. Now, it so happens that Major Touchwood is in love with his cousin, Sophia, and looks on Colonel Clifford as his rival. The major tries to outwit his supposed rival, but finds they areboth in error, that it is Clarissa whom the colonel wishes to marry, and that Sophia is quite free to follow the bent of her own and the major’s choice.
Wheel of Fortune(The), a comedy by R. Cumberland (1779).
⁂ For the plot and tale, seePenruddock.
Whetstone Cut by a Razor.Accius Navius, the augur, cut a whetstone with a razor in the presence of Tarquin, the elder.
In short, ’twas his fate, unemployed or in place, sir,To eat mutton cold, and cut blocks with a razor.Goldsmith,Retaliation(“Burke” is referred to, 1774).
In short, ’twas his fate, unemployed or in place, sir,To eat mutton cold, and cut blocks with a razor.Goldsmith,Retaliation(“Burke” is referred to, 1774).
In short, ’twas his fate, unemployed or in place, sir,To eat mutton cold, and cut blocks with a razor.Goldsmith,Retaliation(“Burke” is referred to, 1774).
In short, ’twas his fate, unemployed or in place, sir,
To eat mutton cold, and cut blocks with a razor.
Goldsmith,Retaliation(“Burke” is referred to, 1774).
Whims(Queen), the monarch of Whimdom, or country of whims, fancies, and literary speculations. Her subjects were alchemists, astrologers, fortune-tellers, rhymers, projectors, schoolmen, and so forth. The best way of reaching this empire is “to trust to the whirlwind and the current.” When Pantagruel’s ship ran aground, it was towed off by 7,000,000 drums quite easily. These drums are the vain imaginings of whimsyists. Whenever a person is perplexed at any knotty point of science or doctrine, some drum will serve for a nostrum to pull him through.--Rabelais,Pantagruel, v. 18, etc. (1545).
Whim´sey, a whimsical, kind-hearted old man, father to Charlotte and “young” Whimsey.
As suspicious of everybody above him, as if he had been bred a rogue himself.--Act i. 1.
Charlotte Whimsey, the pretty daughter of old Whimsey; in love with Monford.--James Cobb,The First Floor.
Whip with Six Lashes, the “Six Articles” of Henry VIII. (1539).
Whipping Boy.A boy kept to be whipped when a prince deserved chastisement.
Barnaby Fitzpatrickstood for Edward VI.
D’OssatandDuPerron, afterwards cardinals, were whipped by Clement VIII. for Henry IV. of France.--Fuller,Church History, ii. 342 (1655).
Mungo Murraystood for Charles I.
Raphaelwas flogged for the son of the marquis de Leganez, but, not seeing the justice of this arrangement, he ran away.--Lesage,Gil Blas, v. 1 (1724).
Whisker, the pony of Mr. Garland, Abel Cottage, Finchley.
/# There approached towards him a little, clattering, jingling, four-wheeled chaise, drawn by a little obstinate-looking, rough-coated pony, and driven by a little, fat, placid-faced old gentleman. Beside the little old gentleman sat a little old lady, plump and placid like himself, and the pony was coming along at his own pace, and doing exactly as he pleased with the whole concern. If the old gentleman remonstrated by shaking the reins, the pony replied by shaking his head. It was plain that the utmost the pony would consent to do was to go in his own way ... after his own fashion, or not at all.--C. Dickens,The Old Curiosity Shop, xiv. (1840).
Whiskerandos(Don Fero´lo), the sentimental lover of Tilburina.--Sheridan,The Critic, ii. 1 (1779).
Whist(Father of the game of), Edmond Hoyle (1672-1769).
Whistle(The). In the train of Anne of Denmark, when she went to Scotland with James VI., was a gigantic Dane of matchless drinking capacity. He had an ebony whistle, which, at the beginning ofa drinking bout, he would lay on the table, and whoever was last able to blow it, was to be considered the “Champion of the Whistle.” In Scotland the Dane was defeated by Sir Robert Laurie, of Maxwelton, who, after three days’ and three nights’ hard drinking, left the Dane under the table, and “blew on the whistle his requiem shrill.” The whistle remained in the family several years, when it was won by Sir Walter Laurie, son of Sir Robert; and then by Walter Riddel, of Glenriddel, brother-in-law of Sir Walter Laurie. The last person who carried it off was Alexander Ferguson of Craigdarroch, son of “Annie Laurie” so well known.
⁂ Burns has a ballad on the subject, calledThe Whistle.
Whistle.The blackbird, says Drayton, is the only bird that whistles.
Upon his dulcet pipe the merle doth only play.Polyolbion, xiii. (1613).
Upon his dulcet pipe the merle doth only play.Polyolbion, xiii. (1613).
Upon his dulcet pipe the merle doth only play.Polyolbion, xiii. (1613).
Upon his dulcet pipe the merle doth only play.
Polyolbion, xiii. (1613).
Whistler(The), a young thief, natural son of Sir G. Staunton, whom he shot after his marriage with Effie Deans.--Sir W. Scott,Heart of Midlothian(time, George II.).
Whistling.Mr. Townley, of Hull, says, inNotes and Queries, August 2, 1879, that a Roman Catholic checked his wife, who was whistling for a dog: “If you please, ma’am, don’t whistle. Every time a woman whistles, the heart of the blessed Virgin bleeds.”
Une poule qui chante, le coq et une fille qui siffle, portent malheur dans la maison.La poule ne doit point chanter devant le coq.A whistling woman and a crowing henAre neither good for God or men.
Une poule qui chante, le coq et une fille qui siffle, portent malheur dans la maison.La poule ne doit point chanter devant le coq.A whistling woman and a crowing henAre neither good for God or men.
Une poule qui chante, le coq et une fille qui siffle, portent malheur dans la maison.La poule ne doit point chanter devant le coq.
Une poule qui chante, le coq et une fille qui siffle, portent malheur dans la maison.
La poule ne doit point chanter devant le coq.
A whistling woman and a crowing henAre neither good for God or men.
A whistling woman and a crowing hen
Are neither good for God or men.
Whitaker(Richard), the old steward of Sir Geoffrey Peveril.--Sir W. Scott,Peveril of the Peak(time, Charles II.).
Whitchurch, in Middlesex (or Little Stanmore), is the parish, and William Powell was the blacksmith, made celebrated by Händel’sHarmonious Blacksmith. Powell died in 1780.
White Cat(The). A certain queen, desirous of obtaining some fairy fruit, was told she might gather as much as she would if she would give to them the child about to be born. The queen agreed, and the new-born child was carried to the fairies. When of marriageable age, the fairies wanted her to marry Migonnet, a fairy-dwarf, and, as she refused to do so, changed her into a white cat. Now comes the second part. An old king had three sons, and promised to resign the kingdom to that son who brought him the smallest dog. The youngest son wandered to a palace, where he saw a white cat endowed with human speech, who gave him a dog so tiny that the prince carried it in an acorn shell. The father then said he would resign his crown to that son who brought him home a web, 400 yards long, which would pass through the eye of a needle. The White Cat gave the prince a web 400 yards long packed in the shale of a millet grain. The king then told his sons he would resign his throne to that son who brought home the handsomest bride. The White Cat told the prince to cut off its head and tail. On doing so, the creature resumed her human form, and was acknowledged to be the most beautiful woman on earth.
Her eyes committed theft upon all hearts, and her sweetness kept them captive. Her shape was majestic, her air noble and modest, her wit flowing, her manners engaging. In a word, she was beyond everything that was lovely.--Comtesse D’Aunoy,Fairy Tales(“The White Cat,” 1682).
White Clergy(The), the parish priests,in contradistinction toThe Black Clergyor monks, in Russia.
White Cross Knights, the Knights Hospitallers. The Knights Templar wore aredcross.
The White Cross Knights of the adjacent isle.Robert Browning,The Return of the Druses, i.
The White Cross Knights of the adjacent isle.Robert Browning,The Return of the Druses, i.
The White Cross Knights of the adjacent isle.Robert Browning,The Return of the Druses, i.
The White Cross Knights of the adjacent isle.
Robert Browning,The Return of the Druses, i.
White Devil of Wallachia.George Castriota, known as “Scanderbeg,” was called by the Turks “The White Devil of Wallachia” (1404-1467).
White Elephant(King of the) a title of the kings of Ava and Siam.
White Friars(The), the Carmelites, who dress in white.
⁂ There is a novel by Miss Robinson calledWhite Friars.
White Heron.Maurice Thompson thus describes the shooting of a white heron:
“Like twenty serpents bound together,Hissed the flying arrow’s feather.A thud, a puff, a feathery ring,A quick collapse, a quivering--A whirl, a headlong downward dash,A heavy fall, a sullen plash,And, like white foam, or giant flakeOf snow, he lay upon the lake!”Maurice Thompson,The Death of the White Heron, Songs of Fair Weather(1883).
“Like twenty serpents bound together,Hissed the flying arrow’s feather.A thud, a puff, a feathery ring,A quick collapse, a quivering--A whirl, a headlong downward dash,A heavy fall, a sullen plash,And, like white foam, or giant flakeOf snow, he lay upon the lake!”Maurice Thompson,The Death of the White Heron, Songs of Fair Weather(1883).
“Like twenty serpents bound together,Hissed the flying arrow’s feather.A thud, a puff, a feathery ring,A quick collapse, a quivering--A whirl, a headlong downward dash,A heavy fall, a sullen plash,And, like white foam, or giant flakeOf snow, he lay upon the lake!”Maurice Thompson,The Death of the White Heron, Songs of Fair Weather(1883).
“Like twenty serpents bound together,
Hissed the flying arrow’s feather.
A thud, a puff, a feathery ring,
A quick collapse, a quivering--
A whirl, a headlong downward dash,
A heavy fall, a sullen plash,
And, like white foam, or giant flake
Of snow, he lay upon the lake!”
Maurice Thompson,The Death of the White Heron, Songs of Fair Weather(1883).
White Hoods(orChaperons Blancs); the insurgents of Ghent, led by Jean Lyons, noted for their fight at Minnewater to prevent the digging of a canal which they fancied would be injurious to trade.
Saw the fight at Minnewater, saw the “White Hoods” moving west.Longfellow,The Belfry of Bruges.
Saw the fight at Minnewater, saw the “White Hoods” moving west.Longfellow,The Belfry of Bruges.
Saw the fight at Minnewater, saw the “White Hoods” moving west.Longfellow,The Belfry of Bruges.
Saw the fight at Minnewater, saw the “White Hoods” moving west.
Longfellow,The Belfry of Bruges.
White Horse(Lords of The), the old Saxon chiefs, whose standard was a white horse.
And tampered with the lords of the White Horse.Tennyson,Guinevere.
And tampered with the lords of the White Horse.Tennyson,Guinevere.
And tampered with the lords of the White Horse.Tennyson,Guinevere.
And tampered with the lords of the White Horse.
Tennyson,Guinevere.
White Horse of the Peppers, a sprat to catch a mackerel. After the battle of the Boyne, the estates of many of the Jacobites were confiscated, and given to the adherents of William III. Amongst others, the estate of the Peppers was forfeited, and the Orangeman to whom it was awarded went to take possession. “Where was it, and what was its extent?” These were all-important questions; and the Orangeman was led up and down, hither and thither, for several days, under pretence of showing him the land. He had to join the army by a certain day, but was led so far afield that he agreed to forego his claim if supplied with means of reaching his regiment within the given time. Accordingly, the “white horse,” the pride of the family, and the fastest animal in the land, was placed at his disposal, the king’s grant was revoked, and the estate remained in the possession of the original owner.--S. Lover,Stories and Legends of Ireland(1832-34).
White Horse of Wantage(Berkshire), cut in the chalk hills. The horse is 374 feet long, and may be seen at the distance of fifteen miles. It commemorates a great victory obtained by Alfred, over the Danes, called the battle of Æscesdun (Ashdown), during the reign of his brother Ethelred in 871. (SeeRed Horse.)
In this battle all the flower of the barbarian youth was there slain, so that neither before nor since was ever such a destruction known since the Saxons first gained Britain by their arms.--Ethelwerd,Chronicle, ii.A.871. (See also Asser,Life of Alfred, year 871.)
White King, the title of the emperor of Muscovy, from the white robes which these kings were accustomed to use.
Sunt qui principem MoscoviæAlbum Regemnoncupant. Ego quidem causam diligenter quærebam, curregis albinomine appellaretur cum nemo principum Moscoviæ eo titulo antea [Basilius Ivanwich] esset usus.... Credo autem ut Persam nunc propterrubeategumenta capitis “Kissilpassa” (i.e., rubeum caput) vocant; ita reges Moscoviæ propteralbategumenta “Albos Reges” appellari.--Sigismund.
⁂ Perhaps it may be explained thus: Muscovy is always called “Russia Alba,” as Poland is called “Black Russia.”
White King.So Charles I. is called by Herbert. His robe of state was white instead of purple. At his funeral the snow fell so thick upon the pall that it was quite white.--Herbert,Memoirs(1764).
White Lady(The),“La Dame d’Aprigny,”a Norman fée, who used to occupy the site of the present Rue de St. Quentin, at Bayeux.
La Dame Abonde, also a Norman fée.
Vocant dominam Abundiam pro eo quod domibus quas frequentant, abundantiam bonorum temporalium præstare, putantur non aliter tibi sentiendum est neque aliter quam quemadmodum de illis audivisti.--William of Auvergne (1248).
White Lady(The), a ghost seen in different castles and palaces belonging to the royal family of Prussia, and supposed to forebode the death of some of the royal family, especially one of the children. The last appearance was in 1879, just prior to the death of Prince Waldemar. Twice she has been heard to speak,e.g.: In December, 1628, she appeared in the palace at Berlin, and said in Latin, “I wait for judgment;” and once at the castle of Neuhaus, in Bohemia, when she said to the princess, in German, “It is ten o’clock;” and the lady addressed died in a few weeks.
There are two white ladies, in fact--one the Countess Agnes, of Orlamunde, and the other the Princess Bertha von Rosenberg, who lived in the fifteenth century. The former was buried alive in a vault in the palace. She was the mistress of a margrave of Brandenburgh, by whom she had two sons. When the prince became a widower, Agnes thought he would marry her, but he made the sons an objection, and she poisoned them, for which crime she was buried alive. Another version is that she fell in love with the prince of Parma, and made away with her two daughters, who were an obstacle to her marriage, for which crime she was doomed to “walk the earth” as an apparition.
The Princess Bertha is troubled because an annual gift, which she left to the poor, has been discontinued. She appears dressed in white, and carrying at her side a bunch of keys.
It may interest those who happen to be learned in Berlin legends, to know that the White Lady, whose visits always precede the death of some member of the royal family, was seen on the eve of Prince Waldemar’s death. A soldier on guard at the old castle was the witness of the apparition, and in his fright fled to the guard-room, where he was at once arrested for deserting his post.--Brief, April 4, 1879.
White Lady of Avenel(2syl.), a tutelary spirit.--Sir W. Scott,The Monastery(time, Elizabeth).
White Lady of Ireland(The), the banshee or domestic spirit of a family, who takes an interest in its condition, and intimates approaching death by wailing or shrieks.
White Moon(Knight of the), Samson Carrasco. He assumed this cognizancewhen he went as a knight-errant to encounter Don Quixote. His object was to overthrow the don in combat, and then impose on him the condition of returning home, and abandoning the profession of chivalry for twelve months. By this means he hoped to cure the don of his craze. It all happened as the barber expected; the don was overthrown, and returned to his home, but soon died.--Cervantes,Don Quixote, II. iv. 12, etc. (1615).
White Queen(The), Mary Queen of Scots (La Reine Blanche); so called by the French, because she dressed in white, in mourning for her husband.
White Rose(The), the house of York, whose badge it was. The badge of the house of Lancaster was the Red Rose.
Richard de la Pole is often called “The White Rose.”
White Rose of England(The). Perkin Warbeck was so called by Margaret of Burgundy, sister of Edward IV. (*-1499).
White Rose of Raby(The), Cecily, wife of Richard, duke of York, and mother of Edward IV. and Richard III. She was the youngest of twenty-one children.
⁂ A novel entitledThe White Rose of Rabywas published in 1794.
White Rose of Scotland(The), Lady Katherine Gordon, the [? fifth] daughter of George, second earl of Huntly, by his second wife, Princess Annabella Stuart, youngest daughter of James I. of Scotland. She married Perkin Warbeck, the pretender, self-styled Richard, duke of York. (SeeWarbeck.) She had three husbands after the death of Warbeck.
As Margaret of York, duchess of Burgundy, who out of jealousy of the Lancastrian Henry VII., adopted the cause of Perkin Warbeck, always called him “The White Rose of York;” his wife, Lady Katharine Gordon, was called The White Rose of Scotland.
White Rose of York(The), Edward Courtney, earl of Devon, son of the marquis of Exeter. He died at Padua, in Queen Mary’s reign (1553).
White Surrey, the favorite charger of Richard III.
Saddle White Surrey for the field to-morrow.Shakespeare,Richard III.act v. sc. 3 (1597).
Saddle White Surrey for the field to-morrow.Shakespeare,Richard III.act v. sc. 3 (1597).
Saddle White Surrey for the field to-morrow.Shakespeare,Richard III.act v. sc. 3 (1597).
Saddle White Surrey for the field to-morrow.
Shakespeare,Richard III.act v. sc. 3 (1597).
White Tsar of His People.The emperor of Russia is so called, and claims the empire of seventeen crowns.
White Widow(The), the duchess of Tyrconnel, wife of Richard Talbot, lord deputy of Ireland under James II. After the death of her husband she supported herself by her needle. She wore a white mask, and dressed in white.--Pennant,Account of London, 147 (1790).
White Witch(A), a “witch” who employs her power and skill for the benefit and not the harm of her fellow-mortals.
Whites(The), an Italian faction of the fourteenth century. The Guelphs of Florence were divided into theBlacks, who wished to open their gates to Charles de Valois, and theWhites, who opposed him. The poet Dantê, was a “White,” and when the “Blacks,” in 1302, got the upper hand, he was exiled. During his exile he composed his immortal epic, theDivina Commedia.
Whitecraft(John), innkeeper and miller at Altringham.
Dame Whitecraft, the pretty wife of the above.--Sir W. Scott,Peveril of the Peak(time, Charles II.).
Whitfield of the Stage(The). Quin was so called by Garrick (1716-1779). Garrick himself is sometimes so denominated also.
Whitney(James), the Claude Duval of English highwaymen. He prided himself on being “the glass of fashion and the mould of form.” Executed at Porter’s Block, near Smithfield (1660-1694).
Whittington(Dick), a poor orphan country lad, who heard that London was “paved with gold,” and went there to get a living. When reduced to starving point a kind merchant gave him employment in his family to help the cook, but the cook so ill treated him that he ran away. Sitting to rest himself on the roadside, he heard Bow bells, and they seemed to him to say, “Turn again, Whittington, thrice lord mayor of London;” so he returned to his master. By-and-by the master allowed him, with the other servants, to put in an adventure in a ship bound for Morocco. Richard had nothing but a cat, which, however, he sent. Now it happened that the king of Morocco was troubled by mice, which Whittington’s cat destroyed; and this so pleased his highness that he bought the mouser at a fabulous price. Dick commenced business with this money, soon rose to great wealth, married his master’s daughter, was knighted, and thrice elected lord mayor of London--in 1398, 1406 and 1419.
⁂ A cat is a brig built on the Norwegian model, with narrow stern, projecting quarters and deep waist.
Another solution is the wordachat, “barter.”
Keis, the son of a poor widow of Siraf, embarked for India with his sole property, a cat. He arrived at a time when the palace was so infested by mice and rats that they actually seized the king’s food. This cat cleared the palace of its vermin, and was purchased for a large sum of money, which enriched the widow’s son.--Sir William Ouseley (a Persian story).
Alphonso, a Portuguese, being wrecked on the coast of Guinea, had a cat, which the king bought for its weight in gold. With this money Alphonso traded, and in five years made £6000, returned to Portugal, and became in fifteen years the third magnate of the kingdom.--Description of Guinea.
⁂ See Keightley,Tales and Popular Fictions, 241-266.
Whittle(Thomas), an old man of 63, who wants to cajole his nephew out of his lady-love, the Widow Brady, only 23 years of age. To this end he assumes the airs, the dress, the manners, and the walk of a beau. For his thick flannels he puts on a cambric shirt, open waist-coat, and ruffles; for his Welsh wig he wears a pigtail and chapeau bras; for his thick cork soles he trips like a dandy in pumps. He smirks, he titters, he tries to be quite killing. He discards history and solid reading for theAmorous Repository,Cupid’s Revels,Hymen’s Delight, and Ovid’sArt of Love. In order to get rid of him, the gay young widow assumes to be a boisterous, rollicking, extravagant, low Irishwoman, deeply in debt, and utterly reckless. Old Whittle is thoroughly alarmed, induces his nephew to take the widow off his hands, and gives him £5000 for doing so.--Garrick,The Irish Widow(1757).
Who’s The Dupe?Abraham Doiley is a retired slop-seller, with £80,000 or more. Being himself wholly uneducated, he is a great admirer of “larning,” and resolves that his daughter Elizabeth shall marry a great scholar. Elizabeth is in love with Captain Granger, but the old slop-seller has fixed his heart on a Mr. Gradus, an Oxford pedant. The question is how to bring the old man round. Gradus is persuaded to change his style of dress to please the lady, and Granger is introduced as a learned pundit. The old man resolves to pit together the two aspirants, and give Elizabeth to the best scholar. Gradus quotes two lines of Greek, in which the word panta occurs four times; Granger gives some three or four lines of English fustian. Gradus tells the old man that what Granger said was mere English; but Doiley, in the utmost indignation, replies, “Do you think I don’t know my own mother tongue? Off with yourpantry, which you call Greek! t’other is the man for my money;” and he gives his daughter to the captain.--Mrs. Cowley,Who’s the Dupe?
Whole Duty of Man(The). Sir James Wellwood Moncrieff, bart., was so called by Jeffrey (1776-1851).
Wickfield(Mr.), a lawyer, father of Agnes. The “’umble” Uriah Heep was his clerk.
Agnes Wickfield, daughter of Mr. Wickfield; a young lady of sound sense and domestic habits, lady-like and affectionate. She is the second wife of David Copperfield.--C. Dickens,David Copperfield(1849).
Wickam(Mrs.), a waiter’s wife. Mrs. Wickam was a meek, drooping woman, always ready to pity herself or to be pitied, and with a depressing habit of prognosticating evil. She succeeded Polly Toodles as nurse to Paul Dombey.--C. Dickens,Dombey and Son(1846).
Wicliffe, called “The Morning Star of the Reformation” (1324-1384).
Widdrington(Roger), a gallant squire, mentioned in the ballad of Chevy Chase. He fought “upon his stumps,” after he lost his legs. (SeeBenbow.)
Widenostrils(in FrenchBringuenarilles), a huge giant, who had swallowed every pan, skillet, kettle, frying-pan, dripping-pan, saucepan and caldron in the land, for want of windmills, his usual food. He was ultimately killed by eating a lump of fresh butter at the mouth of a hot oven, by the advice of his physician.--Rabelais,Pantagruel, iv. 17 (1545).
Widerolf, bishop of Strasbourg (997), was devoured by mice in the seventeenth year of his episcopate, because he suppressed the convent of Seltzen on the Rhine. (SeeHatto.)
Widow, in theDeserted Village(Goldsmith). “All the bloomy flush of life is fled” from Auburn:
All but yon widowed, solitary thing,That feebly bends beside the plashy spring;She, wretched matron, forced in age, for bread,To strip the brook, with mantling cresses spread,To pick her wintry faggot from the thorn,To seek her nightly shed, and weep till morn;She only left of all the harmless train,The sad historian of the pensive plain.
All but yon widowed, solitary thing,That feebly bends beside the plashy spring;She, wretched matron, forced in age, for bread,To strip the brook, with mantling cresses spread,To pick her wintry faggot from the thorn,To seek her nightly shed, and weep till morn;She only left of all the harmless train,The sad historian of the pensive plain.
All but yon widowed, solitary thing,That feebly bends beside the plashy spring;She, wretched matron, forced in age, for bread,To strip the brook, with mantling cresses spread,To pick her wintry faggot from the thorn,To seek her nightly shed, and weep till morn;She only left of all the harmless train,The sad historian of the pensive plain.
All but yon widowed, solitary thing,
That feebly bends beside the plashy spring;
She, wretched matron, forced in age, for bread,
To strip the brook, with mantling cresses spread,
To pick her wintry faggot from the thorn,
To seek her nightly shed, and weep till morn;
She only left of all the harmless train,
The sad historian of the pensive plain.
Her name was Catherine Geraghty.
Widow(The), courted by Sir Hudibras, was the relict of Amminadab Wilmer or Willmot, an independent, slain at Edgehill. She was left with a fortune of £200a year. The knight’s “Epistle to the Lady” and the “Lady’s Reply,” in which she declines his offer, are usually ap pended to the poem entitledHudibras.
Widow Bedott, relict of Hezekiah, and willing to be consoled. Garrulous, silly and full of sentimental affectations.--Francis M. Whitcher (1856).
Widow Blackacre, a perverse, bustling, masculine, pettifogging, litigious woman.--Wycherly,The Plain Dealer(1677).
Widow Flockhart, landlady at Waverley’s lodgings in the Canongate.--Sir W. Scott,Waverley(time, George II.).
Wieland’s Sword, Balmung. It was so sharp that it cleft Amilias in twain without his knowing it; when, however, he attempted to stir, he fell into two pieces.--Scandinavian Mythology.
Wiever(Old), a preacher and old conspirator.--Sir W. Scott,Peveril of the Peak(time, Charles II.).
Wife(The), a drama by S. Knowles (1833). Mariana, daughter of a Swiss burgher, nursed Leonardo in a dangerous sickness--an avalanche had fallen on him, and his life was despaired of, but he recovered, and fell in love with his young and beautiful nurse. Leonardo intended to return to Mantua, but was kept a prisoner by a gang of thieves, and Mariana followed him, for she found life intolerable without him. Here Count Florio fell in love with her, and obtained her guardian’s consent to marry her; but Mariana refused to do so, and was arraigned before the duke (Ferrardo), who gave judgment against her. Leonardo was at the trial disguised, but, throwing off his mask, was found to be the real duke supposed to be dead. He assumed his rank, and married Mariana; but, being called to the wars, left Ferrardo regent. Ferrardo, being a villain, hatched up a plot against the bride, of infidelity to her lord, but Leonardo would give no credit to it, and the whole scheme of villainy was fully exposed.
⁂ Shakespeare’sMeasure for Measureprobably gave Knowles some hints for his plot.
Wife for a Month(A), a drama by Beaumont and Fletcher (1624). The “wife” is Evanthê (3syl.), the chaste wife of Valerio, pursued by Frederick, the licentious brother of Alphonso, king of Naples. She repels his base advances, and, to punish her, he offers to give her to any one for one month, at the end of which time whoever accepts her is to die. No one appears, and the lady is restored to her husband.
Wife of Bath, one of the pilgrims to the shrine of Thomas à Becket.--Chaucer.Canterbury Tales(1388).
Wife of Bath’s Tale.One of King Arthur’sknightsknightswas condemned to death for ill-using a lady, but Guinever interceded for him, and the king gave him over to her to do what she liked. The queen said she would spare his life, if, by that day twelve months, he would tell her “What is that which woman loves best?” The knight seeks far and wide for a solution, but in his despair he meets a hideous old woman who promises to give him the answer if he will grant her one request, which is, to marry her. The knight could not bring himself to embrace so gruesomea bride, but she persuaded him that it was better to have a faithful wife even if she were old and ugly, than one young and beautiful, but untrue. The knight yields, and in the morning he wakes to find a lovely woman by his side, who tells him that what a woman likes best is to have her own way.--Chaucer,Canterbury Tales(“The(“TheWife of Bath’s Tale,” 1388).
⁂ This tale is a very old one, and appears in various languages; European and Oriental. It is one of those told by Gower in hisConfessio Amantis, where Florent promises to marry a deformed old hag, who in reward for his complaisance helps him to the solution of a riddle.
Wigged Prince(The Best). The guardian, uncle-in-law and first cousin of the duke of Brunswick was called “The Best Wigged Prince in Christendom.”
Wild(Jonathan), a cool, calculating, heartless villain, with the voice of a Stentor. He was born at Wolverhampton, in Staffordshire, and, like Jack Sheppard, was the son of a carpenter.
He had ten maxims: (1) Never do more mischief than is absolutely necessary for success; (2) Know no distinction, but let self-interest be the one principle of action; (3) Let not your shirt know the thoughts of your heart; (4) Never forgive an enemy; (5) Shun poverty and distress; (6) Foment jealousies in your gang; (7) A good name, like money, must be risked in speculation; (8) Counterfeit virtues are as good as real ones, for few know paste from diamonds; (9) Be your own trumpeter, and don’t be afraid of blowing loud; (10) Keep hatred concealed in the heart, but wear the face of a friend.
Jonathan Wild married six wives. Being employed for a time as a detective, he brought to the gallows thirty-five highwaymen, twenty-two burglars and ten returned convicts. He was himself executed at last at Tyburn for house-breaking (1682-1725).
Daniel Defoe has madeJonathan Wildthe hero of a romance (1725). Fielding did the same in 1743. The hero in these romances is a coward, traitor, hypocrite and tyrant, unrelieved by human feeling, and never betrayed into a kind or good action. The character is historic, but the adventures are in a measure fictitious.
Wild Boar of Ardennes, William de la Marck.--Sir W. Scott,Quentin Durward(time, Edward IV.).
⁂ The Count de la Marck was third son of John, count de la Marck and Aremberg. He was arrested at Utrecht, and beheaded by order of Maximilian, emperor of Austria, in 1485.
Wild Boy of Hameln, a human being found in the forest of Hertswold, in Hanover. He walked on all fours, climbed trees like a monkey, fed on grass and leaves, and could never be taught to articulate a single word. He was discovered in 1725, was called “Peter, the Wild Boy,” and died at Broadway Farm, near Berkhampstead, in 1785.
⁂ Mdlle. Lablanc was a wild girl found by the villagers of Soigny, near Chalons, in 1731. She died in Paris in 1780.
Wild Goose Chase(The), a comedy by Beaumont and Fletcher (1652). The “wild goose” is Mirabel, who is “chased” and caught by Oriana, whom he once despised.
Wild Horses(Death by). The hands and feet of the victim were fastened to two or four wild horses, and the horses, being urged forward, ran in different directions, tearing the victim limb from limb.
Mettius Suffetiuswas fastened to two chariots, which were driven in opposite directions. This was for deserting the Roman standard (B.C.669).--Livy,Annals, i. 28.
Salcēde, a Spaniard, employed by Henri III. to assassinate Henri de Guise, failed in his attempt, and was torn limb from limb by four wild horses.
Nicholas de Salvadowas torn to pieces by wild horses for attempting the life of William, prince of Orange.
Balthazar de Gerrardwas similarly punished for assassinating the same prince (1584).
John Chastelwas torn to pieces by wild horses for attempting the life of Henri IV. of France (1594).
François Ravaillacsuffered a similar death for assassinating the same prince (1610).
Wild Huntsman(The), a spectral hunter with dogs, who frequents the Black Forest to chase wild animals.--Sir W. Scott,Wild Huntsman(from Bürger’s ballad).
⁂ The legend is that this huntsman was a Jew, who would not suffer Jesus to drink from a horse-trough, but pointed to some water collected in a hoof-print, and bade Him go there and drink.--Kuhn von Schwarz,Nordd. Sagen, 499.
The French story ofLe Grand Veneuris laid in Fontainbleau Forest, and is supposed to refer to St. Hubert.--Father Matthieu.
The English name is “Herne, the Hunter,” once a keeper in Windsor Forest.--Shakespeare,Merry Wives of Windsor, act iv. sc. 4.
The Scotch poem calledAlbaniacontains a full description of the wild huntsman.
⁂ The subject has been made into a ballad by Burger, entitledDer Wilde Jäger.
Wild Man of the Forest, Orson, brother of Valentine, and nephew of King Pepin.--Valentine and Orson(fifteenth century).
Wild Oats, a drama by John O’Keefe (1798).
Wild Wenlock, kinsman of Sir Hugo de Lacy, besieged by insurgents, who cut off his head.--Sir W. Scott,The Betrothed(time, Henry II.).
Wildair(Sir Harry), the hero of a comedy so called by Farquhar (1701). The same character had been introduced in theConstant Couple(1700), by the same author. Sir Harry is a gay profligate, not altogether selfish and abandoned, but very free and of easy morals. This was Wilks’s and Peg Woffington’s great part.
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.
⁂ “Sir John Brute,” inThe Provoked Wife(Vanbrugh); “Lady Touchwood,” inThe Belle’s Stratagem(Mrs. Cowley); “Mrs. Frail,” in Congreve’sLove for Love.
Wildblood of the Vale(Young Dick), a friend of Sir Geoffrey Peveril.--Sir W. Scott,Peveril of the Peak(time, Charles II.).
Wilde(Johnny), a small farmer of Rodenkirchen, in the isle of Rügen. One day he found a little glass slipper belonging to one of the hill-folk. Next day a little brownie, in the character of a merchant, came to redeem it, and Johnny Wilde demanded as the price “that heshould find a gold ducat in every furrow he ploughed.” The bargain was concluded, but before the year was over he had worked himself to death looking for ducats in the furrows which he ploughed.--Rügen Tradition.
Wildenhaim(Baron), father of Amelia. In his youth he seduced Agatha Friburg, whom he deserted. Agatha bore a son, Frederick, who in due time became a soldier. Coming home on furlough, he found his mother on the point of starvation, and, going to beg alms, met the baron with his gun, asked alms of him, and received a shilling. He demanded more money, and, being refused, collared the baron, but was soon seized by the keepers, and shut up in the castle dungeon. Here he was visited by the chaplain, and it came out that the baron was his father. As the baron was a widower, he married Agatha, and Frederick became his heir.
Amelia Wildenhaim, daughter of the baron. A proposal was made to marry her to Count Cassel, but, as the count was a conceited puppy, without “brains in his head or a heart in his bosom,” she would have nothing to say to him. She showed her love to Anhalt, a young clergyman, and her father gave his consent to the match.--Mrs. Inchbald,Lovers’ Vows(altered from Kotzebue, 1800).
Wildfire(Madge), the insane daughter of old Meg Murdochson, the gypsy thief. Madge had been seduced when a girl, and this, with the murder of her infant, had turned her brain.--Sir W. Scott,Heart of Midlothian(time, George II.).
Wilding(Jack), a young gentleman fresh from Oxford, who fabricates the most ridiculous tales, which he tries to pass off for facts; speaks of his adventures in America, which he has never seen; of his being entrapped into marriage with a Miss Sibthorpe, a pure invention. Accidentally meeting a Miss Grantam, he sends his man to learn her name, and is told it is Miss Godfrey, an heiress. On this incident the humor of the drama hinges. When Miss Godfrey is presented to him he does not know her, and a person rushes in who declares she is his wife, and that her maiden name was Sibthorpe. It is now Wilding’s turn to be dumbfounded, and, wholly unable to unravel the mystery, he rushes forth, believing the world is a Bedlam let loose.--S. Foote,The Liar(1761).
Wilding(Sir Jasper), an ignorant but wealthy country gentleman, fond of fox-hunting. He dresses in London like a foxhunter, and speaks with a “Hoic! tally-ho!”
Young Wilding, son of Sir Jasper, about to marry the daughter of old Philpot for the dot she will bring him.
Maria Wilding, the lively, witty, high-spirited daughter of Sir Jasper, in love with Charles Beaufort. Her father wants her to marry George Philpot, but she frightens the booby out of his wits by her knowledge of books and assumed eccentricities.--Murphy,The Citizen, (1757 or 1761).
Wildrake, a country squire, delighting in horses, dogs, and field sports. He was in love with “neighbor Constance,” daughter of Sir William Fondlove, with whom he used to romp and quarrel in childhood. He learned to love Constance; and Constance loved the squire, but knew it not till she feared he was going to marry another. When they each discovered the state of their hearts, they agreed to become man and wife.--S. Knowles,The Love-Chase(1837).
Wildrake(Roger), a dissipated royalist.--Sir W. Scott,Woodstock(time, Commonwealth).
Wilhelmi´na[Bundle], daughter of Bundle, the gardener. Tom Tug, the waterman, and Robin, the gardener, sought her in marriage. The father preferred honest Tom Tug, but the mother liked better the sentimental and fine-phrased Robin. Wilhelmina said he who first did any act to deserve her love should have it. Tom Tug, by winning the waterman’s badge, carried off the bride.--C. Dibdin,The Waterman(1774).
Wilfer(Reginald), called by his wife R. W., and by his fellow clerks Rumty. He was clerk in the drug-house of Chicksey, Stobbles and Veneering. In person Mr. Wilfer resembled an overgrown cherub; in manner he was shy and retiring.
Mr. Reginald Wilfer was a poor clerk, so poor indeed that he had never yet attained the modest object of his ambition, which was to wear a complete new suit of clothes, hat and boots included, at one time. His black hat was brown before he could afford a coat; his pantaloons were white at the seams and knees before he could buy a pair of boots; his boots had worn out before he could treat himself to new pantaloons; and by the time he worked round to the hat again, that shining modern article roofed in an ancient ruin of various periods.--Ch. iv.
Mrs. Wilfer, wife of Mr. Reginald. A most majestic woman, tall and angular. She wore gloves, and a pocket-handkerchief tied under her chin. A patronizing, condescending woman was Mrs. Wilfer, with a mighty idea of her own importance. “Viper!” “Ingrate!” and such like epithets were household words with her.
Bella Wilfer, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Wilfer. A wayward, playful, affectionate, spoilt beauty, “giddy from the want of some sustaining purpose, and capricious because she was always fluttering among little things.” Bella was so pretty, so womanly, and yet so childish that she was always captivating. She spoke of herself as “the lovely woman,” and delighted in “doing the hair of the family.” Bella Wilfer married John Harmon (John Rokesmith), the secretary of Mr. Boffin, “the golden dustman.”
Lavinia Wilfer, youngest sister of Bella, and called “The Irrepressible.” Lavinia was a tart, pert girl, but succeeded in catching George Samson in the toils of wedlock.--C. Dickens,Our Mutual Friend(1864).
Wilford, in love with Emily, the companion of his sister, Miss Wilford. This attachment coming to the knowledge of Wilford’s uncle and guardian, was disapproved of by him; so he sent the young man to the Continent, and dismissed the young lady. Emily went to live with Goodman Fairlop, the woodman, and there Wilford discovered her in an archery match. The engagement Was renewed, and ended in marriage.--Sir H. B. Dudley,The Woodman(1771).
Wilford, secretary of Sir Edward Mortimer, and the suitor of Barbara Rawbold (daughter of a poacher). Curious to know what weighed on his master’s mind, he pried into an iron chest in Sir Edward’s library; but while so engaged, Sir Edward entered and threatened to shoot him. He relented, however, and having sworn Wilford to secrecy, told him how and why he had committed murder. Wilford, unable to endure the watchful and jealous eye of his master, ran away; but Sir Edward dogged him from place to place, and at length arrested him on the charge of theft. Of course, the charge broke down, Wilford was acquitted, Sir Edward confessedhimself a murderer, and died. (SeeWilliams, Caleb.)--G. Colman,The Iron Chest(1796).
⁂ This is a dramatic version of Godwin’s novel calledCaleb Williams(1794). Wilford is “Caleb Williams,” and Sir Edward Mortimer is “Falkland.”
Wilford, supposed to be earl of Rochdale. Three things he had a passion for: “the finest hound, the finest horse, and the finest wife in the three kingdoms.” It turned out that Master Walter, “the hunchback,” was the earl of Rochdale, and Wilford was no one.--S. Knowles,The Hunchback(1831).
Wilford(Lord), the truant son of Lord Woodville, who fell in love with Bess, the daughter of the “blind beggar of Bethnal Green.” He saw her by accident in London, lost sight of her, but resolved not to rest night or day till he found her; and, said he, “If I find her not, I’m tenant of the house the sexton builds.” Bess was discovered in the Queen’s Arms inn, Romford, and turned out to be his cousin.--S. Knowles,The Beggar of Bethnal Green(1834).
Wilfred, “the fool,” one of the sons of Sir Hildebrand Osbaldistone, of Osbaldistone Hall.--Sir W. Scott,Rob Roy(time, George I.).
Wilfrid, son of Oswald Wycliffe; in love with Matilda, heiress of Rokeby’s knight. After various villainies, Oswald forced from Matilda a promise to marry Wilfrid. Wilfrid thanked her for the promise, and fell dead at her feet.--Sir W. Scott,Rokeby(1813).
WilfridorWilfrith(St.). In 681, the Bishop Wilfrith, who had been bishop of York, being deprived of his see, came to Sussex, and did much to civilize the people. He taught them how to catch fish generally, for before they only knew how to catch eels. He founded the bishopric of the South Saxons at Selsey, afterwards removed to Chichester, founded the monastery of Ripon, built several ecclesiastical edifices, and died in 709.