Chapter 39

“A little blackmessetdanced sae like old Jenny.”Miss Blamire.Sec a Durdum.Mirk, S, dark.“It fell about the Martinmas,When nichts were lang an’mirk.”Old Ballad—The Wife of Usher’s Well.Mischanter, S and C, misadventure.“Thou’rt welcome, wean,mischanterfa’ me.”Burns.Mittens, S and C, gloves.“He coft me a rokelay o’ blue,An’ a pair o’mittenso’ green.”Macneil.I lo’e ne’er a laddie but ane.“Twee yards o’ red ribbon to wear for his seake,Forbye leddermittenshe bowte me.”Anderson.First Luive.Mowdie, S; Mowdie-warp, C, the mole.“Themowdiepowler’t oot o’ the yirth,An’ kyss’t the synger’s feet.”Telfer.The Gloaming Bucht.“An’ teeak us intil lile hooals under t’ grūnd, ameeast likemowdie-warps.”Rev. T. Clarke.Johnny Shippard.Mūd, C, the past tense of must.“He thowte ’at hemūdtreat ye.”Miss Blamire.The Meeting.Mutch, S, a woman’s cap.“She aff wi’ her apron, put on a silk goon,Amutchwi’ reed ribbons, an’ cam’ awa’ doon.”Lady Nairne.The Laird o’ Cockpen.N.Nab, C, a promontory in a lake.“It’s o’nabsan’ neuks is Windermer’ Watter.”Said by a Coniston Man.Neb, S and C, nose, beak.“Gae tak this bonnienebo’ mine,That picks amang the corn,An’ gi’e’t to the Duke o’ Hamilton,To be a touting horn.”Old Song—Robin Redbreast’s Testament.Neàf, C, the nave of a wheel.“T’ fells spreead oot fray a centre like t’ spooaks of a wheel fray t’neàf.”—A Langdale Statesman.Neif, or Neive, S and C, the hand, or fist.“Sweet knight I kiss thyneif.”Shakspeare.King Henry IV.“What’s a gowpen o’ glaur? It’s just twaneivefu’s o’ clarts!”—Wilson.Noctes Ambrosianæ.Nick’t i’ t’ heid, C, non compos mentis.“Toakin sike mafflement! Ye mun benick’t i’ t’ heead.”A Coniston landlady to a chattering guest.No’but, C, nothing but, only.“He’s but a simplish sooart of a body,’At thinks there’sno’butya kind o’ shoddy.”W. Bowness.Brough Hill Fair.Nowte ’at dowe, C, nothing of ability, fit for nothing.“In o’ her flegmagaries donn’d,What is she?—nowte ’at dowe!”Anderson.Betty Brown.O.Oomer, C, shade.“Howay wi’ the’, an’ lig down i’ t’owmero’ t’ trees till I’ve time ùt tak’ the’ afooar Mr. Machell.”Said by a farmer at Colton to an idle servant.Oald-folk’s neet, C, an assembly for feasting, dancing, and card-playing, held at the rural public houses; once, probably, confined to married people, but now open to, and attended by, young and old.P.Paddock rud, or rid, or ridding, C, frog spawn.“Auld Grizzy the witch, as some fwoke say,Makspaddock-rudointment for sair e’en.”Anderson.The Witch Wife.Pang, C and S, to cram.“An’ some there wer could scarcely speak,Their thropples wer saepang’t.”Stagg.The Bridewain.“It kindles wit, it waukens lair,Itpangsus fu’ o’ knowledge.”Burns.The Holy Fair.Parlish, C, remarkable, worth speaking of.“An’parlishpranks ’mang Silloth banksThey hed as they were comin’.”Stagg.The Bridewain.“A bump as big as a young cockerel’s stone,Aparlousknock.”Shakspeare.Romeo and Juliet.Said to be a corruption ofperilous, which is certainly not its meaning in Cumberland.Pash, C, to dash or thrust down forcibly.“Barne! Ipash’tthem doon.“—Said by Wm. Jackson to a neighbour’s daughter after his first victory at the Flan wrestling.Pauchtie, S, proud, supercilious.”Pauchtiedamsels, bred at courts,Wha thraw the mou’ an’ tak’ the dorts.”Ferguson.The Gowdspink.Pawkie, S, sly.“A thief saepawkieis my Jean.”Burns.Peerie, S, a peg-top. In Cumberland called a Cas’ley.“He sleeps as soon’ as oniepeerie.”—Common saying.Phraise, S, smooth or fondling talk.“He’s ta’en her in his armes twa,Wi monie a kiss an’phraise.”Ballad—Young Huntin.Pigs, S, pots, crockery.“Where thepig’sbrocken there let the sherds lie.”Proverb.Plack, S, the smallest coin of the old Scottish currency.“He’ll never mak hisplacka bawbee.”—Proverb.Pleen, C, complain.“Thou’s spoil’t for o’ manner o’ wark,Thou no’but sits peghan an’pleenan.”Mark Lonsdale.Love in Cumberland.Plumb, C, (in Furness, etc., pron. Plowmb) perpendicular.The old landlady at the boat house on Ennerdale water said of a neighbouring doctor who had visited her, and who carries his head well back, “He was mair norplumb!”Poap, C, to walk aimlessly.“Sūmpoapanaboot as if they’d be hoaf dazed.”Rev. T. Clarke.T’ Reysh Beearin’.Powe, S, head, poll.“There’s little wit within hispoweThat lichts a candle at the lowe.”Proverb.Pree, S, to taste.“An’ aye hepreedthe lassie’s mou’As he gaed but an’ ben, O.”Old Song.“Ipreedher mou’.” The Scotch think this phrase a poetical way of saying “I kissed her.” Its literal translation into common English, “I tasted her mouth,” doesn’t sound like poetry; while its Cumbrian form, “I teàstit her feàce” sounds like anything ratherthanpoetry; and their different versions of the same phrase illustrate rather happily the difference of character on the two sides of the Border.Proddle, C, poke, or stir up.“Proddlin’up the smudderin’ embers.”Stagg.Pubble, C, plump.“At Michaelmas apubblegoose—at Kersmas, standin’ pie.”Old Saying.Putten down, C, put to death.“That nane may ken that ye are clerks,Till ye beputten doon.”Ballad—The Clerk’s Twa Sons.Puzzen, C, poison.“The doctor he’s a parfit plague,An’ hauf the parishpuzzens.”Anderson.The Village Gang.R.Rackups, C, a game at marbles where the loser has to place his knuckles on one side of a hole to be “fired” at with the taws of the winners. “He mun stand hisrackups” is a proverb implying the necessity of accepting the consequences of misconduct, defeat, or miscarriage of plans.Rakin, C, wandering far or wildly.“They ga rakin aboot widoot ayder errand or aim.”Said of pedestrian tourists by a dalesman.Rantin’, Ranty, S and C, wild, riotous.“Therantin’dog the daidie o’ ’t.”Burns.Song.Ratch, C, to search vigorously, to ransack.“Ratchas ye will, ye’ll mak nowte out.”Said to hunters in a wood.Reek, S, smoke.“The death o’ deevils, smoor’d in brimstonereek.”Burns.The Twa Brigs.Riggin’, S, the roof (probably from Ridging primarily).“Ane may like the kirk weel aneuch without aye riding on theriggin’o’ ’t.”—Proverb.Rooers, C, (or rather Furness and Westmorland) oars.“Why do you call themrooers?” “’Coase they irrrooers.” “They call them oars elsewhere.” “They may co’ them what they will, but if theyroowi’ them, they’rerooers.”Conversation on Esthwaite lake.Roose, S, praise, exalt.”Roosethe ford as ye find it.”—Proverb.Rowp, S, auction; Rowp-crier, auctioneer.“I canna pay’t an’ yerowpme at the cross.”Said by a hopeless debtor.Rowth, S, abundance.“Rich fouk ha’erowtho’ frien’s.”—Proverb.Rowe, S, roll.“Where Cart rinsrowin’to the sea.”Burns.The Gallant Weaver.S.Sackless, C, silly (originally, innocent).“Our parson sweers a bonnie stickAmang thursacklessasses.”Anderson.The Village Gang.Sairy, C, sorry.“Asairywife I trowe she’d mak’At cudn’t muck a byre.”Ibid.Betty Brown.Sark, C and S, shirt (male or female).“She won’t mend asark, but reads novels, proud brat.”Ibid.Elizabeth’s Burthday.“Our women are nowadays a’ grown sae braw,Ilk maun ha’e asark, an’ some maun ha’e twa.”Ross.The wee pickle tow.Sarra, C, serve.“The witch wife begg’d i’ our back-side,An’ wentunsarra’daway i’ the pet.”Anderson.The Witch Wife.Sauch, S, willow.“Whereby the glancing waves o’ ClydeThroughsauchsan’ hangin’ hazels glide.”Old Song—Bothwell Bank.Scraffle, C, scramble.“Wescraffelton i’ this fashion, an’ it was quite dark afooar we gat till Ammelside yatt.”Betty Yewdale.T’ terrible Knitters i’ Dent.Screes, C, sloping banks of fragmentary stone under precipices.“Whoariver there’sscreesThere’s mair steàns nor trees.”Old Rhymes.Scrimp, S, pinch, reduce.“For lack o’ thee Iscrimpmy glass.”Burns.On a Bank Note.Scrowe, S and C, a lot of children, etc., rough or numerous.“There’s sic ascroweo’ Irishmen come ower frae Skinburness.”—Said at Annan.Scunner, S, shuddering disgust—noun and verb.“An’ yill an’ whiskey ga’e to cairds,Until theyscunner.”Burns.Ep. to Smith.Sec, C; Sic, S, such.“Feegh!seca yen we’ve hed at Codbeck,As niver was under the sun.”Anderson.The Codbeck Wedding.“Sicas ye gie,sicwill ye get.”—Proverb.Shap, C, to seem likely, or tend to.“They’reshappin’to gang heàm wid empty pockets.”Said of two losing whist players at a Merry Night.Shinny, C; Shinty, S, a rough game played with knobbed or round ended sticks—called in the south of England, I believe, hocky.“Shinny’sweel aneuf if shins wer’ seàf.”—Old saying.Sinsyne, S, since then.“She charm’d my heart an’ ayesinsyne,I canna think o’ onie ither.”Song—O’er the Muir.Skeich, S, shy, distant.“Maggie coost her heid fu’ heich,Look’d asklent an’ uncoskeich.”Burns.Duncan Gray.Skirl, S, scream.“White and bludy puddings rowthTo gar the doctorskirlwi’ drowth.”Ferguson.St Andrews.Skreich, S; Skrike, C, shriek.“It’s time aneuch toskreichwhen ye’re strucken.”Proverb.Skurl, C, slide.“Skurl, skurlthe’ doon—I’ll kep the’, come thy ways,I’ll leuk ahint me—niver mind thy claes.”Ewan Clarke.Slake, C, a light smear as of grease, etc.“Let’s tak’slakean’slakeaboot till it’s done.”Said in licking out a treacle pot.Slape, C, slippery.“I mun tell her fadder when I see him—she’s gittin’ varraslape,” old John Howe of Branthwaite Hall called out when he witnessed, by chance, a meeting of sweethearts on a lonely road.Slare, C, to walk slowly.“He may be a sharp worker, but he’s aslarin’walker.”Said by a farmer’s wife of a new come man servant.Slashy, C, sloppy.“It was beginnin’ to thowe, an’ was varraslashyan’ cāld.”Betty Yewdale.T’ terrible Knitters i’ Dent.Slatter, C, slop.“Wi’ jaws o’ yell some durty beutsPat loft seun in aslatter.”Mark Lonsdale.The Upshot.Sleekie, or Sleekit, S, sly, smooth.“O we were sly, sly!O, we were sly an’sleekit.”Song.Slipe, C, to slip away, to “hook it.”“Slipe, my lad, while thou’s weel.Slipe, I say, an’ let neàbody see the’ gang.”—Said to a youth in a row.Slocken, S and C, to slake thirst.“Ha’e ye any clippin’ drink left?” “No!” “Ha’e ye any common yall? No! Ha’e ye any smo’ beer? No! Why than, hang it—ha’e ye any pig-stuff? I mun beslocken’twi’ summat!”—John Kendall at Hawkshead Hall the day after the sheep-shearing feast.Smaik, S, a small boy, or other small animal.“He’s but asmaik, but he’s a man at the books.”Said of a schoolboy.Smittal, C, infectious.“Assmittalas t’ Smo’-pox.”Said of a successful male animal kept for breeding purposes.Snape, C, snub, also blight.“Yet tho’ sec bruolliments galworeOftsnaip’tthe whyet of our days.”Stagg.Auld Lang Syne.Sneck, C, latch.“The Buckabank chaps are reet famous sweethearters,Their kisses just sound like thesneckof a yett.”Anderson.Bleckell Murry-Neet.Sneck-posset, C. When a man has the door shut in his face, figuratively or literally, he gets asneck-posset.“Glooar’d at me a bit, an’ than clyash’t dewar i mi feeace——He g’e ma a faersneck-posset.”Rev. T. Clarke, Johnny Shippard.Snell, S, cold and cutting.“There cam’ a wind oot o’ the north,A sharp wind and asnell.”Ballad—Young Tamlane.Snirrup, or Snirp, C, to curl up the nose, etc.“As seun as she fund I depended on labour,Shesnirp’tup her nose an’ nae mair leuk’t at me.”Anderson.The Lasses o’ Carel.Snirt, or Snurl, C, the sound of imperfectly suppressed laughter.“But seckan toke! nin could tell what aboot,I stop’t my lugs for fear o’snurtin’oot.”Graham.Gwordie and Will.Snod, S and C, smooth, neat.“Her cockermoniesnodditup fu’ sleek,Her haffet locks hung wavin’ owre her cheek.”Ramsay.The Gentle Shepherd.“You’re making this road rough!” “Ey, but we’ll mak itsnodafoor we’re deun wi’’t.”Reply of the road surveyor at Hawkshead.Snowk, C, to snuffle audibly.”Snowkin’like pigs at a sew.”—Common saying.Snug (as a verb), C, to nestle.“Wesnugg’tin togidder.”—Ibid.Sonsie, S, comfortable looking, also lucky.“Tall andsonsie, frank and free,Lo’ed by a’, an’ dear to me.”Lady Nairne.Kind Robin lo’es me.“Whistlin’ maids an’ crawin’ hens are nosonsie.“—Proverb.Sorn, S, to live on others, to sponge.“Sornanfrae place to place,As scrimp o’ mainners as o’ sense or grace.”Ramsay.The Gentle Shepherd.Souch, S, the sound of gentle wind or breath.“Hark how the westlin’ win’souchsthrough the reeds.”Ibid.Spang-hew, S and C, to fling to the winds.Spang-hewingis a cruel mode practised by school-boys of putting birds, frogs, etc., to death. A stick is laid across a block, the victim placed on one end and the other struck sharply, throwing the poor animal high into the air, killing, and generally, mutilating it.Spats, S and C, abbrev. of spatterdashes—gaiters.“Their stumps, erst used to philabegs,Are dight inspatterdashes.”Ferguson.Leith Races.Speel, S, climb.“Monie a time,Wi’ you I’vespeel’dthe braes o’ rhyme.”Ferguson.My Auld Breeks.Speir, S, ask, enquire.“A feul mayspeirmair questions than a doctor can answer.”Proverb.Spretty, S, covered with Sprett, a kind of coarse grass.“Tillsprettyknowes wad rair’t an’ risketAn’ slypet owre.”Burns.The Auld Mare Maggie.Sprogue, C, a pleasure ramble.“I’ve been to t’ top o’ Knock Murton.” “What took ye there?” “I just went for asprogue!”Part of a conversation in Arlecdon.Squab, C, a long low seat with a back.“Sit on t’squabtill I bring ye summat to sup on.”—Said to me once when I reached a farm house exhausted from struggling through a snow storm.Stammer, or Stummer, C, to stumble.“Oft wittingly Istummer’t, oft I fell.”Relph.Kursty and Peggy.’Statesman, C, landed proprietor—Estatesman.“It is a bonnie job, if gentlemen an’ gentlemen’s servants is to ower-ride ussteàts fooak.”Said by an old lady at Coniston after a vestry meeting.Stayvel, or Stayver, S and C, to walk in a listless manner.“Ther was hundreds o’ fwokestayvelanaboot.”Ritson.The Borrowdale Letter.Stoore, S and C, dust.“This day the kirk kicks up astoore.”Burns.The Ordination.“The Bible ligsstooryabeun the door heid.”Anderson.Caleb Crosby.Stound, S and C, ache or pang.“An’ aye thestound, the deidly wound.Cam frae her e’en sae lovely blue.”Burns.A waefu’ gate yestreen.“Itstounditsare, an’ sare it swell’d.”Relph.After Theocritus.Straddel’t, C, brought to a stand.“I think oald P—— was varra nārstraddel’tiv his sarmon.”Heard at the door of a Wesleyan chapel after service.Sumph, S and C, a fool.“An’ oniesumphthat keeps up spite,In conscience I abhor him.”Rev. J. Skinner.Tullochgorum.“I sit like asumph, nea mair mysel’.”Anderson.Barbary Bell.Swap, S and C, exchange.“I trowe weswappitfor the worse,Ga’e the boot an’ better horse.”Song—Carle an’ the King come.“Lal Sim’s geane an’swapp’dthe black cowt.”Anderson.Nichol the Newsmonger.Swat, C, sit down, squat.“Come, Cuddy,swatan’ tak’ a whiff.”Anderson.The Cram.Sweir, S, loath, unwilling.“Forsooth they cried, anither gill.Forsweirwe’re aye to gang awa’.”Mac Phail.Song.T.Taggelt, C, a scamp.“He mud know they wor o’ arranttaggeltsan’ taistrels.”Rev. T. Clarke.Johnny Shippard.Taistrel, C, a good for nothing.“Yae son proved ataistrelan’ brak up i’ Lunnon.”Anderson.The Twee Auld Men.Taws, S, a strap of thick leather slit into several tails; an implement of punishment in Scottish schools.“Never use thetawswhen a gloom ’ill do the turn.”Proverb.Tawtie, or Tawtit, S, roughly matted (applied to hair or wool).“Naetautittyke, though ne’er sae duddy.”Burns.The Twa Dogs.Teem, C; Toom, S, empty, pour out.“About her lank and all o’er-teemedloins.”Hamlet.“And theretoomthy brock skin bag.”Ballad—The Fray of Suport.Teul, C and S, a bad one (probably from devil).“Let women deu what gud they can,Thur wickedteùls’ill lee.”Jwohnny and Jenny.Tew, C, harass, fatigue.“An’ while they skew’t an’tew’tan’ swet,Wi’ monie a weary sidle.”Mark Lonsdale.The Upshot.Theek, S, thatch.“An’ wi’ a lock o’ his yellow hair,We’lltheekour nest when it blows bare.”Ballad—The Twa Corbies.Thir, S; Thur, C, these.“An’ sad an’ silent was the nichtThat was atweenthirtwa.”Ballad—Clark Saunders.“Thurtaxes!thurtaxes! Lord help us, Amen!”Ewan Clark.Ballad.Thole, S, endure.“He that has gude crops maytholesome thistles.”—Proverb.Thowless, S and C, soft, inapt.“Fortune aye favours the active an’ bauld,But ruins the wooer that’sthowlessan’ cauld.”Ramsay.The Widow.Threep, S and C, to aver, or argue, insistingly.“An’ fowk wadthreepthat she did greenFor what wad gar her skirlAn’ skreich some day.”Ramsay.Christ’s Kirk on the Green.“Somethreep’at the times ’ill get better.”Anderson.Carel Fair.Throssle, C, the thrush.“Thethrossle, when cauld winter’s geane,Aye in our worchet welcomes spring.”Anderson.The Lass abeun Thirty.Throughly, C, corpulent.“Throughly?ey, a gud yard through an’ mair!”Said of Hannah Page, who sold toffy in Whitehaven.Thyvel, C, a porridge stick.“She’ll lick a leanthyvel’at weds you.”Said to a poor Schoolmaster at Workington.Tine, S, lose; Tint, lost.“Tinethimble,tinethrift.”—Proverb.“O have yetintat tournamentYour sword or yet your spear?”Ballad—The Gay Goss Hawk.Tip, S and C, a ram.

“A little blackmessetdanced sae like old Jenny.”

Miss Blamire.Sec a Durdum.

Mirk, S, dark.

“It fell about the Martinmas,When nichts were lang an’mirk.”

“It fell about the Martinmas,

When nichts were lang an’mirk.”

Old Ballad—The Wife of Usher’s Well.

Mischanter, S and C, misadventure.

“Thou’rt welcome, wean,mischanterfa’ me.”

Burns.

Mittens, S and C, gloves.

“He coft me a rokelay o’ blue,An’ a pair o’mittenso’ green.”Macneil.I lo’e ne’er a laddie but ane.“Twee yards o’ red ribbon to wear for his seake,Forbye leddermittenshe bowte me.”

“He coft me a rokelay o’ blue,

An’ a pair o’mittenso’ green.”

Macneil.I lo’e ne’er a laddie but ane.

“Twee yards o’ red ribbon to wear for his seake,

Forbye leddermittenshe bowte me.”

Anderson.First Luive.

Mowdie, S; Mowdie-warp, C, the mole.

“Themowdiepowler’t oot o’ the yirth,An’ kyss’t the synger’s feet.”

“Themowdiepowler’t oot o’ the yirth,

An’ kyss’t the synger’s feet.”

Telfer.The Gloaming Bucht.

“An’ teeak us intil lile hooals under t’ grūnd, ameeast likemowdie-warps.”

Rev. T. Clarke.Johnny Shippard.

Mūd, C, the past tense of must.

“He thowte ’at hemūdtreat ye.”

Miss Blamire.The Meeting.

Mutch, S, a woman’s cap.

“She aff wi’ her apron, put on a silk goon,Amutchwi’ reed ribbons, an’ cam’ awa’ doon.”

“She aff wi’ her apron, put on a silk goon,

Amutchwi’ reed ribbons, an’ cam’ awa’ doon.”

Lady Nairne.The Laird o’ Cockpen.

Nab, C, a promontory in a lake.

“It’s o’nabsan’ neuks is Windermer’ Watter.”

Said by a Coniston Man.

Neb, S and C, nose, beak.

“Gae tak this bonnienebo’ mine,That picks amang the corn,An’ gi’e’t to the Duke o’ Hamilton,To be a touting horn.”

“Gae tak this bonnienebo’ mine,

That picks amang the corn,

An’ gi’e’t to the Duke o’ Hamilton,

To be a touting horn.”

Old Song—Robin Redbreast’s Testament.

Neàf, C, the nave of a wheel.

“T’ fells spreead oot fray a centre like t’ spooaks of a wheel fray t’neàf.”—A Langdale Statesman.

Neif, or Neive, S and C, the hand, or fist.

“Sweet knight I kiss thyneif.”

Shakspeare.King Henry IV.

“What’s a gowpen o’ glaur? It’s just twaneivefu’s o’ clarts!”—Wilson.Noctes Ambrosianæ.

Nick’t i’ t’ heid, C, non compos mentis.

“Toakin sike mafflement! Ye mun benick’t i’ t’ heead.”

A Coniston landlady to a chattering guest.

No’but, C, nothing but, only.

“He’s but a simplish sooart of a body,’At thinks there’sno’butya kind o’ shoddy.”

“He’s but a simplish sooart of a body,

’At thinks there’sno’butya kind o’ shoddy.”

W. Bowness.Brough Hill Fair.

Nowte ’at dowe, C, nothing of ability, fit for nothing.

“In o’ her flegmagaries donn’d,What is she?—nowte ’at dowe!”

“In o’ her flegmagaries donn’d,

What is she?—nowte ’at dowe!”

Anderson.Betty Brown.

Oomer, C, shade.

“Howay wi’ the’, an’ lig down i’ t’owmero’ t’ trees till I’ve time ùt tak’ the’ afooar Mr. Machell.”

Said by a farmer at Colton to an idle servant.

Oald-folk’s neet, C, an assembly for feasting, dancing, and card-playing, held at the rural public houses; once, probably, confined to married people, but now open to, and attended by, young and old.

Paddock rud, or rid, or ridding, C, frog spawn.

“Auld Grizzy the witch, as some fwoke say,Makspaddock-rudointment for sair e’en.”

“Auld Grizzy the witch, as some fwoke say,

Makspaddock-rudointment for sair e’en.”

Anderson.The Witch Wife.

Pang, C and S, to cram.

“An’ some there wer could scarcely speak,Their thropples wer saepang’t.”Stagg.The Bridewain.“It kindles wit, it waukens lair,Itpangsus fu’ o’ knowledge.”

“An’ some there wer could scarcely speak,

Their thropples wer saepang’t.”

Stagg.The Bridewain.

“It kindles wit, it waukens lair,

Itpangsus fu’ o’ knowledge.”

Burns.The Holy Fair.

Parlish, C, remarkable, worth speaking of.

“An’parlishpranks ’mang Silloth banksThey hed as they were comin’.”Stagg.The Bridewain.“A bump as big as a young cockerel’s stone,Aparlousknock.”

“An’parlishpranks ’mang Silloth banks

They hed as they were comin’.”

Stagg.The Bridewain.

“A bump as big as a young cockerel’s stone,

Aparlousknock.”

Shakspeare.Romeo and Juliet.

Said to be a corruption ofperilous, which is certainly not its meaning in Cumberland.

Pash, C, to dash or thrust down forcibly.

“Barne! Ipash’tthem doon.“—Said by Wm. Jackson to a neighbour’s daughter after his first victory at the Flan wrestling.

Pauchtie, S, proud, supercilious.

”Pauchtiedamsels, bred at courts,Wha thraw the mou’ an’ tak’ the dorts.”

”Pauchtiedamsels, bred at courts,

Wha thraw the mou’ an’ tak’ the dorts.”

Ferguson.The Gowdspink.

Pawkie, S, sly.

“A thief saepawkieis my Jean.”

Burns.

Peerie, S, a peg-top. In Cumberland called a Cas’ley.

“He sleeps as soon’ as oniepeerie.”—Common saying.

Phraise, S, smooth or fondling talk.

“He’s ta’en her in his armes twa,Wi monie a kiss an’phraise.”

“He’s ta’en her in his armes twa,

Wi monie a kiss an’phraise.”

Ballad—Young Huntin.

Pigs, S, pots, crockery.

“Where thepig’sbrocken there let the sherds lie.”

Proverb.

Plack, S, the smallest coin of the old Scottish currency.

“He’ll never mak hisplacka bawbee.”—Proverb.

Pleen, C, complain.

“Thou’s spoil’t for o’ manner o’ wark,Thou no’but sits peghan an’pleenan.”

“Thou’s spoil’t for o’ manner o’ wark,

Thou no’but sits peghan an’pleenan.”

Mark Lonsdale.Love in Cumberland.

Plumb, C, (in Furness, etc., pron. Plowmb) perpendicular.

The old landlady at the boat house on Ennerdale water said of a neighbouring doctor who had visited her, and who carries his head well back, “He was mair norplumb!”

Poap, C, to walk aimlessly.

“Sūmpoapanaboot as if they’d be hoaf dazed.”

Rev. T. Clarke.T’ Reysh Beearin’.

Powe, S, head, poll.

“There’s little wit within hispoweThat lichts a candle at the lowe.”

“There’s little wit within hispowe

That lichts a candle at the lowe.”

Proverb.

Pree, S, to taste.

“An’ aye hepreedthe lassie’s mou’As he gaed but an’ ben, O.”

“An’ aye hepreedthe lassie’s mou’

As he gaed but an’ ben, O.”

Old Song.

“Ipreedher mou’.” The Scotch think this phrase a poetical way of saying “I kissed her.” Its literal translation into common English, “I tasted her mouth,” doesn’t sound like poetry; while its Cumbrian form, “I teàstit her feàce” sounds like anything ratherthanpoetry; and their different versions of the same phrase illustrate rather happily the difference of character on the two sides of the Border.

Proddle, C, poke, or stir up.

“Proddlin’up the smudderin’ embers.”

Stagg.

Pubble, C, plump.

“At Michaelmas apubblegoose—at Kersmas, standin’ pie.”

Old Saying.

Putten down, C, put to death.

“That nane may ken that ye are clerks,Till ye beputten doon.”

“That nane may ken that ye are clerks,

Till ye beputten doon.”

Ballad—The Clerk’s Twa Sons.

Puzzen, C, poison.

“The doctor he’s a parfit plague,An’ hauf the parishpuzzens.”

“The doctor he’s a parfit plague,

An’ hauf the parishpuzzens.”

Anderson.The Village Gang.

Rackups, C, a game at marbles where the loser has to place his knuckles on one side of a hole to be “fired” at with the taws of the winners. “He mun stand hisrackups” is a proverb implying the necessity of accepting the consequences of misconduct, defeat, or miscarriage of plans.

Rakin, C, wandering far or wildly.

“They ga rakin aboot widoot ayder errand or aim.”

Said of pedestrian tourists by a dalesman.

Rantin’, Ranty, S and C, wild, riotous.

“Therantin’dog the daidie o’ ’t.”

Burns.Song.

Ratch, C, to search vigorously, to ransack.

“Ratchas ye will, ye’ll mak nowte out.”

Said to hunters in a wood.

Reek, S, smoke.

“The death o’ deevils, smoor’d in brimstonereek.”

Burns.The Twa Brigs.

Riggin’, S, the roof (probably from Ridging primarily).

“Ane may like the kirk weel aneuch without aye riding on theriggin’o’ ’t.”—Proverb.

Rooers, C, (or rather Furness and Westmorland) oars.

“Why do you call themrooers?” “’Coase they irrrooers.” “They call them oars elsewhere.” “They may co’ them what they will, but if theyroowi’ them, they’rerooers.”

Conversation on Esthwaite lake.

Roose, S, praise, exalt.

”Roosethe ford as ye find it.”—Proverb.

Rowp, S, auction; Rowp-crier, auctioneer.

“I canna pay’t an’ yerowpme at the cross.”

Said by a hopeless debtor.

Rowth, S, abundance.

“Rich fouk ha’erowtho’ frien’s.”—Proverb.

Rowe, S, roll.

“Where Cart rinsrowin’to the sea.”

Burns.The Gallant Weaver.

Sackless, C, silly (originally, innocent).

“Our parson sweers a bonnie stickAmang thursacklessasses.”

“Our parson sweers a bonnie stick

Amang thursacklessasses.”

Anderson.The Village Gang.

Sairy, C, sorry.

“Asairywife I trowe she’d mak’At cudn’t muck a byre.”

“Asairywife I trowe she’d mak

’At cudn’t muck a byre.”

Ibid.Betty Brown.

Sark, C and S, shirt (male or female).

“She won’t mend asark, but reads novels, proud brat.”

Ibid.Elizabeth’s Burthday.

“Our women are nowadays a’ grown sae braw,Ilk maun ha’e asark, an’ some maun ha’e twa.”

“Our women are nowadays a’ grown sae braw,

Ilk maun ha’e asark, an’ some maun ha’e twa.”

Ross.The wee pickle tow.

Sarra, C, serve.

“The witch wife begg’d i’ our back-side,An’ wentunsarra’daway i’ the pet.”

“The witch wife begg’d i’ our back-side,

An’ wentunsarra’daway i’ the pet.”

Anderson.The Witch Wife.

Sauch, S, willow.

“Whereby the glancing waves o’ ClydeThroughsauchsan’ hangin’ hazels glide.”

“Whereby the glancing waves o’ Clyde

Throughsauchsan’ hangin’ hazels glide.”

Old Song—Bothwell Bank.

Scraffle, C, scramble.

“Wescraffelton i’ this fashion, an’ it was quite dark afooar we gat till Ammelside yatt.”

Betty Yewdale.T’ terrible Knitters i’ Dent.

Screes, C, sloping banks of fragmentary stone under precipices.

“Whoariver there’sscreesThere’s mair steàns nor trees.”

“Whoariver there’sscrees

There’s mair steàns nor trees.”

Old Rhymes.

Scrimp, S, pinch, reduce.

“For lack o’ thee Iscrimpmy glass.”

Burns.On a Bank Note.

Scrowe, S and C, a lot of children, etc., rough or numerous.

“There’s sic ascroweo’ Irishmen come ower frae Skinburness.”—Said at Annan.

Scunner, S, shuddering disgust—noun and verb.

“An’ yill an’ whiskey ga’e to cairds,Until theyscunner.”

“An’ yill an’ whiskey ga’e to cairds,

Until theyscunner.”

Burns.Ep. to Smith.

Sec, C; Sic, S, such.

“Feegh!seca yen we’ve hed at Codbeck,As niver was under the sun.”

“Feegh!seca yen we’ve hed at Codbeck,

As niver was under the sun.”

Anderson.The Codbeck Wedding.

“Sicas ye gie,sicwill ye get.”—Proverb.

Shap, C, to seem likely, or tend to.

“They’reshappin’to gang heàm wid empty pockets.”

Said of two losing whist players at a Merry Night.

Shinny, C; Shinty, S, a rough game played with knobbed or round ended sticks—called in the south of England, I believe, hocky.

“Shinny’sweel aneuf if shins wer’ seàf.”—Old saying.

Sinsyne, S, since then.

“She charm’d my heart an’ ayesinsyne,I canna think o’ onie ither.”

“She charm’d my heart an’ ayesinsyne,

I canna think o’ onie ither.”

Song—O’er the Muir.

Skeich, S, shy, distant.

“Maggie coost her heid fu’ heich,Look’d asklent an’ uncoskeich.”

“Maggie coost her heid fu’ heich,

Look’d asklent an’ uncoskeich.”

Burns.Duncan Gray.

Skirl, S, scream.

“White and bludy puddings rowthTo gar the doctorskirlwi’ drowth.”

“White and bludy puddings rowth

To gar the doctorskirlwi’ drowth.”

Ferguson.St Andrews.

Skreich, S; Skrike, C, shriek.

“It’s time aneuch toskreichwhen ye’re strucken.”

Proverb.

Skurl, C, slide.

“Skurl, skurlthe’ doon—I’ll kep the’, come thy ways,I’ll leuk ahint me—niver mind thy claes.”

“Skurl, skurlthe’ doon—I’ll kep the’, come thy ways,

I’ll leuk ahint me—niver mind thy claes.”

Ewan Clarke.

Slake, C, a light smear as of grease, etc.

“Let’s tak’slakean’slakeaboot till it’s done.”

Said in licking out a treacle pot.

Slape, C, slippery.

“I mun tell her fadder when I see him—she’s gittin’ varraslape,” old John Howe of Branthwaite Hall called out when he witnessed, by chance, a meeting of sweethearts on a lonely road.

Slare, C, to walk slowly.

“He may be a sharp worker, but he’s aslarin’walker.”

Said by a farmer’s wife of a new come man servant.

Slashy, C, sloppy.

“It was beginnin’ to thowe, an’ was varraslashyan’ cāld.”

Betty Yewdale.T’ terrible Knitters i’ Dent.

Slatter, C, slop.

“Wi’ jaws o’ yell some durty beutsPat loft seun in aslatter.”

“Wi’ jaws o’ yell some durty beuts

Pat loft seun in aslatter.”

Mark Lonsdale.The Upshot.

Sleekie, or Sleekit, S, sly, smooth.

“O we were sly, sly!O, we were sly an’sleekit.”

“O we were sly, sly!

O, we were sly an’sleekit.”

Song.

Slipe, C, to slip away, to “hook it.”

“Slipe, my lad, while thou’s weel.Slipe, I say, an’ let neàbody see the’ gang.”—Said to a youth in a row.

Slocken, S and C, to slake thirst.

“Ha’e ye any clippin’ drink left?” “No!” “Ha’e ye any common yall? No! Ha’e ye any smo’ beer? No! Why than, hang it—ha’e ye any pig-stuff? I mun beslocken’twi’ summat!”—John Kendall at Hawkshead Hall the day after the sheep-shearing feast.

Smaik, S, a small boy, or other small animal.

“He’s but asmaik, but he’s a man at the books.”

Said of a schoolboy.

Smittal, C, infectious.

“Assmittalas t’ Smo’-pox.”

Said of a successful male animal kept for breeding purposes.

Snape, C, snub, also blight.

“Yet tho’ sec bruolliments galworeOftsnaip’tthe whyet of our days.”

“Yet tho’ sec bruolliments galwore

Oftsnaip’tthe whyet of our days.”

Stagg.Auld Lang Syne.

Sneck, C, latch.

“The Buckabank chaps are reet famous sweethearters,Their kisses just sound like thesneckof a yett.”

“The Buckabank chaps are reet famous sweethearters,

Their kisses just sound like thesneckof a yett.”

Anderson.Bleckell Murry-Neet.

Sneck-posset, C. When a man has the door shut in his face, figuratively or literally, he gets asneck-posset.

“Glooar’d at me a bit, an’ than clyash’t dewar i mi feeace——He g’e ma a faersneck-posset.”

Rev. T. Clarke, Johnny Shippard.

Snell, S, cold and cutting.

“There cam’ a wind oot o’ the north,A sharp wind and asnell.”

“There cam’ a wind oot o’ the north,

A sharp wind and asnell.”

Ballad—Young Tamlane.

Snirrup, or Snirp, C, to curl up the nose, etc.

“As seun as she fund I depended on labour,Shesnirp’tup her nose an’ nae mair leuk’t at me.”

“As seun as she fund I depended on labour,

Shesnirp’tup her nose an’ nae mair leuk’t at me.”

Anderson.The Lasses o’ Carel.

Snirt, or Snurl, C, the sound of imperfectly suppressed laughter.

“But seckan toke! nin could tell what aboot,I stop’t my lugs for fear o’snurtin’oot.”

“But seckan toke! nin could tell what aboot,

I stop’t my lugs for fear o’snurtin’oot.”

Graham.Gwordie and Will.

Snod, S and C, smooth, neat.

“Her cockermoniesnodditup fu’ sleek,Her haffet locks hung wavin’ owre her cheek.”

“Her cockermoniesnodditup fu’ sleek,

Her haffet locks hung wavin’ owre her cheek.”

Ramsay.The Gentle Shepherd.

“You’re making this road rough!” “Ey, but we’ll mak itsnodafoor we’re deun wi’’t.”

Reply of the road surveyor at Hawkshead.

Snowk, C, to snuffle audibly.

”Snowkin’like pigs at a sew.”—Common saying.

Snug (as a verb), C, to nestle.

“Wesnugg’tin togidder.”—Ibid.

Sonsie, S, comfortable looking, also lucky.

“Tall andsonsie, frank and free,Lo’ed by a’, an’ dear to me.”

“Tall andsonsie, frank and free,

Lo’ed by a’, an’ dear to me.”

Lady Nairne.Kind Robin lo’es me.

“Whistlin’ maids an’ crawin’ hens are nosonsie.“—Proverb.

Sorn, S, to live on others, to sponge.

“Sornanfrae place to place,As scrimp o’ mainners as o’ sense or grace.”

“Sornanfrae place to place,

As scrimp o’ mainners as o’ sense or grace.”

Ramsay.The Gentle Shepherd.

Souch, S, the sound of gentle wind or breath.

“Hark how the westlin’ win’souchsthrough the reeds.”

Ibid.

Spang-hew, S and C, to fling to the winds.

Spang-hewingis a cruel mode practised by school-boys of putting birds, frogs, etc., to death. A stick is laid across a block, the victim placed on one end and the other struck sharply, throwing the poor animal high into the air, killing, and generally, mutilating it.

Spats, S and C, abbrev. of spatterdashes—gaiters.

“Their stumps, erst used to philabegs,Are dight inspatterdashes.”

“Their stumps, erst used to philabegs,

Are dight inspatterdashes.”

Ferguson.Leith Races.

Speel, S, climb.

“Monie a time,Wi’ you I’vespeel’dthe braes o’ rhyme.”

“Monie a time,

Wi’ you I’vespeel’dthe braes o’ rhyme.”

Ferguson.My Auld Breeks.

Speir, S, ask, enquire.

“A feul mayspeirmair questions than a doctor can answer.”

Proverb.

Spretty, S, covered with Sprett, a kind of coarse grass.

“Tillsprettyknowes wad rair’t an’ risketAn’ slypet owre.”

“Tillsprettyknowes wad rair’t an’ risket

An’ slypet owre.”

Burns.The Auld Mare Maggie.

Sprogue, C, a pleasure ramble.

“I’ve been to t’ top o’ Knock Murton.” “What took ye there?” “I just went for asprogue!”

Part of a conversation in Arlecdon.

Squab, C, a long low seat with a back.

“Sit on t’squabtill I bring ye summat to sup on.”—Said to me once when I reached a farm house exhausted from struggling through a snow storm.

Stammer, or Stummer, C, to stumble.

“Oft wittingly Istummer’t, oft I fell.”

Relph.Kursty and Peggy.

’Statesman, C, landed proprietor—Estatesman.

“It is a bonnie job, if gentlemen an’ gentlemen’s servants is to ower-ride ussteàts fooak.”

Said by an old lady at Coniston after a vestry meeting.

Stayvel, or Stayver, S and C, to walk in a listless manner.

“Ther was hundreds o’ fwokestayvelanaboot.”

Ritson.The Borrowdale Letter.

Stoore, S and C, dust.

“This day the kirk kicks up astoore.”Burns.The Ordination.“The Bible ligsstooryabeun the door heid.”

“This day the kirk kicks up astoore.”

Burns.The Ordination.

“The Bible ligsstooryabeun the door heid.”

Anderson.Caleb Crosby.

Stound, S and C, ache or pang.

“An’ aye thestound, the deidly wound.Cam frae her e’en sae lovely blue.”Burns.A waefu’ gate yestreen.“Itstounditsare, an’ sare it swell’d.”

“An’ aye thestound, the deidly wound.

Cam frae her e’en sae lovely blue.”

Burns.A waefu’ gate yestreen.

“Itstounditsare, an’ sare it swell’d.”

Relph.After Theocritus.

Straddel’t, C, brought to a stand.

“I think oald P—— was varra nārstraddel’tiv his sarmon.”

Heard at the door of a Wesleyan chapel after service.

Sumph, S and C, a fool.

“An’ oniesumphthat keeps up spite,In conscience I abhor him.”Rev. J. Skinner.Tullochgorum.“I sit like asumph, nea mair mysel’.”

“An’ oniesumphthat keeps up spite,

In conscience I abhor him.”

Rev. J. Skinner.Tullochgorum.

“I sit like asumph, nea mair mysel’.”

Anderson.Barbary Bell.

Swap, S and C, exchange.

“I trowe weswappitfor the worse,Ga’e the boot an’ better horse.”Song—Carle an’ the King come.“Lal Sim’s geane an’swapp’dthe black cowt.”

“I trowe weswappitfor the worse,

Ga’e the boot an’ better horse.”

Song—Carle an’ the King come.

“Lal Sim’s geane an’swapp’dthe black cowt.”

Anderson.Nichol the Newsmonger.

Swat, C, sit down, squat.

“Come, Cuddy,swatan’ tak’ a whiff.”

Anderson.The Cram.

Sweir, S, loath, unwilling.

“Forsooth they cried, anither gill.Forsweirwe’re aye to gang awa’.”

“Forsooth they cried, anither gill.

Forsweirwe’re aye to gang awa’.”

Mac Phail.Song.

Taggelt, C, a scamp.

“He mud know they wor o’ arranttaggeltsan’ taistrels.”

Rev. T. Clarke.Johnny Shippard.

Taistrel, C, a good for nothing.

“Yae son proved ataistrelan’ brak up i’ Lunnon.”

Anderson.The Twee Auld Men.

Taws, S, a strap of thick leather slit into several tails; an implement of punishment in Scottish schools.

“Never use thetawswhen a gloom ’ill do the turn.”

Proverb.

Tawtie, or Tawtit, S, roughly matted (applied to hair or wool).

“Naetautittyke, though ne’er sae duddy.”

Burns.The Twa Dogs.

Teem, C; Toom, S, empty, pour out.

“About her lank and all o’er-teemedloins.”Hamlet.“And theretoomthy brock skin bag.”

“About her lank and all o’er-teemedloins.”

Hamlet.

“And theretoomthy brock skin bag.”

Ballad—The Fray of Suport.

Teul, C and S, a bad one (probably from devil).

“Let women deu what gud they can,Thur wickedteùls’ill lee.”

“Let women deu what gud they can,

Thur wickedteùls’ill lee.”

Jwohnny and Jenny.

Tew, C, harass, fatigue.

“An’ while they skew’t an’tew’tan’ swet,Wi’ monie a weary sidle.”

“An’ while they skew’t an’tew’tan’ swet,

Wi’ monie a weary sidle.”

Mark Lonsdale.The Upshot.

Theek, S, thatch.

“An’ wi’ a lock o’ his yellow hair,We’lltheekour nest when it blows bare.”

“An’ wi’ a lock o’ his yellow hair,

We’lltheekour nest when it blows bare.”

Ballad—The Twa Corbies.

Thir, S; Thur, C, these.

“An’ sad an’ silent was the nichtThat was atweenthirtwa.”Ballad—Clark Saunders.“Thurtaxes!thurtaxes! Lord help us, Amen!”

“An’ sad an’ silent was the nicht

That was atweenthirtwa.”

Ballad—Clark Saunders.

“Thurtaxes!thurtaxes! Lord help us, Amen!”

Ewan Clark.Ballad.

Thole, S, endure.

“He that has gude crops maytholesome thistles.”—Proverb.

Thowless, S and C, soft, inapt.

“Fortune aye favours the active an’ bauld,But ruins the wooer that’sthowlessan’ cauld.”

“Fortune aye favours the active an’ bauld,

But ruins the wooer that’sthowlessan’ cauld.”

Ramsay.The Widow.

Threep, S and C, to aver, or argue, insistingly.

“An’ fowk wadthreepthat she did greenFor what wad gar her skirlAn’ skreich some day.”Ramsay.Christ’s Kirk on the Green.“Somethreep’at the times ’ill get better.”

“An’ fowk wadthreepthat she did green

For what wad gar her skirl

An’ skreich some day.”

Ramsay.Christ’s Kirk on the Green.

“Somethreep’at the times ’ill get better.”

Anderson.Carel Fair.

Throssle, C, the thrush.

“Thethrossle, when cauld winter’s geane,Aye in our worchet welcomes spring.”

“Thethrossle, when cauld winter’s geane,

Aye in our worchet welcomes spring.”

Anderson.The Lass abeun Thirty.

Throughly, C, corpulent.

“Throughly?ey, a gud yard through an’ mair!”

Said of Hannah Page, who sold toffy in Whitehaven.

Thyvel, C, a porridge stick.

“She’ll lick a leanthyvel’at weds you.”

Said to a poor Schoolmaster at Workington.

Tine, S, lose; Tint, lost.

“Tinethimble,tinethrift.”—Proverb.

“O have yetintat tournamentYour sword or yet your spear?”

“O have yetintat tournament

Your sword or yet your spear?”

Ballad—The Gay Goss Hawk.

Tip, S and C, a ram.

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