Or poplars of yarum; he cuts, bing to the Ruffmans. Or else he sweares by the lightmans, To put our stamps in the Harmans. The Ruffian cly the ghost of the Harman beck. If we heaue a booth we cly the Jerke. If we niggle or mill a bousing ken. Or nip a bung that has but a win, Or dup the giger of a gentry cofes ken: To the quier cuffing we bing, And then to the quier-Ken to scowre the Cramp-ring, And then to the Trin'de on the chates, in the lightmans, The Bube and Ruffian cly the Harman beck and Harmans.
[This is thus 'Englished' by Dekker].
The Diuell take the Constable's head, If we beg Bacon, Butter-milke or bread. Or Pottage, to the hedge he bids us hie, Or sweares (by this light) i'th' stocks we shall lie. The Deuill haunt the Constable's ghoast, If we rob but a booth, we are whip'd at a poast. If an ale-house we rob or be tane with a whore, Or cut a purse that has iust a penny, and no more, Or come but stealing in at a gentleman's dore: To the Justice straight we goe, And then to the Jayle to be shakled: And so To be hang'd on the gallows i'th' day time: the pox And the Deuill take the Constable and his stocks.
1821. W. T. Moncrieff, Tom and Jerry, Act ii., Sc. 6.
Land. Gentlemen vagabonds; the traps are abroad, and half a thousand beadles and beaksmen are now about the door. Billy. De beak! oh curse a de beak! Jemmy. Gemmen!—gemmen! (Knocking on table to command attention.) Jack. Silence for the chair! Jemmy. Put out the lights, put out the lights, every one shift for himself. Here, Bob, carry me up the ladder, good luck to you do, Bob.
1840. Thackeray, Catherine, ch. x. But Mrs. Polly, with a wonderful presence of mind, restored peace by exclaiming, 'Hush, hush! the beaks, the beaks! Upon which, with one common instinct, the whole party made a rush for the garden gates, and disappeared into the fields. Mrs. Briggs knew her company: there was something in the very name of a constable which sent them all a-flying.
English Synonyms. 'Blue' (traceable to Queen Elizabeth's days when the colour of the uniform was the same as now); 'men in blue'; 'Royal Regiment of Footguards Blue'; 'bluebottle' (used by Shakspeare); 'blew coate' (also a Shakspearian term, and still in use); 'Dogberry' (an allusion to Much Ado about Nothing); 'charley' (one of the old watchmen); 'bobby'; 'peeler'; 'copper' (a thieves' term, from 'to cop' to lay hold of); 'crusher' (thieves'); 'slop' (a back slang corruption of 'police' = esclop, with c not sounded and shortened to 'slop'); 'scufter' (a northern term, as also is the example next following); 'bulky' (used by Bulwer Lytton); 'philip' (from a thieves' signal); 'cossack'; 'philistine'; 'frog' (from pouncing upon criminals); 'Johnnie Darby' (a corruption of gendarme); 'Johnnie'; 'pig' (a plain clothes man); 'worm'; 'nose'; 'nark'; 'dee' (a detective); 'tec'; the C.T.A. (a circus man's term); 'demon' (Australian thieves'); 'reeler'; 'raw lobster' (this like 'blue,' etc., would appear to be a reference to the colour of the uniform).
French Synonyms. Un rousse (popular and thieves': roux signifies 'red,' and red hair has always been held in contempt as indicative of treachery and craft; hence its application by the criminal classes to their natural enemies); un roussin (thieves': of same derivation as foregoing); un bâton de réglisse
