1838. Haliburton, Clockmaker (ed. 1862), p. 373. But what gave me the gapes was the scenes (at the theatre).
Gapeseed, subs. (common).—1.
A cause of astonishment; anything
provoking the ignorant to
stare with open mouth. Also to
seek a gape's nest.
1598. Florio, Worlde of Wordes. Ansanare . . . to go idly loytring vp and downe as we say, to go seeking for a halfepenie worth of gaping seede.
1600. Nashe, Summer's Last Will, in wks. (Grosart), vi., 144. That if a fellow licensed to beg, Should all his life time go from faire to faire, And buy gape-*seede, having no businesse there.
1690. B. E., Cant. Crew. Gape-*seed, whatever the gazing crowd idly stares and gapes after; as Puppet-shows, Rope-dancers, Monsters and Mountebanks, anything to feed the eye.
1694. Poor Robin. 'Tis plainly clear, They for their gapes-seed do pay dear.
1856. N. and Q., 2 S 1., 362. Plenty of persons were sowing gapeseed.
1870. B. F. Clark, Mirthfulness p. 24. Do you wish to buy some gapeseed?
1884. Daily News, 8 Oct. Title (at head of sporting column).
2. (common).—An open-mouthed loiterer.
1885. Sportsman, June 23, p. 2, c. 4. The yearlings bred by Messrs. Graham were offered to a rather select audience of buyers, though the ring was surrounded by a fairly strong crowd of gapeseeds.
Gapped, ppl. adj. (old).—Worsted;
floored (q.v. for synonyms).
1753. Richardson, Sir Chas. Grandison. I will never meet at hard-edge with her; if I did . . . I should be confoundedly gapped.
Gap-Stopper, subs. (old).—1. A
whoremaster. For synonyms,
see Molrower.
2. (venery).—The penis. [Gap = female pudendum]. For synonyms, see Creamstick and Prick.
Gar. See by gar!
Garble, to garble the coinage,
verb. phr. (old).—See quot.
[Garble = to pick and choose.]
1875. Jevons, Money, etc., p. 81. A practice amongst money-lenders of picking out the newest coins of full weight for export or re-melting, and passing the light ones into circulation.
Garden, subs. (various).—1. (greengrocers', fruiterers', etc.) = Covent Garden Market; 2. (theatrical) = Covent Garden Theatre; 3. (diamond merchants') = Hatton Garden. Cf., House, Lane, etc.
[The Garden (= Covent Garden) was frequently used for the whole neighbourhood, which was notorious as a place of strumpets and stews. Thus, Garden-house = a brothel; Garden-goddess = a woman of pleasure; Garden-gout = the pox or clap; Garden-whore = a low prostitute, etc.]
1733. Bailey, Erasmus. When young men by whoring, as it commonly falls out, get the pox, which, by the way of extenuation, they call the Common Garden-gout.
1782. Geo. Parker, Humorous Sketches, p. 90 No more the Garden female orgies view.
1851-61. W. Mayhew, Lond. Lab. and Lond. Poor, Vol. I., p. 85. Not only is the Garden itself all bustle and activity, but the buyers and sellers stream to and from it in all directions, filling every street in the vicinity.
1884. Jas. Payn, in Cornhill Mag., Mar., p. 257. She [Miss O'Neill] talked of the Garden and 'the Lane,' and was very fond of recitation.
1890. Tit-Bits, 29 Mar., p. 389, c. 1. Let me describe the Garden. A long, straight street, stretching almost due north and south, from Holborn Circus to Clerkenwell Road. Ibid. c. 2. The cut stones are chiefly sold to the large dealers in the Garden.
