1891. Anti-Jacobin, 23 May, p. 400. When Dangerous, Plenipotentiary, Bay Middleton, and other flyers ran.
1891. Morning Advertiser, 28 Mar. In any event, he was never a flyer at breakfast. But late at night, and when, perhaps, he tumbled across something equivalent to woodcock, tripe and onions, or a hot lobster, say, why then, take my word for it, he made up for previous abstinence.
1891. National Observer, 1 Aug. It remains to be seen whether large yachts constructed on the same principle will be equally invincible: that is, if the flyers we have are one and all to disappear.
2. (football).—A shot in the air. See Made-flyer.
3. (American).—A small handbill; a Dodger (q.v.).
To take a flier (American trade).—1. To make a venture; to invest against odds.
2. (venery).—To copulate in haste (Grose); to do a Fast-*fuck (q.v.).
Flies, subs. (rhyming).—Lies.
Hence, nonsense; trickery; deceit.
There are no flies on me, on him, etc., phr. (common).—'I am dealing honestly with you;' 'he is genuine, and is not hum-*bugging.' In America, the expression is used of (1) a man of quick parts, a man who 'knows a thing without its being kicked into him by a mule'; and (2) a person of superior breeding or descent. Sometimes the phrase is corrupted into 'no fleas.' See Gammon.
1868. Diprose, St. Clement Danes, Past and Present. To Deaf Burke, the celebrated pugilist, is attributed the old story of the 'flies and the gin and water;" and hence the term 'no flies' became prevalent. Burke had ordered . . . some 'hot and strong and a dash of lemon.' The goblet was brought . . . Burke raised . . . the nectar to his lips, and beheld some dissipated flies lying at the bottom of the tumbler; he placed the glass on the table, and deliberately removed the flies with the spoon, five or six in number, and laid them side by side before him, and then giving a hearty pull at the gin and water, he as deliberately replaced the flies . . . and passed it to his friend. His companion stared angrily. 'Do you dare to insult me, and in the presence of company?' said the irate vis-à-vis. 'Pardon me,' replied Burke, quietly handing the glass a second time, 'though I don't drink flies myself, I didn't know but what others might.'
1888. Detroit Free Press, 25 Aug. There ain't no flies on him, signifies, that he is not quiet long enough for moss to grow on his heels, that he is wide awake.
1888. Missouri Republican, 24 Feb. People who are capable of descending to New York and Boston English are fully justified in saying that there are no flies on st. louis or the St. Louis delegation either.
Fligger (also Flicker), verb. (old).—To
grin.
1720. Durfey Pills, etc., vi., 267. He fliggered, and told me for all my brave alls He would have a stroke.
Flim.—See Flimsy.
Flim-flam, subs. (old).—An idle
story; a sham; a robinhood
tale (q.v.). A duplication of
Flam (q.v.).
1589. Pappe with an Hatchet (ed. 1844) p. 39. Trusse up thy packet of flim-flams, and roage to some countrey faire, or read it among boyes in the belfrie.
1630. Taylor, Workes. They with a courtly tricke, or a flim-flam, do nod at me, whilst I the noddy am.
1750. Fielding, Tom Jones, bk. XVIII., ch. xii. I thought thou had'st been a lad of higher mettle than to give way to a parcel of maidenish tricks. I tell thee 'tis all flim-flam.
1780. Mrs. Cowley, The Belle's Stratagem, iii., 1. Mr. Curate, don't think to come over me with your flim-flams, for a better man than ever trod in your shoes is coming over-sea to marry me.
