1596. Lodge, Incarnate Devils. This divel prefers an Ephimerides before a Bible; and his Ptolemey and Hali before Ambrose, golden Chrisostome, or S. Augustine: promise him a familiar, and he will take a flie in a box for good paiment.
1610. Ben Jonson, Alchemist i. You are mistaken, doctor, Why he does ask one but for cups and horses, A rifling fly, none of your great familiars.
1622. Massinger, Virgin Martyr, ii., 2. Courtiers have flies That buzz all news unto them.
2. (old).—A printer's devil; specifically a boy who lifted the printed sheets from the press. [Now the vibrating frame used for the same purpose.]
1688. R. Holme, Academy of Armory. These boys do in a printing-house commonly black and bedaub themselves, when the workmen do jocosely call them devils, and sometimes spirits, and sometimes flies.
3. (trade).—A customer.
4. (common).—The act of spinning a coin. Cf., Flutter.
5. (old).—A public wagon: afterwards (colloquial) a four-wheel hackney coach. Fr., mouche (fly) = a public boat on the Seine.
1714. Memoirs of John Hall, s.v.
6. (common).—A policeman. For synonyms, see Beak and Copper.
1857. Snowden, Magistrates' Assistant, 3rd ed., p. 446. A policeman; a fly.
Adj. (common).—1. Knowing; artful (q.v.); up to every move; cute. also fly to, a-fly, fly to the game, and fly to what's what. Cf., Awake, and, for synonyms, see Knowing; fly dog (q.v.).
1811. Lexicon Balatronicum, Cheese it, the coves are fly = be silent, the people understand our discourse.
1823. W. T. Moncrieff, Tom and Jerry, Act II., Sc. 2. Jerry. Charlies' fiddles?—I'm not fly, Doctor. Log. Rattles, Jerry, rattles Jerry rattles! you're fly now, I see.
1838. Glascock, Land Sharks and Sea Gulls., II., 4. That's right; I see you're fly to every fakement.
1850. Lloyd's Weekly, 3 Feb. 'Low Lodging Houses of London.' They say the fliest is easy to take in sometimes—that's the artfullest; but I could do no good there.
1851-61. H. Mayhew, Lond. Lab. and Lond. Poor, vol. I., p. 260. 'We were too fly to send anybody to market but ourselves.'
1861. H. Kingsley, Ravenshoe, ch. xxxv. [Chas. Ravenshoe to Shoeblack]. 'On the cross?' said Charles. 'Ah,' the boy said, 'he goes out cly-faking and such. He's a prig, and a smart one, too. He's fly, is Harry.
1876. Miss Braddon, Dead Men's Shoes, ch. iii. 'Go and fetch the cleverest police officer in Liverpool, and let him wait outside this door till I want him.' 'I'm fly,' answers the youth, brightening at the prospect of excitement and remuneration. 'Case of 'bezzlement, I suppose, Sir?'
1877. Five Years' Penal Servitude, ch. ii., p. 125. A certain prisoner, who was what is termed a very fly man, i.e., a clever, scheming fellow . . . sounded him as to getting tobacco and other matters.
188(?). Jenny Hill Broadside Ballad. I've cut my wisdom teeth, some at top, some underneath. . . . So you needn't try it on; I'm fly.
1890. Punch, 30 Aug., p. 9. Briggs, Junior, a lobsculler called me; I wasn't quite fly to his lay.
1891. Licensed Victuallers' Gazette, 9 Jan. If you get among a fly lot, why they'd skin you in less than no time.
2. (common).—Dextrous.
1834. Ainsworth, Rookwood, bk. III., ch. v. No dummy hunter had forks so fly.
1839. Reynolds, Pickwick Abroad, p. 223. We'll knap a fogle with fingers fly.
3. (venery).—Wanton. fly-girl, -woman, or -dame = a prostitute.
