b. 1848. New York Herald [Bartlett]. There is nothing picayune about the members of St. George's Club; for the love of sport they will . . . enter upon matches that other clubs would not accept.
18[?]. The Writer [Century], III. 112. If only two cents are required, you will have prevented a picayune waste.
PICCADILL (or PICCADILLO), Subs.
(old).—1. See quot. 1892. Also
(2) the ornamental border of a
broad collar worn by women
early in 17th century, as in quot.
1607.
1607. Dekker and Webster, Northward Ho, iii. 1. A short Dutch waist with a round Catherine-wheel fardingale, a close sleeve with a cartouse collar, and a PICKADIL.
1611. Cotgrave, Dict., s.v. Piccadilles . . . the seuerall divisions or peeces fastened together about the brimme of the collar of a doublet.
1616. Jonson, Devil is an Ass, ii. 1. I am not . . . the man . . . of that truth of Picardil in clothes, To boast a sovereignty o'er ladies.
1621. Fletcher [? and another], Pilgrim, ii. 2. Do you want a band, Sir? This is a coarse wearing. 'Twill sit but scurvily upon this collar, But patience is as good as a French pickadel.
1670. R. Lassels, Voy. Ital., ii. 117 (1698). One half of his band about his neck, was a broad bone lace, starched white, the other half was made of coarse Lawn, starched blew, and standing out upon a pickydilly of wire.
1892. Fennell, Stanford Dict., s.v. Piccadill . . . A stiff collar over which an ornamental fall or collar was arranged, worn first at the close of the 16th century. Perhaps the spelling piccadil was suggested by the Italian use of Picardia for 'hanging,' 'place where persons are hanged.'
Piccadilly Butchers (The), subs.
phr. (military).—The First Life
Guards. [Having been called out
to quell the Piccadilly riots in
1810.] Also "The Cheeses";
"The Tin Bellies"; and "The
Patent Safeties."
Piccadilly-crawl, subs. phr.
(obsolete).—A walk: modish in
the Eighties. Cf. Alexandra
Limp, Grecian Bend, Roman
Fall, &c.
Piccaninny (pickaninny, pinkaninny,
&c), subs. (colloquial).—baby;
a child: specifically
(modern) a child of negro parents.
[Originally from pink (an endearment)
= small: see Pigsney.]—Grose
(1785).
1696. Durfey, Pills to Purge (1719), i. 283. Dear Pinckaninny, if half a guinea, To Lord will win ye, I lay it here down.
1855. Haliburton, Nature and Human Nature, 59. Let me see one of you dare to lay hands on this pickaninny.
1865. H. Kingsley, Hillyars and Burtons, xxviii. Five-and-forty black fellows, lubras, picaninnies, and all, at my heels.
1879. F. Locker, The Old Cradle. You were an exceeding small picaninny, Some nineteen or twenty short summers ago.
1883. Harper's Mag. [Century], lxxvi. 809. A poor puny little pickaninny, black as the ace of spades.
Pick, verb. (old colloquial: now
wrestlers').—1. To shoot; to
fling.—Bee (1823).
1530. Palsgrave, Lang. Francoyse [Halliwell]. I holde a grote I pycke as farre with an arrowe as you.
1610. Shakspeare, Coriolanus, i. 1. Il'd make a quarry With thousands of these quarter'd slaves, as high As I could pick my lance.
2. (old: now colloquial).—To pilfer; to choose thievishly: also pickeer, but, usually to pick and cut or to pick pockets.
Also as subs. (or picking) = petty larceny (Grose, 1785): cf. (Prayer Book) 'Keep my hands from picking and stealing.' Hence picker (picker-up or pickeerer) = (1) a petty thief;
