1593. Harvey, Pierces Supererog. [Grosart, Works, ii. 225]. He meaneth not to come upon me with a cowardly stratageme of Scarborough warning.
1603. T. Mathew (Bishop of Durham), Letter 19, Jan. [Nares]. I received a message from my lord chamberlaine, that it was his majesty's pleasure that I should preach before him upon Sunday next; which Scarborough warning did not only perplex me, but so puzzel me.
1616. Letter [quoted by Nares]. I now write upon Scarborough warning.
1670. Ray, Proverbs, 263. This proverb took its original from Thomas Stafford, who in the reign of Queen Mary, 1557, with a small company seizd on Scarborough Castle (utterly destitute of provision for resistance) before the townsmen had the least notice of his approach. [This is taken from Fuller's Worthies: cf. Stafford law and see quots. 1546 and 1557 which show the phrase in earlier use.]
1787. Grose, Prov. Glossary (1811), 94. A Scarborough warning. That is, none at all, but a sudden surprise.
1843. Halliwell, Archaic Words, &c., s.v. Scarborough. . . . Scarborough leisure, no leisure at all.
Scarce. To make one's self
scarce, verb. phr. (colloquial).—To
retire (Grose).
1749. Smollett, Gil Bias [Routledge], 374. It was my fixed purpose to make myself scarce at Seville.
1812. Margravine of Anspach [C. K. Sharpe's Correspondence (1888), ii. 20]. I shall make myself very, very scarce, and live only for myself.
1821. Scott, Kenilworth, iv. Make yourself scarce—depart—vanish!
1836. M. Scott, Cruise of Midge, 114. My fine fellow, you are a little off your cruising ground, so be making yourself scarce—Bolt—vanish—get on deck with you.
1840. Barham, Ingolds. Leg. (Lay of St. Odille). Come, make yourselves scarce!—it is useless to stay.
1851-61. Mayhew, Lond. Lab., I. 265. I had warned her to make herself scarce at her earliest possible convenience.
1891. Lic. Vict. Gaz., 16 Jan. Now, bobbies, make yourselves scarce . . . you know this is a gentleman's private apartment, and you're trespassers.
Scare. To scare up, verb. phr.
(colloquial).—To find; to discover:
e.g., 'to scare up
money.'
Scarecrow, subs. (thieves').—See
quot.
1884. Greenwood, Little Ragamuffins. The scarecrow is the boy who has served him [a thief] until he is well known to the police, and is so closely watched that he may as well stay at home as go out.
Scarehead, subs. (journalists').—A
line in bold type calculated to
arrest attention.
1900. White, West End, 339. One of our calm days, unbroken by scareheads in the newspapers, or by the croakings of nervous critics.
Scarlet. To dye scarlet, verb.
phr. (old).—See quot.
1598. Shakspeare, I Hen. IV., ii. 4. They call drinking deep, dyeing scarlet.
To wear scarlet, verb. phr. (old).—1. To win the higher University degrees; (2) to attain sheriff or aldermanic rank. [Which were scarlet-robed.]
1610. Jonson, Alchemist, i. 1. This summer he will be of the clothing of his company, and next spring called to the scarlet.
1613. Webster, Devils Law-Case, ii. 3. Your patience has not ta'en the right degree of wearing scarlet; I should rather take you For a bachelor in the art, than for a doctor.
Scarlet-fever, subs. phr. (common).—Flirtation
with soldiers:
Fr. culotte- (or pantalon-) rouge:
cf. Yellow-fever.
1862. Mayhew, Lon. Lab., IV. 235. Nurse-maids . . . are always ready to succumb to the scarlet-fever. A red coat is all powerful with this class.
Scarlet-horse, subs. phr. (old).—See
quot.
1785. Grose, Vulg. Tongue, s.v. Scarlet Horse. A high-red, hired or hack horse: a pun on the word.
