reproach, and people pointed to it as a sign that society in California was utterly and perhaps irredeemably impure and disorganised.
1885. Palmer, New and Old, 73. The first man hung by the San Francisco Vigilance Committee was dead before he was swung up, and the second was alive after he was cut down.
1882. Roosevelt [Century, XXXV. 505]. A little over a year ago one committee of vigilantes in Eastern Montana shot or hung nearly sixty [horse-thieves] —not, however, with the best judgment in all cases.
Vile, subs. (Old Cant).—A town:
cf. Fr. ville. Hence Rome-vile
= London (see Rum, adj. I):
DEUCE-a-vile = the country:
also deauseaville and daisyVILLE.
1567. Harman, Caveat, 86. Byng we to ROME-VYLE.
1612. Dekker, O per se O. 'Bing out, Bien morts.' Bing out bien morts, and toure and toure, bing out of the Rome-vile.
1622. Head, Eng. Rogue. And prig and cloy so benshiply All the deuce-a-vile within.
1834. Ainsworth, Rookwood (1864), 199. I want a little ready cash in Rum-ville—beg pardon, ma'am, London, I mean.
1891. Carew, Auto. of a Gipsy, 416. We made a long round back to vile. Ibid., 417. The vile's readered all hover with these 'ere stiffs.
ViLL, subs. (Felsted School).—
Felsted village.
Villadom, subs, (colloquial).—The
world of suburban residents;
spec. the middle classes.
1886. Fort. Rev., N.S., xl. 254. Villadom of the suburbs votes for the internal divisions of London, and again in the suburban boroughs.
1888. Pall Mall Gaz., 29 Feb. The outlying districts are not sacred to VILLADOM.
Village (The), subs. phr. (common).
—London. Also the hardware
village = Birmingham.
Village - bustler, subs. phr.
(old).—An active petty thief: a
picker-up of trifles, unconsidered
or the reverse.
Villain, subs. (common).—A
jocular self-reproach : e.g. ' I'm
a bit of a villain myself, but
'; or ' I'm as mild a VILLAIN
as ever scuttled a ship.' Also as
an endearment.
1604. Shakspeare, Winter's Tale, i. 2. Sweet villain! most dearest! my collop.
Vim, subs. (common).—Spirit,
activity, energy: orig. University
slang [Latin].
1869. McClure, Tour through Rocky Mountains. Virginia City is sobering down with the ebbing tide into substantial, legitimate business; but Helena has all the vim, recklessness, extravagance, and jolly progress of a new camp.
1875. New York Herald, 17 Ap. Mr. Fullerton figuratively jumped into the ring, rolled up his sleeves, and squared off with a vim and determination that sometimes makes victory half assured.
1876. Providence Press, 8 Jan. We are of those who believe that our system of school management can be improved, and made more efficient. We believe that more of vim, snap, or activity can be infused into it, to the manifest advantage of every interest.
d. 1878. S. Bowles [Merriam, Life, x. II. 7]. The men . . . have . . . a wide practical reach, a boldness, a sagacity, a vim, that I do not believe can be matched anywhere in the world.
Vincent's-law, subs. phr. (gaming).—Cheating
at cards.
Vinegar, subs. (Old Cant).—A
cloak (B. E.). Also see Pepper.
