1886. Oliphant, New Eng, i. 46. We still hear people talk of tall (fine) English.
2. (modern colloquial).—Anything out of the common: e.g. a tall (= severe) fight; tall (= extravagant) talk: whence to talk tall = to gas (q.v.); a tall (= a great) pace, etc. Hence as adv., very, exceedingly. Also, to walk tall = to carry one's head high; to put on side (q.v.).
d. 1704. Brown, Works, ii. 134. I for my part was to write bills as tall as the monument, and charge them with the most costly medicines.
1844. Kendall, Santa Fé Exped., i. 398. Stump straightened up, and started at a pace that would have staggered . . . the greatest pedestrian mentioned in the annals of 'tall walking.'
1846. Thorpe, Backwoods, 131. I will walk tall into varmint and Indian: it's a way I've got. Ibid., Big Bear of Arkansaw [Bartlett]. The live sucker from Illinois had the daring to say that our Arkansaw friend's stories smelt rather tall.
1847. Robb, Squatter Life [Bartlett]. I seed Jess warn't pleased; but I didn't estimate him very tall, so I kept on dancin' with Sally, and ended by kissin' her good-by, and making him jealous as a pet pinter.
1855. Hammond, Wild Northern Scenes, 211. It had a mighty big pile of the tallest kind of land layin' around waitin' to be opened up to the sunlight.
1869. Stowe, Oldtown, 72. I'm 'mazing proud on't. I tell you I walk tall—ask 'em if I don't, round to the store.
1891. New York Times, 26 Jan. A tall yarn about the Jews wanting to buy the Vatican copy of the Hebrew Bible.
1897. Marshall, Pomes, 118. Her cheek was fairly 'tall.'
1900. Kernahan, Scoundrels, xv. Public men who talk tall about the sacredness of labour.
1901. Free Lance, 16 Mar., 582. 1. The 'boundary' has absolutely nothing to do with tall scoring.
1903. D. Tel., 7 Ap., 9. 1. There is even tall talk about extending the strike to other countries, if negotiations fail.
Tall-boy, subs. phr. (old).—1. A
wine-glass: large, high-stemmed,
and showy; spec. (B. E.) A
Pottle or two Quart-pot full of
Wine.
1694. Motteux, Rabelais, v. xliii. She then ordered some cups, goblets, and tallboys, of golde, silver and crystal to be brought, and invited us to drink.
2. (common).—A very tall chimney-pot.
1884. D. Tel., Jan. This was but one of many scores of pots; tallboys, cowls . . . swept from the chimney-stacks of the Metropolis on Saturday night.
Tall-men, subs. phr. (old gaming). Highmen
(q.v.).
Tallow, subs. (old).—A term of
contempt. Thus tallow-keech
(tallow-face or tallow-breech)
= a very fat person:
whence tallow-faced = sickly,
pale, undermade; tallow-gutted
= pot-bellied; tallow-breeched
= fat-arsed.
1595. Shakspeare, Romeo and Juliet, iii. 5. 158. Out, you baggage! You tallow-face! Ibid. (1598), 1 Henry IV., ii. 4. Thou whore-son, obscene, greasy, tallow-keech.
1621. Burton, Anat. Mel., 519. Every lover admires his mistress, though she be wrinkled, pimpled . . . tallow-faced.
To piss one's tallow, verb. phr. (old).—To leacher oneself lean: like a stag after rutting time.
1596. Shakspeare, Merry Wives, v. 5. I am here a Windsor stag; and the fattest, I think, i' the forest. Send me a cool rut-time, Jove, or who can blame me to piss my tallow.
1694. Motteux; Rabelais, v. xxviii. He is nothing but skin and bones, he has pissed his tallow.
