Heading
Chirrup, verb (music-hall).—To cheer or applaud under a system of blackmail. [The term appears to have come into vogue in the early part of 1888.—See quots, under Chirruper; also Cf., Chirper, sense 4, and Chirruping.]
Chirruper.—See Chirper, senses
1 and 4, Fr., un intime.
1888. Pall Mall Gazette, 6 Mar., p. 4, col. 2. A chirruper . . . excused himself at the Lambeth Police Court yesterday by alleging that 'he thought there was no harm in it.'
1888. J. Payn, in Illustrated London News, 17 Mar., p. 268. The . . . singers in music-halls cannot . . . do without him (the chirruper). [m.]
Chirruping, verbal subs. (music-hall)—Hanging
about stage
doors to intercept the 'artistes,'
and extort money with a statement
that the performer who
'parts' will be applauded. [For
suggested, but very dubious, derivation,
see quot., and Cf.,
Chirper, sense 4.]
1888. Pall Mall Gazette, 9 March, p. 14. Chirruping. Mr. Rintoul Mitchell writing from the Savage Club [asks] to add a hint as to the etymology of the word. It is not remote. The French argot for blackmail is chantage. Such paltry operations as those reported from the Lambeth music-hall do not merit the description of singing—they are simply twittering or chirruping.
Chisel, Chizzle, or Chuzzle,
verb (common).—To cheat.
[Possibly an extension of the
orthodox meaning of the verb in
the sense of 'to cut, shave, or
pare with a chisel to an excessive
degree.' Jamieson (1808)
gives chisel as to cheat, or act
deceitfully. Current during the
first half of the present century,
it seems first to have appeared in
literature about 1840. Cf.,
Gouge, Shave, Skin, and other
words of a kindred type.] For
synonyms, see Stick.
1844. Illustrated London News, 25 May. 'The Derby.' They have chiseled the peaman and no mistake about that.
1851-61. H. Mayhew, London Lab. and Lon. Poor, vol. III., p. 78. When we got home at night we shared 2s. a piece. There was five of us altogether; but I think they chisselled me.
1858. Savannah Republican, 17 May. When the books were overhauled by the Committee, it was found that . . . the stockholders would be chiselled out of a pretty considerable sum.
1865. Saturday Review, April. Mr. Hotten has given the supposed classical originals of 'Dickey' and of 'Skedaddle.' He might have traced the slang verb to chisel to the Latin deascio and deruncine.
1865. G. A. Sala, Trip to Barbary, ch. xx. To 'carrotter' any one, say an uncle or a creditor, is to chizzle or 'chouse' or 'do' him out of his property amidst assurances of high-flown benevolence and exalted integrity.
To go full chisel, phr. (American).—To go at full speed or 'full drive'; to show intense earnestness; to use great force; to go off brilliantly.
1835. Haliburton, Clockmaker (1862), 95. The long shanks of a bittern . . . a drivin' away like mad, full chisel arter a frog.
1878. Mrs. Stowe, Poganuc P., ix., 76. Then he'd turn and run up the narrow way, full chisel, [m.]
Chiselling, verbal subs. Cheating.
[Cf. Chisel, verb.] Variants
are bamming; biting; besting;
gouging, etc.
1871. De Vere, Americanisms, p. 298. Other efforts at cheating are designated as chisselling—not as some have believed from the practice of chiselling, that is, opening by means of cold chisels the safes of banks and merchants, since the term is much older than the introduction of safes.
