Heading
Cloak, subs. (thieves').—A watch case. [From cloak, an outer garment.]
1839. Harrison Ainsworth, Jack Sheppard [1889], p. 70. Near to these hopeful youths sat a fence, or receiver, bargaining with a clouter, or pickpocket, for a 'suit,' or, to speak in more intelligible language, a watch and seals, two 'cloaks,' commonly called watch-cases and a 'wedge-*lobb,' otherwise known as a silver snuff-box.
Cloak-Twitchers, subs. (old).—Thieves who made a special business of robbing the lieges of their cloaks. [From cloak + twitch, to snatch, + er.] In the old French cant these rogues were termed tirelaines, i.e., wool-pullers (tirer = pull). For synonyms, see Thieves.
1785. Grose, Dict. Vulg. Tongue, s.v.
1811. Lexicon Balatronicum, s.v.
Clobber, subs. (common).—Primarily old, but now also applied to new clothes. For synonyms, see Togs.
1879. J. W. Horsley, Macm. Mag., XL., 502. Having a new suit of clobber on me.
1889. Answers, 11 May, p. 374, col. 3. The clobber (old clothes) which have been presented by charitable persons are exchanged and sold.
1889. Sporting Times, quoted in Slang, Jargon, and Cant, p. 255. If you are hard up always tell the dear things that you are a gentleman's valet. This will account for your good clobber.
Verb.—also clobber up. 1. To patch; revive; or 'translate' clothes. [Properly applied to cobbling of the lowest class. Clobberer.]
1865. Cassell's Paper, Article, 'Old Clo'.' They are now past 'clobbering,' 'reviving,' or 'translating,' they are, in fact, at the lowest point of Fortune's wheel: but the next turn puts them in its highest point again.
2. To dress smartly; to rig oneself out presentably. For synonyms, see Rig out.
1879. J. W. Horsley, Macm. Mag., XL., 501. I used to get a good many pieces about this time, so I used to clobber myself up and go to the concert-rooms.
1886. W. E. Henley, Villon's Good-Night. You judes that clobber for the stramm.
1889. Fun [quoted in S., J., and C. p. 256]. 'D'you know, if you were clobbered up I shouldn't mind taking you out?' She promised to be presentable. In her own words she said, 'I'll come clobbered up like a dukess.'
To do clobber at a fence, phr. (thieves').—To sell stolen clothes. Fr., laver les harnais.
Clobberer, subs. (common).—See
quot. and Cf., Clobber, subs.
and verb.
1864. The Times, Nov. 2. Old clothes that are intended to remain in this country have to be tutored and transformed. The clobberer, the 'reviver,' and the 'translator' lay hands upon them. The duty of the clobberer is to patch, to sew up, and to restore as far as possible the garments to their pristine appearance.
Clock, subs. (thieves').—A watch.
A red clock = a gold watch; a
white clock = a silver watch.
Generally modified into 'red'un'
and 'white'un,' but for synonyms,
see Ticker.
1886. Tit-Bits, 5 June, p. 121. Thus Fillied for a Clock and Slang, reveals the fact that the writer stole a watch and chain, was apprehended, and has been fully committed for trial.
To know what's o'clock, phr. (common).—To be on the alert; in full possession of one's senses; a downey cove: generally knowing {q.v. for synonyms). A variant is to know the time o'day.
1835. Dickens, Sketches by Boz, p. 451. Our governor's wide awake, he is,
