Heading
c. 1712. R. Estcourt, Prunella, Act i., p. 4. Come nimbly lay down darby; Come, pray sir, don't be tardy.
1785. Grose, Dict. Vulg. Tongue, s.v.
1811. Lexicon Balatronicum, s.v.
Darby Allen, subs. phr. (Lancashire).—Cajolery;
'chaff'; 'gammon.'
Darby-Roll, subs. (old).—A gait
peculiar to felons of long
standing: the result of long
shackles-wearing. Cf., Baker-kneed.
Darby's-Dyke, subs. (old).—The
grave; also death.
Darby's-Fair, subs. (old).—The
day of removal from one prison
to another for trial.
Dard, subs. (old).—The penis. For
synonyms, see Creamstick.
Dark. To get the dark, verbal
phr. (prison).—To be confined
in the punishment cell.
Dark-Cull or Cully, subs. (old).—A
married man with a secret
mistress.—[Grose, 1785.]
Dark-Horse or Dark'un, subs.
(turf).—A horse whose pace is
unknown to the backers; figuratively,
a candidate about whom
little is known.
1831. Disraeli, Young Duke, ch. v., p. 66 (ed. 1866). All the ten-to-oners were in the rear, and a dark horse, which had never been thought of, and which the careless St. James had never even observed in the list, rushed past the grand stand in sweeping triumph.
1853. Diogenes, vol. II., p. 271. Farewell! oh, farewell to the lists On whose varying prices I've hung; I care nought for the dark-horse that lives Unknown, who shall put me all right.
1884. Hawley Smart, Post to Finish, ch. i. He had beaten everything that was going to oppose him, with the exception of some two or three dark colts, of which little was expected.
Dark-House, subs. (old).—A mad-house.
Shakspeare (All's Well,
etc., ii., 3) used it to denote the
seat of gloom and discontent.
Darkmans, Darks, Darky, subs.
(old).—The night; also twilight.
1567. Harman, Caveat (1814), p. 84. Bene Lightmans to thy quarromes, in what lipken hast thou lypped in this darkemans, whether in a lybbege or in the strummell?
1667. Dekker, Lanthorne and Candlelight. 'Canting Rithmes.' Enough—with bowsy Cove Maund Nace, Tour the Parting Coue in the darkeman's Case.
1706. E. Coles, Eng. Dict., s.v.
1815. Scott, Guy Mannering, ch. xxviii. I think we should be down upon the fellow, one of these darkmans, and let him get it well.
1857. Punch, 31 Jan. 'Dear Bill, this Stone Jug.' And at darkmans we run the rig just as we please.
English Synonyms. Blackmans; blind; blindman's holiday (twilight).
French Synonym. La sorgue, or sorne.
German Synonyms. Mitte-*laile (midnight); Choschech, Chauschech, or Koschech (from the Hebrew choschach = a moonless night); Eref (specifically the eve of a Sabbath or festival); Fichte (literally a fir-tree); Ratt (Gypsy); Schwärze = (the black 'un); Zofon or Zofen (from Hebrew zophan = to hide).
Italian Synonyms. Bruna or brunora (Fr. brune); materna (properly = the maternal.
Spanish Synonym. Sorna.
