Heading
1854. Aytoun and Martin, Bon Gaultier Ballads. 'To a forget-me-not.' I can't tell who the deuce it was That gave me this Forget-me-not.
2. (vagrants').—Twopence.
1714. Memoirs of John Hall (4th ed.), p. 12, s.v.
1851-61. H. Mayhew, London Lab. and Lon. Poor, vol. I., p. 276. 'Give him a deuce' (2d.).
3. (gamesters').—The two at dice or cards.
To play the deuce or devil with, verb. phr. (common).—To send, or be sent, to rack and ruin.
1881. Jas. Payn, Grape from a Thorn, ch. i. I have a presentiment that the cooking will play the deuce with my digestion.
1885. Indoor Paupers, p. 89. Her drinking played the deuce with the shop.
The deuce to pay, phr. (common).—Unpleasant or awkward consequences to be faced; see Devil to pay.
1854. Thackeray, The Rose and the Ring, p. 69. There has been such a row, and disturbance, and quarrelling, and fighting, and chopping of heads off, and the deuce to pay, that I'm inclined to go back to Cumtartary.
1869. Mrs. H. Wood, Roland Yorke, ch. xxxiii. One or both of 'em . . . report me for negligence! I get a curt telegram to come to town, and here's the deuce to pay!
Deuced, adj. (common).—Devilish;
excessive; confounded. Also
adverbially. [From deuce (q.v.),
+ ed.]
1836. Michael Scott, The Cruise of the Midge, vol. I. [ed. 1860], p. 160. Quacco all this while was twisting and turning himself, and, although evidently in a deuced quandary, trying to laugh the affair off as a joke.
Deusea-ville, subs. (old).—The
Country.—See Daisyville.
Deusea-ville Stampers, subs.
phr. (old).—Country carriers.
Devil, subs. (common).—1. Formerly
a barrister who devils, or
'gets up,' a case for a leader; as
in A Tale of Two Cities, Sydney
Carton for Mr. Stryver. Now
common for anyone hacking for
another.—(See quots., 1889.)
1872. Echo, 14 Nov. Mr. Archibald, the Attorney-General's devil is to be made a judge. Well, other devils have been made judges of. Sir James Hannen, we are told, was a devil once.
1873. Daily Telegraph, 12 Feb. It will not be possible even to send a telegram to a French journal during a sitting. Not a word must be printed until the President's devil has distributed the Officiel to the different office boys who will henceforth, etc.
1889. Telegram. M— 84, B— Street, London, E.C. Strange letter received. Will you please see devil at my chambers? R—. [In original telegram the word 'devil' was queried by the P.O. authorities!]
1889. George R. Sims, The Authors Ghost. 'Who are you?' I asked in dismay. 'I'm a devil. . . .' 'A what!' I exclaimed with a start. 'A devil . . . I give plots and incidents to popular authors, sir, write poetry for them, drop in situations, jokes, work up their rough material: in short, sir, I devil for them.'
1890. Speaker, 22 Feb., p. 211, col. 2. No one who is not in the swim can have any conception of the amount of work and worry that devolves upon a counsel in leading practice at the criminal bar. . . . He has to do the best he can, with the assistance of juniors and devils.
2. (printers').—An errand boy or young apprentice; in the early days of the craft, the boy who took the printed sheets as they came from the press. Fr., un attrape-science.
1754. Connoisseur, No. 9. Our publisher, printer, corrector, devil, or any other employed in our service.
1757. Foote, Author, Act I. A printer's prime minister, called a devil.
