1608. Machin, Dumb Knight [Dodsley, Old Plays (1874), x. 114]. 'She is meat for your master.' 'And your man, sir, may lick your foul trencher.' 'Ay, but not eat of his mutton.'
1614. Cook, City Gallant [Dodsley, Old Plays (1874), xi. 279]. More villany; there's another goodly mutton going.
1620. Middleton, Chaste Maid, ii. I'll tender her a husband; I keep of purpose two or three gulls in pickle To cat such mutton with, and she shall choose one.
1624. Jonson, Masque of Nep. Triumph [Cunningham, iii]. Cook. O whom for mutton, or kid? Child. A fine LAC'D mutton Or two; and either has her frisking husband.
1638. Rowley, Match at Midnight. ii. 1. Say she be young . . . If, like an old cock he with young mutton meet He feeds like a cuckold.
1640. Rawlins, The Rebellion, iv. No more, I say, it is a parcel of excellent mutton. I'll cut it up myself.
1640. J. Heywood, Love's Mistress, ii. [Cupid described as] Lord of lamentations, and Monsieur of mutton-lac'd.
1690. B.E., Dict. Cant. Crew, s.v.
1719. Durfey, Pills to Purge, i. p. 353. I'm a loyn of mutton plainly dress'd, And those nice volk, love all their mutton lac'd.
1725. New Cant. Dict., s.v.
1785. Grose, Vulg. Tongue, s.v.
1811. Lex. Bal., s.v. Laced Mutton, a prostitute.
1859. Matsell, Vocabulum, s.v. Laced Mutton, a common woman.
2. (venery).—See quots. 1811 and 1864. For synonyms see Monosyllable.
d. 1680. Rochester, Epitaph on Chas. II. Here lies our MUTTON-eating king, Whose word no man relies on; He never said a foolish thing, And never did a wise one.
1693. Congreve, Old Batchelor, iv. 6. You don't love mutton, you Magdalen unconverted?
1697. Vanbrugh, The Provoked Wife, iv. And I hope your punks will give you sauce to your mutton.
1811. Lex. Bal., s.v. Mutton. In her mutton, i.e., having carnal knowledge of a woman.
1864. Hotten, Slang Dict., s.v. Mutton. In that class of English society which does not lay any claim to refinement, a fond lover is often spoken of as being 'fond of his mutton,' which, by the way, in this place does not mean the woman so much as something else.
3. in pl. (Stock Exchange).—The Turkish loans of 1865 and 1873. [From being in part secured on the sheep-tax].
4. (colloquial).—A sheep.
1595. Shakspeare, Two Gentlemen, i. 1. 106. Here's too small a pasture for such store of muttons.
1598. Shakspeare, Merchant of Venice, i. 3. Flesh of muttons, beefs, or goats.
d. 1626. Bacon [quoted by Johnson]. The flesh of muttons is better tasted where the sheep feed upon wild thyme and wholesome herbs.
d. 1627. Hayward [quoted by Johnson]. Within a few days were brought out of the country two thousand muttons.
1755. Johnson, Eng. Dict., s.v. Mutton. (2) A sheep. Now only in ludicrous language.
1860. Thackeray, Philip, ch. xx. The appetites of those little ones were frightful, the temper of Madame la Generale was almost intolerable, but Charlotte was an angel, and the General was a mutton—a true mutton. . . . The brave are often muttons at home.
BOW-WOW MUTTON. See BOW-WOW.
To cut one's mutton, verb. phr. (common).—To dine.
Dead as mutton, phr. (common).—See Dead.
1835. C. Selby, The Widow's Victim. I'm caught in a trap—dead as mutton!
Mutton dressed lamb-fashion, subs. phr. (common).—An old woman dressed young.
