Jail-bird, subs. (Old Cant: now recognised).—A prisoner; a crack-*halter (q.v.).—[Cf. Cage and Canary].
1603. Davies (of Hereford), Microcosmus, in Works [Grosart], i. 991. 'To the Lady Rich.' But such a iaile-birde heavenly nightingale.
1690. B. E., Dict. Cant. Crew, s.v. Jayl-birds.
1785. Grose, Vulg. Tongue, s.v.
1819. Moore, Tom Crib's Memorial, 77. A new set of darbies, when first they are worn, Makes the jail-bird uneasy.
1849. Mahony, Reliques of Father Prout (Bohn) p. 233. The fellow must be what Terry calls 'a bad mimber intirely,' what we English call a jail-bird; what the French denominate a 'vrai gibier de grève;' termed in Latin 'corvus patibularius'; and by the Greeks, [Greek: chachou chorachos chachou ôon].
Jakes, subs. (old colloquial).—A
privy; a house of office. [Century:
The occurrence of dial. johnny,
a jakes—'also called Mrs. Jones
by country people' (Halliwell),
with dial. Tom, a close-stool,
suggests that jakes was originally
Jake's or Jack's, a humorous
euphemism]. Also (Scots) Jack.
See Ajax.
c. 1550. Inglelend, Disobedient Child [Dodsley, Old Plays (1874), ii. 276]. To . . . do as poor knaves, which jakes do scour.
1596. Nashe, Have With You, etc., in Works [Grosart], iii. 196. I worse scorne it than to have so foul a jakes as his mouth for my groning stool.
1598. Florio, Worlde of Wordes, s.v. Condotto. . . . Also a conduite, a priuie, a iakes, a sinke.
1605. Camden, Remains, p. 307. Soloman, a Jew, fell into a jaxe at Tewkesbury on a Saturday.
1605. Shakspeare, Lear, ii. 2. I will tread this unbolted villain into mortar, and daub the walls of a jakes with him.
1641. Milton, Apology for Smectymnuus. Christe himself, speaking of unsavory traditions scruples not to name the Dunghill and the jakes.
1678. Cotton, Virgil Travestie, in Wks (1725), Bk. iv. p. 91. Thou here thyself most busie makes In building for the Queen a jakes.
1690. B. E., Dict. Cant. Crew., s.v. Jakes.
1728. Pope, Dunciad, i. 144. And 'scape the martyrdom of jakes and fire.
1737. The Mobiad [quoted in N.& Q. 2 S. xi. 125]. Now Chiefs of haughty bosom supple stoop Ev'n to the jakes to angle for a dupe.
1751-54. Jortin, Remarks on Eccl. Hist., an. 379. Their tenets were an horrible confusion of all sorts of impieties, which flowed into this sect as into a jakes.
1785. Grose, Vulg. Tongue, s.v.
Jakes-farmer, subs. (old).—An
emptier of cesspools; a gold-*finder
(q.v.). Also Jakes-raker
(Skelton) and Jakes-barreller.
1596. Nashe, Have With You, in Works [Grosart], iii. 196. Like a Jakes-bareller.
1606. Marston, Fawne, ii. 1. Nay, I will embrace a jakes-farmer, after eleven o'clock at night.
1613. Chapman, Jonson & Marston, Insatiate Countess, ii. 2. Well, what time goes the jakes-farmer?
1615. Sylvester, Tobacco Battered &c., Wks, p. 575. Not scorning scullions, coblers, colliers, jakes-farmers, fidlers, ostlers, oysterers.
1647. Beaumont & Fletcher, Love's Cure, ii. 1. Nay we are all signiors here in Spain, from the jakes farmer to the grandee, or adelantado.
Jam, subs. (common).—1. A sweetheart;
a mistress: also bit of jam.
Lawful-jam = a wife.
c.1880. Broadside Ballad. 'Just the Identical Man.' And he made this young girl feel queer When he called me his jam, His pet and his lamb.
