56
NOTES AND QUERIES. [ii s. in. JAN. 21, 1911.
"OLD COCK o' WAX" (11 S. ii. 528).
This expression had no political meaning.
In the ' Slang Dictionary ' by Sampson
(Pendragon of The Referee] the expression
is " cock-a-wax," and is denned as "an
amplification of the simple term ' Cock,'
sometimes ' Lad of Wax,' originally applied
to a cobbler, but now general." Every one
must have heard the expression " old cocky-
wax," often so pronounced and written.
HARRY B. POLAND.
[MB. HOLDEN MACMICHAEL and SCOTUS also thanked for replies.]
LEAKE AND MARTIN-LEAKE FAMILIES (11 S. ii. 528). Stephen Martin-Leakc, Garter King-of-Arms, had a family of six sons and three daughters. Burke's ' Landed Gentry ' omits the names of the children, except that of the eldest son. Sarah Martin- Leake was probably the Garter King's daughter. The dates in the query seem to preclude the possibility of any other relation- ship. W. S. S.
See 8 S. vi. 281 ; ix. 323, 463.
JOHN T. PAGE.
'TiT FOR TAT,' AMERICAN NOVEL (US. ii. 489). About the middle of the last cen- tury Hurst & Blackett published a novel in three volumes entitled ' Tit for Tat.' The author was Mrs. M. E. Smith, about whom nothing seems to be known, except that another novel, published about 1850, stands against her name. I am by no means certain that Mrs. M. E. Smith's ' Tit for Tat is the novel referred to in the query. More than one ' Tit for Tat ' was put before the public during last century. Several lady authors named Smith appear in the pages of Allibone, but he does not seem to have been acquainted with the writings of Mrs M. E. Smith. W. SCOTT.
" WINCHESTER QUART " : " CORBYN " " CHOPIN " (11 S. ii. 405, 495). I have been familiar with the first two terms for thi whole of my business life, but have sough in vain for an explanation of them. There can be no doubt, I think, that " Corbyn ' is transferred from the firm of that nam< already referred to. The querist spoke of " Winchester quart " as indicating a bottle of the capacity of eighty -two ounces. Whatever may have been the case originally, the bottles now so called are of variable capacity, and have been so for as long as I can remember. A customer will order from his wholesale house a large or a small "Win- chester," according to his requirements, the
difference being sometimes as much as-
wenty ounces (a pint), or even more.
Generally, however, a " Winchester " is-
egarded as twice the size of a " Corbyn," the
apacity of the latter being about forty
mnces.
I cannot find either term in any dictionary or ther book of reference, but Cassell's ' Encyc. Diet.' has : " A Winchester pint, i.e., a quart.
Seal'd Winchester of threepenny guzzle.' T, Brown, ' Works,' ii. 180 ;" arid the ' Century Diet.' : " Winchester pint, a measure a ittle more than a wine-pint and less than a Deer-pint." Winchester measure was formerly standard measure. " Winchester pint " is. lot often heard now in the drug trade, but I
- ancy it would not necessarily indicate any
definite quantity only roughly the size of the bottle. C. C. B.
What W. I. has often enjoyed in Germany was, no doubt, a " Schoppen " of Rhenish wine. In Fluegel's dictionary the meaning of " Schoppen " is given as " scoop, chopin, pint " ; but " chopin " is not to be found in the English-German part. L. L. K.
" Chopin," or rather " Chopine," is really only a French borrowing from the German " Schoppen," which means half a bottle. An excellent account of the word is given in Grimm's great German dictionary. It is not at all uncommon for the French to borrow German words connected with drinking, as they have done in this case.
H. G. WARD.
Aachen. [MB. M. L. R. BRESLAR also thanked for reply.]
MOVING PICTURES TO CINEMATOGRAPHS (11 S. ii. 502, 537). Many additions could be made to MR. TOM JONES'S excellent note if the title was intended to cover all paintings with mechanical effects and the repro- ductions with movement of scenes. It is difficult, however, to realize from the descrip- tions on the showmen's handbills if the pictures are only working models or actually full-sized panoramas. Here are a few examples taken at random.
The " Akolouthorama," painted by G. D. ! Gibbs, was exhibited at 213, Piccadilly, in ! 1844. It was a series of scenes to illustrate | the Prince de Joinville's Expedition to i Mogadore. There evidently were some | mechanical effects, as the last picture is i described as " Allegorical Picture. Moga- i dore, Morning. The French Squadron before | the town Bombardment Conflagration ! and destruction of the City."
