Part 12

=Horse Marines.= There can be no Horse Marines; but the 17th Lancers were at one time made to bear this opprobrious nickname from the circumstance that two men of this regiment had originally served as Marines on board the _Hermione_ in the West Indies.

=Horse Shoe.= A large public-house at the Oxford Street end of Tottenham Court Road, this sign being derived from the trade mark of Messrs Meux’s brewery adjoining.

=Hose.= From the Icelandic _hosa_, stocking.

=Hosier Lane.= From the hosiers who congregated in it.

=Hospice.= From the Latin _hospes_, a stranger, guest. This term is now confined to an Alpine retreat for the reception of travellers. Elsewhere the French word Hospital obtains for any establishment set apart for the temporary accommodation of the poor. Formerly, however, it implied a lazar-house or a refuge for fallen women; in its modern sense a hospital is exclusively an institution for the sick poor.

=Hospice of St Bernard.= See “Bernardine Hospice.”

=Hospital.= See “Hospice.”

=Hostelry.= From the old French _hostellerie_, an inn, through the Latin _hospes_, a stranger, a guest. The modern French form is “Hotel,” which implies not only an establishment for the entertainment of travellers, but also a superior house or palace.

=Hotel.= See “Hostelry.”

=Hotel des Invalides.= A magnificent establishment in Paris, originally designed as an asylum for invalided and disabled soldiers by Henry IV. in 1596. Prior to that time no provision existed for warriors who had spent their best energies in their country’s service save the charity of the monastic institutions.

=Hotspur.= The surname of Harry Percy, on account of his mad courage when mounted on his charger. A man of fiery, ungovernable temper is said to be “a regular Hotspur.”

=Houndsditch.= The dry ditch outside the city wall which was made the receptacle for all kinds of refuse, and dead dogs in particular.

=Houp la.= This exclamation on the part of a circus ringmaster as the signal for an equestrienne to leap over horizontal barriers or through paper hoops has been derived from the Californian stage drivers’ ejaculation to their horses.

=Housemaids’ Knee.= Housemaids are specially liable to this affection of the sac under the knee-pan through kneeling on hard or damp floors.

=House of Keys.= The Representative Council of the Isle of Man, so called from the Manx _Kiare-as-feed_, four and twenty, this being the number appointed by statute to form the “Court of Tynwald.” Tynwald is an artificial mound in the centre of the island whence a new law has from time immemorial been promulgated.

=Housewarming.= The name given to a party or reception of guests on taking possession of a newly built mansion. This was of old a winter function, when the lighting of large fires in all the rooms for the occasion proved serviceable in drying the plastered walls and ceilings.

=Howard Street.= From the town house and grounds of the Howards, Dukes of Norfolk and Earls of Arundel and Surrey, that stood on the large plot of ground now covered by the four streets bearing these names.

=Howitzer.= A German cannon, properly called a _haubitze_, from the Bohemian term _haufnice_, a sling.

=Hoxton.= Little more than a hundred years ago this district bore the name of _Hogsdon_ on account of the great number of pigs bred here. Hog Lane still exists off the High Street.

=Hub.= The proud pet name of the city of Boston, the social centre of the United States, in the same sense as the hub is a centre for a wheel. The origin of the term is ascribed to Dr Oliver Wendell Holmes who, in one of his books spoke of the State House at Boston as “the hub of the solar system.”

=Hudibrastic Verse.= That which is in imitation of the measure and doggerel style of Samuel Butler’s “Hudibras.”

=Hudson River.= After Captain Henry Hudson, who discovered it in 1609. A year later, when searching for a north-west passage, he navigated the bay and the strait named in his honour.

=Huggin Lane.= After Hugan, a wealthy citizen who resided here, _temp._ Edward I.

=Huguenots.= The name borne by the adherents of the Reformation in France, after Hugh, a Genevese Calvinist, their leader, and the German _eidgenossen_, confederates.

=Hull.= From the river upon which it stands. Its ancient name was Kingston-upon-Hull, a town founded by Edward I. in 1299.

=Hull Cheese.= A strong ale for which the “Good Old Town of Hull” was at one time famous. To “eat Hull cheese” was to get incontinently drunk.

=Hull, Hell, and Halifax.= In olden times, before Kingston-upon-Hull could be approached direct from the Humber, the River Hull was navigable, as now, only at high water, and even then it required very skilful pilotage on account of the many sandbanks at its mouth; it was therefore dreaded by seafaring men. Taylor, the Water Poet, wrote: “From Hull, Hell, and Halifax, good Lord, deliver us!” The reference to Halifax arose out of the knowledge that in his day a man could be executed there for stealing property to the value of thirteen pence halfpenny. See “Halifax Gibbet Law.”

=Humanitarians.= Those who believe in the complete humanity of Christ, namely--that He was capable of committing sin like any other mortal.

=Humble Bee.= A corruption of “Humming Bee.”

=Humbug.= The old mode of expressing approbation of a speech or at the play was by humming, but since the sincerity of this form of applause could not always be relied upon, intermingled as it may have been with suppressed murmurs of disapproval, the word _Hum_ came to be applied to mock admiration or flattery, intended only to deceive. Hence the saying: “That’s all hum.” The added word _Bug_ is very old, signifying a frightful object, a thing to be shunned. To humbug is to deceive; to prefer candour to humbug is to be proof against flattery.

=Humming Bird.= So called from the sound caused by the rapid motion of its wings in flight.

=Hummums.= A hotel in Covent Garden built on the site of a Persian or Turkish sweating bath so called in the seventeenth century. The name is Arabic.

=Hundred.= A Saxon subdivision of the English shires said to have been introduced by Alfred the Great. Each hundred comprised a colony of “ten times ten” families--that is to say, ten divisions of ten freeholders and their dependents in each. In all then there were one hundred champions to defend the common cause. In legal and ecclesiastical documents relative to lands such property is still said to be situate in a particular “hundred” as well as parish.

=Hungary.= The country of the Huns, who swarmed over from Asia and expelled the Goths from this portion of Europe in the fourth century. When first heard of in China, about a hundred years previous, the natives designated them _Hiong-nu_, signifying “Giants.” These Huns were really the Mongolian race still known as the _Kalmucks_. The suffix _gary_ is a Western modification of the Teutonic _gau_, district or country.

=Hungary Water.= A perfume, properly called “The Queen of Hungary’s Water” from the circumstance that the recipe had been given by a hermit to one of the queens of Hungary.

=Hung on Wires.= An American expression for one suffering from “nerves,” a nervous or fidgety person.

=Huns.= See “Hungary.”

=Huntingdon.= Expresses the shire most favoured for hunting, this being anciently a vast deer forest.

=Hurly-burly.= An expression derived from the tumult of ancient warfare, with especial reference to the hurling of spears and battle-axes. The witches in _Macbeth_ say:

“When the hurly-burly’s done, When the battle’s lost and won.”

=Huron.= This lake was so called by the French settlers on account of the profusion of hair of the Indian tribe, the Wyandots, whom they encountered on its shores. _Hure_ is French for “head of hair.”

=Hurrah.= This exclamation is from the Scandinavian _Hurra_, said to have been originally _Thor-aie_, an invocation to the god Thor for aid in battle, just as the battle cry of the Normans was _Ha-Rou_, in honour of Rollo.

=Hurricane.= From the West Indian _urican_, “a violent wind.” The word was introduced to Europe by seamen, and so became incorporated in various languages.

=Hurry up.= An exclamation derived, both in England and America, from the custom of eating-house keepers anxious to expedite the service from the kitchens below stairs.

=Husbands’ Boat.= The steamboat by which city men and others go down to Margate for the week-end holiday in order to join their families who are staying there for the season.

=Hussar.= Expresses the Hungarian for a “twenty-paid soldier”--_husz_ meaning twenty, and _ar_ the price of. When Matthias Corvinus ascended the throne of the Magyars he decreed that, in order to provide a regular cavalry, each twenty families must enrol and equip one mounted soldier free of all cost to the State. An interesting point in connection with the uniform of the Hussar regiments everywhere was that they always allowed the right sleeve of the upper jacket to hang loose on their backs. This was only in keeping with the general custom of the Magyar peasantry, who had the right arm free on all occasions.

=Hussites.= The Protestants of Bohemia, after John Huss, the Reformer.

=Hussy.= A corruption of “housewife.” The epithet now implies a slatternly sort of woman.

=Hustings.= The ancient name for the Court of Aldermen in the city of London. In modern days it came to imply the platform from which candidates for election delivered their addresses to the populace. The word _Husting_ expressed the Anglo-Saxon for a council-house: from the Scandinavian _hus_, house, and _thing_, an assembly.

=Hustler.= An Americanism for a smart, energetic tradesman, more especially a caterer or restaurateur, who hustles about and never keeps his customers waiting. The word “Hustle” comes from the Dutch _hutselen_, to shake together or to and fro.

=Hyacinth.= According to the Greek fable this flower sprang from the blood of the beautiful youth Hyacinthus, who, having aroused the jealousy of Zephyr, received his death-blow at her hands by casting Apollo’s quoit at his head.

=Hyde Park.= Anciently described as the Hyde Manor belonging to the Abbots of St Peter’s, Westminster.

=Hyde Park Corner.= Of old the western extremity of London, defined by a toll gate.

=Hydro.= Short for a hydropathic establishment.

=Hythe.= From the Anglo-Saxon _hithe_, a haven.

I

=Iambic Verse.= Poetical satires written in _Iambics_, or two-syllable foot measure, were originally so called after Iambe, an attendant upon one of the queens of Sparta, who kept a commonplace book of lively, free, and satirical pieces.

=Iberia.= The ancient name of Spain, from the _Iberi_, its original inhabitants. These were maritime adventurers from Phœnicia who penetrated the country by way of the River Ebro. When in course of time the Celts descended upon them from the Pyrenees, they spread themselves to the south and west. On reaching the sea at the farthest limit of their wanderings they imagined themselves at the end of the world, and so gave the name of _Iber_, a Phœnician word of that import, to the country. Its principal eastern river, the Ebro, retains the original name.

=Iceland.= So called because its north and west coasts are generally blocked with ice that has drifted down from Greenland.

=Iceland Moss.= A lichen indigenous to Iceland and Greenland which is said to be very efficacious in the treatment of consumption.

=Ice Plant.= Found in South Africa, and so called on account of its glittering, watery vesicles which give it the appearance of being covered with ice.

=Ich Dien.= German for “I serve.” The motto assumed by Edward the Black Prince after he found it under the plume of John, King of Bohemia, slain by him at the battle of Cressy.

=Iconoclast.= An image breaker, from the Greek _eikon_, image, and _klazo_, I break.

=Idolater.= From the Greek _eidolon_, a figure, and _latres_, worshipper. The root of this word, _eidein_, to see, furnishes the key to its true meaning. An idolater is one who worships that which he sees, not on account of its intrinsic worth, but because it is a visible representation, or it may be merely a symbol, of the deity that he is taught to venerate.

=Idol Lane.= Said to be a corruption of Idle Lane, because this was perhaps the only thoroughfare in the neighbourhood not given up to business--_i.e._ either as a market or a hive of industrious artisans.

=Il Bassano.= See “Bassano.”

=Il Furioso.= The sobriquet of Jacopo Robusti, better known as “Tintoretto,” owing to the rapidity with which he turned out his wonderful paintings.

=Iliad.= The title of Homer’s epic treating of the destruction of Troy; originally called _Illium_, after _Ilos_, the founder of the city.

=I’ll be through directly.= An Americanism for “I’ll be ready very soon,” or “I’ll have it finished directly.”

=Illinois.= The Indian _illini_, men, with the French suffix _oix_, a tribe.

=I’ll take my Davy on it.= The word “Davy” is a corruption of “affidavit.”

=Il Perugino.= The better-known name of the celebrated Italian artist Pietro Vanucci, who, born at Citta della Pieve in Umbria, established himself and remained all his life in the neighbouring city of Perugia.

=Il Tintoretto.= See “Tintoretto.”

=Imperial.= The name given to the once fashionable chin tuft, after Napoleon III., who was the first to wear his beard in this diminutive fashion.

=In a Crack.= Done instantly, in no more time than it takes for a gun to go off.

=In a Jiffy.= The word “jiffy” is a corruption of the now obsolete _gliff_--_i.e._ a mere glance.

=Inch of Candle.= In some parts of the country land is still disposed of at auction by inch of candle. This was the ancient form of auctioneering. Candles of inch length were provided, and when the candle went out the bidding was closed.

=Inchcolm.= Expresses the _inch_ or isle of St Columba, who dwelt here while labouring to convert the Picts to Christianity.

=In Clover.= In a contented frame of mind because provided with everything necessary for the time being. Cattle always make for the clover when turned out to graze.

=Incog.= Short for _Incognito_, an Italian word signifying “not known.” Royal personages desirous of avoiding ceremony often travel _incog._, or under an assumed title.

=Independence Day.= The fourth of July, in commemoration of the American Declaration of Independence, 1776.

=Independents.= The same as “Congregationalists.”

=India.= From the Indus or Hindus, a Persian corruption of the Sanskrit _Sindhu_, “great river.” By the Greeks this river was known as the _Hindus_, which with the Persian suffix _stan_ gave the name “Hindustan” to the whole country. In the time of Columbus, and long afterwards, the Asiatic continent east of the Ganges was generally styled India. This accounts for such names as “Indian Ink,” etc., products really of the Far East.

=Indiana.= From the great number of Indians that overran this state in the early days of its history.

=Indianapolis.= The capital of the state of Indiana. _Polis_ is Greek for city.

=Indian Corn.= Maize, brought from the West Indies.

=Indian File.= A march in single file, as is the custom of the North American Indians.

=Indian Gift.= A reclaimed present. When a North American Indian gives anything he expects a gift equivalent in value, or else his own back again.

=Indian Ink.= Originally brought from China, but now made from lamp-black and animal glue in England. See “India.”

=Indian Liquor.= See “Indian Whisky.”

=Indian Reservation.= A considerable tract of land on the plains reserved for the Indian tribes.

=Indians of North America.= When Columbus discovered the “New World” he was under the impression that he had happened on that vast tract of country east of the Ganges vaguely known as India. This shows that, sailing westward as he did, he must have regarded the earth as a globe.

=Indian Summer.= The equivalent of what is called St Martin’s Summer in England. The North American Indians always avail themselves of the pleasant weather during the early part of November for harvesting their corn; they say there is an unfailing nine days’ second summer just before the winter sets in.

=Indian Whisky.= The name given to specially adulterated whisky for sale to the Indians of North America.

=India Paper.= A special kind of paper, made of vegetable fibre in China and Japan, on which the first impressions, called India proof, of engravings are taken. See “India.”

=India Proof.= See “India Paper.”

=India-rubber.= Caoutchouc, first imported from China, but now found elsewhere. See “India.”

=India-rubber Railway Sandwich.= The typical refreshment-room sandwich, the bread slices of which are as a rule so stale that they defy hasty mastication.

=Indigo.= A blue dye prepared from the _Indicus_, or Indian plant.

=Industrial Schools.= Also known as Ragged Schools, of which the scholars are waifs and strays brought together for the acquirement of some useful industry.

=Infra.= Latin for below, beneath. A word very generally met with in library catalogues: “See _Infra_.” It is the antithesis of _Supra_, above.

=Infra Dig.= Short for _Infra Dignitatem_, which expresses the Latin for “beneath one’s dignity.”

=Infant.= In law, any person under the age of twenty-one.

=Infanta.= The title of princesses of the royal blood in Spain and Portugal, except the heiress-apparent.

=Infante.= The corresponding title of the sons of the kings of Spain and Portugal.

=Infant Roscius.= William Henry Betty, the celebrated boy actor, named after the greatest historian of antiquity. His public career was brief--viz. five years only, 1803-1808--but during that period he became the rage; so much so, that while at Covent Garden, where he received a salary of fifty guineas a night, the military had to be called out to maintain order.

=Infantry.= Foot soldiers, so called, not because, like children, they have to be trained to walk, but for the reason that one of the _Infantes_ of Spain collected a body of armed men, unmounted, to rescue his father, the King, from captivity at the hands of the Moors. Afterwards foot soldiers in Spain and Italy received the name of _Enfanteria_.

=Infirmary.= The older and more correct description of an institution for the sick and infirm. See “Hospice.”

=Inn.= The Anglo-Saxon word _Inne_ expressed a mansion. The Inns of Court were originally the town houses of noble families, whose name they still bear--_e.g._ Gray’s Inn. Our first inns set apart for the entertainment of travellers were in all cases the mansions of the nobility left in charge of the trusted servant, the gamekeeper, during the prolonged absence, either in the wars at home or in the Crusades abroad, of their owners. The family arms served as a sign. After the return of his master the servant, now an innkeeper, set up an inn of his own contiguous to the original, and adopted the same sign. Here we have an explanation of such grotesque inn signs--now that their names have taken the place of the painted device--as the Blue Boar, the Red Lion, etc. At times the innkeeper preferred the sign of the “Green Man.”

=Innocents’ Day.= December 28th, commemorating the massacre of the Holy Innocents by Herod. Anciently children were soundly whipped in their beds before rising on this day. Being undeserving of such punishment, they were taught to suffer pain for Christ’s sake.

=Inns of Court.= See “Inn.”

=In Quad.= This is not altogether thieves’ slang, though the gipsy word for prison is _quaid_. Boys at our public schools say they are “in quad” when they are confined to their own quadrangle. The phrase became popular in connection with a prison when debtors were confined in the Fleet, the Marshalsea, and Whitecross Street, because they were free to receive visitors in the exercise court or quadrangle.

=Insect.= From the root _seco_, to cut, because this tiny species of the animal world is, as it were, cut deeply into three distinct parts: the head, thorax, and abdomen.

=Interlaken.= The Swiss village situated “between the lakes” Brienz and Thun.

=In the Jug.= Slang for “in prison.” The term is derived from the Scottish _joug_, a kind of iron yoke or pillory for the head designed for the punishment of rogues and vagabonds. When at a later period a round house of stone was set up in the market-place for such offenders, this earliest prison was popularly called “The Stone Jug.”

=In the Nick of Time.= This expression originated in the nicks or notches made in a piece of wood called a Tally, both as an acknowledgment of money paid and by way of registering a person’s arrival at a place of assembly. If, in the latter case, he arrived late, his tally would not be nicked, as evidence of having put in an appearance.

=In the Odour of Sanctity.= The ancient idea was that the bodies of saints after death emitted a peculiar fragrant odour. This originated in the profuse employment of incense at the administration of the last solemn rites of the Viaticum.

=In the Soup.= An Americanism for “out of the running.” This had reference originally to the hunting field when a rider was pitched into a ditch of foul water after leaping a hedge.

=In the Stone Jug.= See “In the Jug.”

=In the Straw.= An expression denoting that a woman has been brought to bed with a child. Straw was the usual stuffing of a bed formerly among the poorer orders of the people.

=In the Suds.= An Americanism for being unprepared to receive visitors. The allusion is to a washerwoman with her hands in the soapsuds.

=In the Swim.= To be admitted to a certain professional or financial clique. River fish generally keep together, and an angler’s object is to get what he calls “in the swim.” By so doing he may hook fish after fish without difficulty.

=In the wrong Box.= The origin of this expression is simply this: When Vauxhall, Cremorne, Ranelagh, Highbury Barn, and similar alfresco resorts were in existence, they had rows of cosy hutches or boxes all around for the benefit of those who wished to do their courting in private, while they could at the same time listen to the music and see the illuminations. It was no easy matter for anyone to find his own box again among the many if he left it; consequently on returning to his partner after sallying forth, he rendered his presence obnoxious to strangers by suddenly finding himself in the wrong box.

=Intrepid Fox.= A historic tavern in Soho named after Charles James Fox, the great Whig Minister. At the time of the famous election of 1784 the redoubtable Sammy House, the landlord, served all customers free, and also entertained several notable Whigs.