Molly-coddle, verb. (common).—To pamper. Also moddley-coddley.
1870. Dickens, Mystery of Edwin Drood, ii. Don’t moddley-coddley,
there’s a good fellow. I like anything better than being
moddley-coddleyed.
1895. Referee, 29 Dec., p. 5, col. 2. Who treats of molly-coddling
regulations.
Molly-coddlish, adj. (common).—Effeminate. Also Mollyish.
1801. Dibdin, The Frisk. ‘Jack at the Opera.’ If it wan’t for the
petticoat gear, With their squeaking so mollyish, tender, and soft,
One should scarcely know ma’am from mounseer.
1883. Referee, 25 March, 7, 4. I daresay to make even such remarks
as I have is only the sign of a molly-coddlish mind.
Mollygrubs. See Mulligrubs.
Molly Maguires, subs. (obsolete).—1. An Irish secret society (c. 1843)
formed to intimidate bailiffs and process-servers.
1868. Trench, Realities of Irish Life, vi. ‘These molly maguires
were generally stout active young men, dressed up in women’s
clothes, with faces blackened or otherwise disguised; sometimes
they wore crape over their countenances, sometimes they smeared
themselves in the most fantastic manner with burnt cork about their
eyes, mouth, and cheeks. In this state they used suddenly to
surprise the unfortunate grippers, keepers, or process-servers, and
either duck them in bog-holes, or beat them in the most unmerciful
manner, so that the molly maguires became the terror of all our
officials.’
2. (American).—A secret society formed in 1877 in the mining districts
of Pennsylvania. The members sought to effect their purpose by
intimidation, carried in some cases to murder. Several were brought to
justice and executed.
1867. Hepworth Dixon, New America, ii. 28. The judge who tried the
murderer was elected by the Molly Maguires; the jurors who assisted
him were themselves Molly Maguires. A score of Molly Maguires came
forward to swear that the assassin was sixty miles from the spot on
which he had been seen to fire at William Dunn ... and the jurors
returned a verdict of Not Guilty.
Molly-puff, subs. (old).—A gamblers’ decoy.
1629. Shirley, Wedding, iv. 3. Thou molly-puff, were it not justice
to kick thy guts out?
Molly’s-hole, subs. (venery).—The female pudendum. For synonyms see
Monosyllable.
Molocker, subs. (common).—See quots. Also as adj. and verb.
1863. G. A. Sala, Breakfast in Bed, ‘On Things Going,’ Essay v. p.
105 (1864). ’Tis like an old hat that has been molokered, or ironed
and greased into a simulacrum of its pristine freshness.
1892. Westminster Gaz., 4 Aug., p. 3. Even our beth
customerth—vorking men ath likth a good molocker (molocker, it
appears, is the trade term for renovated old chapeaux).
Molrower, subs. (common).—A whoremonger. For synonyms see
Mutton-monger.
Molrowing, subs. (common).—1. Whoring. Cf. sense 2. See Greens and
Ride.