Mr. Ferguson, Mr. Knap, Mr. Nash, Mr. Palmer, Mr. Pullen. See Ferguson,
Knap, Nash, Palm, and Pull.
Mrs. Goff, subs. phr. (American University).—A woman. For synonyms see
Petticoat.
Mrs. Grundy, subs. phr. (common).—A personification of respectability.
See quots. 1849 and 1855. [From a character in Speed the Plough, see
quot. 1798].
1798. J. Morton, Speed the Plough, i. 1. Be quiet woolye? always
ding, dinging Dame Grundy into my ears—What will Mrs. Grundy say?
What will Mrs. Grundy think?
1849. Lytton, Caxtons, Pt. xv. ch. iii. I have hit upon a mode of
satisfying the curiosity of our friend Mrs. Grundy—that is, ‘the
World’—without injury to any one.
1855. Thackeray, Newcomes, li. ‘What will Richmond, what will
society, what will Mrs. Grundy in general say to such atrocious
behaviour?’
1891. Tales from Town Topics, ‘How a Shell Broke the Ice,’ p. 39.
Come in; Mrs. Grundy has run away from Paris long ago.
Mrs. Harris and Mrs. Gamp, subs. phr. (Fleet St.).—The Morning Herald
and The Standard under the proprietorship of Mr. Baldwin. [Cf. Dickens,
Martin Chuzzlewit, passim].
1846. Punch, x. p. 11. It is a fact—and as the evening Mrs. Harris
says, we will stake our reputation upon it—that Mrs. Gamp of the
Herald did, one day last week, write, that is scold, a leader about
Lord John Russell, and did not quote Sydney Smith!
1885. Punch, 8 August. The Standard figures as ‘Sairey Gamp’
scolding—in allusion to a recent article in the S. abusing Lord
Randolph Churchill.
Mrs. Jones, subs. phr. (common).—A water-closet.
English synonyms. Bog; bog-shop (or -house); cacatorium; chapel (or
chapel-of-ease); coffee-shop (or -house); colfabias; crapping-castle
(-case, -casa, -house, or -ken); draught-chapel; dunnakin; Forty-two;
fourth; gong; House of Commons; house-of-office; jakes; letter-box; the
Long (University); my aunt’s; necessary-house; quaker’s burying-ground;
place (or house)-of-ease; rear; shit-house; Sir Harry; the West
Central; where the Queen goes on foot (or sends nobody).
French synonyms. Madame Bernard (cf. Mrs. Jones); le buen-retiro
(popular); chez Jules; le goguenau (gogueno or goguenot—military); le
gras (thieves’: cf. Bog); le longchamps (cf. Long); la mousserie
(thieves’); le numbro cent (popular: a play on sent); le restaurant à
l’envers (common); la sacristie (cf. chapel).
Mrs. Lukey Props, subs. (tramps’).—A bawd.
Mrs. Partington, subs. phr. (colloquial).—A personification of impotent
and senile prejudice. Also, a kind of Malaprop.
1831. Sydney Smith, ‘Speech at Taunton.’ I do not mean to be
disrespectful; but the attempt of the lords to stop the progress of
reform reminds me very forcibly of the great storm of Sidmouth, and
the conduct of the excellent Mrs. Partington on that occasion. In
the winter of 1824, there set in a great flood upon that town; the
tide rose to an incredible height; the waves rushed in upon the
houses; and everything was threatened with destruction. In the
midst of this sublime storm, Dame Partington, who lived upon the
beach, was seen at the door of her house with mop and pattens,
trundling her mop, squeezing out the sea-water, and vigorously
pushing away the Atlantic Ocean. The Atlantic was roused; Mrs.
Partington’s spirit was up; but I need not tell you that the
contest was unequal. The Atlantic beat Mrs. Partington. She was
excellent at a slop or puddle, but should never have meddled with a
tempest.
1872. Besant and Rice, Ready-Money Mortiboy, xxx. As Mrs.
Partington would say, they might all three have been twins.
Mr. Speaker, subs. (America).—A revolver. For synonyms see
Meat-in-the-pot.
Mrs. Suds, subs. (common).—A laundress.
1757. Foote, Author, i. Mrs. Suds, your washerwoman, makes the
three half crowns.
M’s and W’s. To make M’s and W’s, verb. phr. (printers’).—To be drunk.
M. T., subs. phr. (railway).—1. Empties, or empty carriages: see Moll
Thompson’s mark.