BONE-GRUBBERS, persons who hunt dust-holes, gutters, and all likely
spots for refuse bones, which they sell at the rag-shops, or to the
bone-grinders.
BONE-PICKER, a footman.
BONES, dice; also called ST. HUGH’S BONES.
BONES, “he made no BONES of it,” he did not hesitate, _i.e._, undertook
and finished the work without difficulty, “found no BONES in the
jelly.”—_Ancient, vide Cotgrave._
BONNET, a gambling cheat. “A man who sits at a gaming-table, and
appears to be playing against the table; when a stranger enters, the
BONNET generally wins.”—_Times_, Nov. 17, 1856. Also, a pretence, or
make-believe, a sham bidder at auctions.
BONNET, to strike a man’s cap or hat over his eyes and nose.
BONNETTER, one who induces another to gamble.
BOOK, an arrangement of bets for and against, chronicled in a
pocket-book made for that purpose; “making a BOOK upon it,” common
phrase to denote the general arrangement of a person’s bets on a race.
“That does not suit my BOOK,” _i.e._, does not accord with my other
arrangements. _Shakespere_ uses BOOK in the sense of “a paper of
conditions.”
BOOM, “to tip one’s BOOM off,” to be off, or start in a certain
direction.—_Sea._
BOOKED, caught, fixed, disposed of.—Term in _Book-keeping_.
BOOZE, drink. _Ancient cant_, BOWSE.
BOOZE, to drink, or more properly, to use another slang term, to
“lush,” viz, to drink continually, until drunk, or nearly so. The term
is an old one. Harman, in Queen Elizabeth’s days, speaks of “BOUSING
(or boozing) and belly-cheere.” The term was good English in the
fourteenth century, and comes from the Dutch, BUYZEN, to tipple.
BOOZE, or SUCK-CASA, a public-house.