“The author has spared no pains to make his little volume perfect,
both by collecting original and unused material from costermongers,
vagabonds, and tramps, and by consulting nearly all writers who
have gone before. * * * The author divides SLANG into _historical_,
_fashionable_, _parliamentary_, _military and dandy_, _university_,
_religious_, _legal_, _literary_, _theatrical_, _civic_, _money_,
_shopkeepers’ and workmen’s slang_,—the _slang apologies for oaths_,
and the _slang of drunkenness_. The Freemasonry of tramps and
beggars, and the hieroglyphics they use, is an interesting part of
vagabond history that requires, if possible, further investigation.
* * * His work is carefully and honestly performed, and we hope that
the writer will read our remarks [five full columns] in a proper
spirit, and, in the latest slang of the present hour, will “TAKE THEM
ON HIS HEAD LIKE A BIRD.”—_Athenæum._
“Extremely interesting. This little volume is evidently the result of
a great deal of labour, as all works must be that are, in the chief
part, collected directly by the observation and care of the author:
and this we believe is the case in the present instance. The author
we suspect to be identical with the publisher, and if so, he has
had great opportunity by his possession of a large amount of scarce
tracts, ballads, and street publications, of informing himself of the
language of the vagabond portion of our population.”—_Leader._
“There is a certain amount of interest in preserving the origin of
slang words as a record of existing manners, and of those strange
popular sayings which have a rapid and almost universal popularity,
and then fade away as rapidly. The combinations of language in cant
are often curious. The London Antiquary informs us that the cant for
a public house at the present day is _suck cassa_,—pure Saxon and
pure Spanish.”—_Saturday Review._
“This is by far the most complete work upon a curious subject which
has yet been compiled—a dictionary of more than three thousand
words in current use in our streets and alleys, lanes and by-ways,
from which the learned lexicographers have turned aside with
contempt.”—_Critic._
“This new Dictionary of our English cant and slang is _full_, and
may be received as an amusing and suggestive little book of common
knowledge into any household. Indecency has been omitted from its
pages.”—_Examiner._
“The ‘London Antiquary’ has certainly taken up a very curious and
interesting branch of linguistic research.”—_Notes and Queries._
“An instructive as well as amusing work. The author may be
congratulated upon the successful issue of his labours in the field
of vagabond and unrecognised speech.”—_Titan_ in an article of _ten
pages_.
“An amusing work, and a most useful and valuable contribution to the
study of words. It is absolutely necessary to all those who in fast
life would “mind their P’s and Q’s,” as well as to the readers of our
newspaper and periodical literature.”—_Montrose Review._
“We do not wonder that of so quaint and entertaining a compilation a
new edition should so soon have been demanded.”—_Globe._
“Contains a good deal of curious historical and anecdotical
information, and is altogether a well got up, well edited, and
amusing little volume.”—_Shipping Gazette._
“Evinces a great amount of industry.”—_Morning Star._
Beautifully printed, 12mo., cloth, 3s. 6d.,