Transcriber’s Note In this text version of “Argot and Slang”: words in italics are marked with _underscores_, words in small capitals are shown in UPPER CASE. In the body of the dictionary, the words being defined, originally printed in bold, are shown in UPPER CASE, and the authors of quotations, originally printed in small capitals, are marked with equals signs and shown in =UPPER CASE=. Footnotes have been moved to the end of the poem or extract in which they occur. Variant spelling and use of accents, inconsistent hyphenation and capitalization are retained, as are English words spelt in the French manner. There are many words with irregular placing of the apostrophe in possessive plurals (e.g. womens', Fishermens') these have not been changed. The changes that have been made are listed at the end of the book. [Illustration: ARGOT AND SLANG] ARGOT AND SLANG A NEW FRENCH AND ENGLISH DICTIONARY OF THE CANT WORDS, QUAINT EXPRESSIONS, SLANG TERMS AND FLASH PHRASES USED IN THE HIGH AND LOW LIFE OF OLD AND NEW PARIS BY ALBERT BARRÈRE OFFICIER DE L’INSTRUCTION PUBLIQUE _NEW AND REVISED EDITION_ LONDON WHITTAKER AND CO., WHITE HART STREET PATERNOSTER SQUARE 1889 PREFACE. The publication of a dictionary of French cant and slang demands some explanation from the author. During a long course of philological studies, extending over many years, I have been in the habit of putting on record, for my own edification, a large number of those cant and slang terms and quaint expressions of which the English and French tongues furnish an abundant harvest. Whatever of this nature I heard from the lips of persons to whom they are familiar, or gleaned from the perusal of modern works and newspapers, I carefully noted down, until my note-book had assumed such dimensions that the idea of completing a collection already considerable was suggested. It was pointed out to me, as an inducement to venture on so arduous an undertaking, that it must prove, from its very nature, not only an object of curiosity and interest to the lover of philological studies and the public at large, but also one of utility to the English reader of modern French works of fiction. The fact is not to be ignored that the chief works of the so-called Naturalistic School do certainly find their way to this country, where they command a large number of readers. These productions of modern French fiction dwell with complaisance on the vices of society, dissect them patiently, often with power and talent, and too often exaggerate them. It is not within my province to pass a judgment upon their analytical study of all that is gross in human nature. But, from a philological point of view, the men and women whom they place as actors on the stage of their human comedy are interesting, whatever they may be in other respects. Some of them belong to the very dregs of society, possessing a language of their