From the earliest times, there has been a large emigration from Scotland to the opposite Irish shore. During the reigns of Elizabeth and James I. the chief settlements from England took place; and the settlers from both countries gradually pushed back the original Irish inhabitants to the mountains and into the interior. To this day, there is a secluded district in County Antrim, known as the Glens of Antrim, where the Irish language may still be heard, although it has long departed from other portions of the same county. As we travel westward, Irish more frequently meets the ear, and in many parts of Donegal it is the prevailing tongue. It is not surprising that in a province of such varied lineage, provincialisms should be numerous and curious. To guard against misconception, let it be understood that the educated Ulsterman speaks like educated people elsewhere—namely, with perfect correctness and scarcely appreciable accent. The peculiar words and phrases about to be enumerated are heard almost exclusively among the poorer ranks, or, if employed at all by the educated classes, it is only in jest and with a recognition of their provincial character. The majority of them are of Scotch origin; some are found in colloquial and provincial English; while others are of Hibernian extraction.[1] [1] We are indebted for much of the information contained in this article to an excellent glossary compiled by Mr W. H. Patterson, M.R.I.A., of Belfast. As might have been expected, proverbs and proverbial expressions form a large class of these provincialisms. ‘All to the one side, like Clogher,’ is an allusion to a town in County Tyrone where all the houses and shops are on one side of the thoroughfare, the opposite side being a private demesne. ‘That bangs (surpasses) Banagher’ is an allusion to the great fair held at that spot. When the Ulsterman wishes to imply that a certain event is extremely improbable, he says that it will happen at ‘Tibb’s Eve,’ adding the mysterious information that this is ‘neither before nor after Christmas.’ This expression is a curiously exact counterpart of the Latin phrase about the Greek kalends. ‘As blunt as a beetle’ refers to a species of heavy wooden mallet to which Shakspeare alludes. ‘As busy as a nailer,’ ‘As clean as a new pin,’ ‘As crooked as a ram’s horn,’ are common Ulster expressions, which do not call for any explanation. A more mysterious expression is the curious phrase, ‘As grave as a mustard-pot’—used to express preternatural solemnity. People of bilious complexion are often described with more force than elegance as being ‘As yellow as a duck’s foot.’