A shortened form of _blue devils_ = despondency, depression of spirits. Cf. _the dismals_. bob, tanner, quid »A rise of two _bob_ a week.» (T. T. T. 156. 18.) _Uneducated young man._ »—a _bob_ or a _tanner_ as the case might be.» (T. T. T. 125. 2.) _A waiter._ »His tie must have cost fifty _quid_.» (T. T. T. 131. 21.) _The same._ Terms for, respectively, _shilling_, _sixpence_, and _sovereign_. The expressions are vulgar, no doubt, but in common use among all classes—among the more educated and refined only in intimate talk, of course. chap »A palefaced nervous sort of _chap_.» (T. T. T. 130. 4.) _A waiter._ »A wonderful talent for swallowing, these newspaper _chaps_ has, some of ’em.» (T. T. T. 135. 3.) _The same._ »The _chap_ who was nabbed at Birmingham.» (T. T. T. 163. 6.) _Uncultivated young man._ »The _chap_ I am telling you about.» (T. T. T. 206. 20.) _A waiter._ »One day she fetched ’im round to one of them revivalist _chaps_.» (Sketches 201. 2.) _Uncultivated old woman._ = _fellow_, _man_. The term seems to originate in an obsolete word _chap_ (abbr. of _chapman_: Swed. köpman) = merchant. chuck »His first move was to _chuck_ his berth.» (T. T. T. 212. 9.) _A waiter._ »Why not _chuck_ the money.» (T. T. T. 145. 10.) _The same._ »It will ‘_chuck_’ the whole business.» (Three Men On The Bummel 44. 11.) = _abandon_, _give up_. _Chuck_ is a vivid word for _throw_, standing on about the same level as _shy_ in its literal meaning, but as used here, metaphorically, it is vulgar—although used by educated people. cotton »’E don’t _cotton_ much _to_ them as ain’t found grace.» (Sketches 199. 28.) _Old woman of the working class._ = _stick to them like cotton_: _agree with_, _like_. dotty »He’s just a bit _dotty_, same as you or I might get with nothing to do.» (Tommy And Co. 61. 28.) _A journalist with a special liking for vulgarisms._ = _feeble_, _dizzy_, _idiotic_ (Cf. _dotty in the crumpet_: weak in the head). The term is probably derived from the verb _dot_: dotted > dotty. gal, gell »A _gal_ was at the bottom of it.» (T. T. T. 170. 14.) _An elderly waiter._ »smutty-faced _servant-gals_.» (T. T. T. 157. 3.) _The same._ »I’m fond enough of the _gell_.» (T. T. T. 137. 5.) _Uneducated Londoner._ »One of the _gals_ was ill.» (Tommy And Co. 16. 12.) _The same._ »I tell ’im it’s a fine _gell_.» (Sketches 195. 11.) _The same._ The ordinary vulgar pronunciation of »girl», but not confined to »vulgus»; in fact quite the correct pronunciation in the middle classes of the mid-Victorian age. When the author wants to indicate an affected pron. of the word, he writes »_gearl_». gent, gents »_The old gent_ said he’d see Joe.» (T. T. T. 172. 18.) _A waiter._ »He sits down and stares at _the old gent_.» (T. T. T. 174. 16.) _The same._ »_Commercial gents._» (T. T. T. 184. 18.) _The same._