5. (venery).—To possess a woman. Goose Without Gravy, subs. phr. (nautical).—A severe but bloodless blow. See Wipe. To be sound on the goose. verb. phr. (American).—Before the civil war, to be sound on the pro-slavery question: now, to be generally staunch on party matters; to be politically orthodox. 1857. Providence Journal, 18 June. To seek for political flaws is no use, His opponents will find he is sound on the goose. 1857. Gladstone, Kansas: or Squatter Life, p. 43. One of the boys, I reckon? All right on the goose, eh? No highfaluten airs here, you know. 1862. Lowell, Biglow Papers, II. Northern religion works wal North, but it’s ez suft ez spruce, compar’d to our’n for keepin’ sound, sez she, upon the goose. 1875. American English in Chamb. Journal, 25 Sept., p. 610. A man who can be depended upon by his party is said to be sound on the goose. 1892. Milliken, ’Arry Ballads, p. 22. He didn’t appear quite so sound on the goose as he ought to ha’ done. To find fault with a fat goose, verb. phr. (old).—To grumble without rhyme or reason.—B. E. (1690). To kill the goose for the golden eggs, verb. phr. (colloquial).—To grasp at more than is due; to over-reach oneself. (From the Greek fable.) Everything is lovely and the goose hangs high, phr. See Everything. He’ll be a man among the geese when the gander is gone, phr. (old).—Ironical; = ‘He’ll be a man before his mother.’ Go! shoe the goose, phr. (old).—A retort, derisive or incredulous = the modern ‘To hell and pump thunder.’ Unable to say boh! to a goose, phr. (colloquial).—Said of a bashful person.—Grose. 1892. Milliken, ’Arry Ballads, p. 76. And now ... he can hardly say boh to a goose. See also Wild-goose Chase. Goose-and-Duck, subs. phr. (rhyming).—A fuck. Goose and Gridiron, subs. phr. (political American).—The American eagle, and the United States flag. See Gridiron. 1891. Standard, 3 Jan., p. 3, c. 1. This is curious, considering the almost fetish-like veneration entertained by the modern American for his Standard, which, coupled with the national bird, tempted the Loyalists in the early days of the war to vent endless rude witticisms on the goose and gridiron. Gooseberry, subs. (common).—1. A fool. For synonyms, see Buffle and Cabbage-head. [Perhaps from Gooseberry Fool; as in Goldsmith’s Retaliation:—‘And by the same rule Magnanimous Goldsmith’s a gooseberry fool.’] 2. (common).—A chaperon; one who takes third place to save appearances or play propriety (q.v.); a daisy- or gooseberry-picker. 3. (common).—A marvellous tale; a munchausen (q.v.); a flim-flam. Also gigantic, and giant goosberry. Hence Gooseberry season = the dull time of journalism, when the appearance of monstrous vegetables, sea serpents, showers of frogs, and other portents is chronicled in default of news. Cf., silly season (q.v.).