He has saved his bacon; he has escaped. He has a
good voice to beg bacon; a saying in ridicule of a bad voice.
BACON-FACED. Full-faced.
BACON FED. Fat, greasy.
BACK GAMMON PLAYER. A sodomite.
BACK DOOR (USHER, or GENTLEMAN OF THE). The same.
BAD BARGAIN. One of his majesty's bad bargains; a
worthless soldier, a malingeror. See MALINGEROR.
BADGE. A term used for one burned in the hand. He has got
his badge, and piked; he was burned in the hand, and is
at liberty. Cant.
BADGE-COVES. Parish Pensioners. Cant.
BADGERS. A crew of desperate villains who robbed near
rivers, into which they threw the bodies of those they
murdered. Cant.
BAG. He gave them the bag, i.e. left them.
BAG OF NAILS. He squints like a bag of nails; i. e.
his eyes are directed as many ways as the points of a bag
of nails. The old BAG OF NAILS at Pimlico; originally
the BACCHANALS.
BAGGAGE. Heavy baggage; women and children. Also a
familiar epithet for a woman; as, cunning baggage,
wanton baggage, &c.
BAKERS DOZEN. Fourteen; that number of rolls being allowed
to the purchasers of a dozen.
BAKER-KNEE'D. One whose knees knock together in
walking, as if kneading dough.
BALDERDASH. Adulterated wine.
BALLOCKS. The testicles of a man or beast; also a vulgar
nick name for a parson. His brains are in his ballocks,
a cant saying to designate a fool.
BALUM RANCUM. A hop or dance, where the women are
all prostitutes. N. B.
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