288 



Glossary of Provincialisms. 



FAPP. i. 



VINNEY- CHEESE. See chap, xvi., 

 p. 190. 



WAG, A. A breath, a slight wind. 

 " A wag of air," means a gentle draught 

 of air. In Dorsetshire we still have 

 " wag-wanton " applied to the quaking- 

 grass (Bnza media). See Barnes' Glos- 

 sary of the Dorsetshire Dialect, p. 404. 



WASE, A. A very small bundle of 

 straw, more particularly a wisp for clean- 

 ing a horse. Used also, according to 

 Mr. Cooper, in Sussex. 



WATER-TABLES. The side dikes 

 along the road, which carry off the 

 water. Common throughout the West 

 of England. 



WEALD, To. To bring corn or hay 

 into swathe, before putting it, as it is 

 called, into " puck," which see. 



WEAN-GATE, A. (From the Old- 

 English wcen-geat, literally, the waggon- 

 door.) The tail-board, or ladder of a 

 waggon. 



WELL-CROOK, A. A stick for ladling 

 the water out of the shallow Forest 

 pools and wells. Called in the Midland 

 and Northern Counties a " lade-gorn; " 

 and formerly "a well graper." (See 

 Froude's History of England, vol. i. 

 p. 41, foot-note. 



W T IMBLE, A. In addition to auger, 

 as given in Wright and Halliweli's 



dictionaries, an instrument with which 

 to take up faggots or trusses of hay. 



WIVVERY. Giddy. " My head is 

 wivvery," is no uncommon expression. 

 To wivver, given by Wright and Halli- 

 well as used in Kent, is more especially 

 employed here of the quivering flight 

 of hawks, particularly of the kestrel and 

 hen-harrier. 



WOSSET, A. A small ill-favoured 

 pig. The smallest pig in a " trip," to 

 use a West-Country term for a litter, is 

 known as the " doll," the same as the 

 " nessle-tripe " of Dorsetshire ; whilst a 

 pig brought up by hand is called a 

 "graff," or " grampher," equivalent to 

 " mud," in the phrase " mud-lamb," or 

 " mud-calf," as also " sock," and " sock- 

 ling," and " tiddling," used in various 

 counties. 



YAPE, To. Not merely to gossip, as 

 given by Mr. Cooper in his Sussex 

 Glossary, but to loiter. To yape about 

 is used very much as is shammock. 

 which see. 



YAW, To. To chop, reap. Used of 

 cutting corn, peas, or beans. "Hack- 

 ing," hoAvever, is generally the term 

 applied to harvesting the last, when 

 the reapers use two hooks, one to cut, 

 and the other, an old one, to puii up 

 the halm. 



The Stacle Cross, near Christoturch. 



