OLD COUNTRY FOLK 221 



There are certain stock phrases that are sure to be 

 used when the occasion comes. A sick person, who falls 

 away into a state of emaciation, is described as ' Nothing 

 but a frame.' An old husband or wife dies, and the 

 remaining one always says, ' I've lost my best friend.' 

 When they were married they just as surely said, ' I've got 

 a good partner.' How far the use of these words and 

 phrases extends beyond one district I am unable to say. I 

 speak of my recollection of what I have heard in my own 

 corner of West Surrey— that which is nearest to Sussex 

 and Hampshire. 



There are a number of old local names of birds and 

 small wild animals, &c, some of which are still in use. 

 Thus, the green woodpecker is a ' yaffles,' the wagtail a 

 ' dish-washer ' ; the wren a ' puggy ' or ' juggy-wren ' ; the night- 

 jar is called ' puckridge ' or 'eve-jar'; the swift, 'squeaker'; 

 the whitethroat, ' nettle-creeper ' or ' hay-builder ' ; the red- 

 backed shrike, ' butcher-bird ' or ' bee-eater ' ; the common 

 heron, ' Jack-heron/ and the wryneck, ' rining-bird.' This 

 bird comes at the time when the oak-bark is stripped. 

 ' When we hears that we very soon thinks about rining 

 the oaks.' ' Rine ' (rind) is the usual equivalent of bark. 



The dormouse is called ' sleeper ' or ' sleep-mouse ' ; the 

 lonw-tailed field-mouse ' bean-eater ' : the field-vole and bank- 

 vole ' sheep-dog mouse.' 



The large stag-beetles are ' pincher-bobs,' cock-chafers 

 are ' may-bees,' the large dragon-flies are ' adder-spears.' 



The rabbits' burrow is always a ' bury.' Young geese 

 are ' gulls,' never goslings. 



' Agen ' is an interesting old word. ' Agen the ge-at ' 

 (both g's hard) does not mean ' against the gate,' but ' near 



