skipper 
Skipper, stand back ; 'tis age that nourisheth. 
Shak., T. of the S., ii. 1. 341. 
4. In fiitoui.: (fi) A hesperian : any butterfly 
of tlie family Heyperiidx: so called from their 
quick, darting, or jerky flight. Also called lio/i- 
}>er. See cut under Hesperia. (b) The larva 
of the cheese-fly, Piojihila <<; a cheese-hop- 
per. See cut under cheese-fly, (c) One of cer- 
tain water-beetles or -boatmen of the family 
Notoueetidx. See cut under trater-Jtoatmini. (d) 
A skipjack, mapping-bug, or click-beetle. See 
cut under click-beetle. 5. The saury pike, 
Scomberesox saiirtts. See cut under Mtury. 
6. Same as skip 1 , 4. Lulworth skipper, a small 
hesperian butterfly, Pamphila actxi.nl : so called by Eng- 
lish collectors, from its abundance at Lulworth, England. 
by Em 
m 
To 
skipper 2 (skip'er), r. i. [A freq. 
move with short skips; skip. [Rare.] 
A grass-finch skippered to the top of a stump. 
S. Judd, Margaret, i. 14. 
skipper a (skip'er), n. [< D. schipper (= Sw. 
skeppare = Dan. skipper), a shipper, sailor, nav- 
igator, = E. shipper: see shipper."] The mas- 
ter of a small trading or merchant vessel; a 
sea-captain; hence, in familiar use, one having 
the principal charge in any kind of vessel. 
Young Patrick Spens is the best skipper 
That ever sail'd the sea. 
Sir Patrick Spens (Child's Ballads, III. 338). 
The skipper hauled at the heavy sail. 
Whitlier, Wreck of Kivermouth. 
Skipper's daughters, tall white-crested waves, such as 
are seen at sea in windy weather; whitecaps. 
It was gray, harsh, easterly weather, the swell ran pretty 
high, and out in the open there were skipper's daughters. 
R. L. Stevenson, Education of au Engineer. 
skipper 4 (skip'er), 11. [Prob. < W. ysgubor, a 
barn, = Ir. sgiobol = Gael, sgiobal, a bam, gran- 
ary. Otherwise a var. of *skippen for shippen, 
ashed.] A barn; an outhouse ; a shed or other 
place of shelter used as a lodging. [Cant.] 
Now let each tripper 
Make a retreat into the skipper, 
And couch a hogs-head till the dark man 's past. 
Brome, Jovial Crew, ii. 
skipper 4 (skip'er), v. i. [< skipper*, n.] To 
take shelter in a barn, shed, or other rude lodg- 
ing: sometimes with indefinite it. [Cant.] 
If the weather is fine and mild, they prefer " skippering 
it" that is, sleeping in an outhouse or hay-field to going 
to a union. 
Mayhem, London Labour and London Poor, III. 401. 
skipper-bird (skip'er-berd), n. One who sleeps 
in bams, outhouses, or other rude places of shel- 
ter; a vagrant; a tramp. [Cant.] 
The best places in England for skipper-birds (parties 
that never go to lodging-houses, but to barns or out- 
houses, sometimes without a blanket). 
Mayhew, London Labour and London Poor, I. 310. 
skipper-boyt (skip'er-boi), n. A boy sailor. 
up bespak the skipper-boy, 
I wat he spak too high. 
William Guiseman (Child's Ballads, III. 52). 
skippership (skip'er-ship), n. [< skipper 3 + 
-ship."] 1. The office or rank of a skipper, or 
master of a small vessel. 2. A fee paid to the 
skipper of a cod-fisher in excess of his share of 
the proceeds of the voyage. [Massachusetts.] 
skippetH (skip'et), n. [Appar. formed by Spen- 
ser, < 'skip (AS. scip), a ship, + -<.] A small 
boat. 
Upon the banck they sitting did espy 
A daintie damsell dressing of her heare, 
By whom a little skippet floting did appeare. 
Spenser, F. Q., II. xii. 14. 
skippet 2 (skip'et), . [< skip 2 , skep, + -et."\ 1. 
A circular box used for covering and protect- 
ing a seal. Old 
documents were 
commonly sealed 
by means of a rib- 
bon which pass- 
ed through the 
parchment, and to 
which was affixed a 
large circular wax 
seal, not attached 
to the parchment 
itself, but hanging 
below its edge. The 
skippet used to pro- 
tect such a seal was 
commonly turned 
of wood, like a shal- 
low box. with a cov- 
er formed of a sim- Skippet. 
pie disk of wood 
held to the box by strings passed through eyelet-holes. 
These indentures are contained in volumes bound in 
purple velvet, the seals of the different parties being pre- 
served in silver skippets attached to the volumes by silken 
cords. Athenieum, No. 3085, p. 783. 
2. A small round vessel with a long handle, used 
for lading water. Halliwell. [Prov. Eng.] 
5075 
skipping (skip'ing), /i. a. 1. Performing any 
act indicated by skip, in any sense; especially, 
taking skips or leaps ; frisking; hence, flighty; 
giddy; volatile. 
Allay with some cold drops of modesty 
Thy skipping spirit. Shak., SI. of V., ii. 2. 196. 
2. Characterized by skips or leaps. 
An Ethiopian, poore, and acconipanyed with few of his 
nation, who, fantastically clad, doth dance in their pro- 
cessions with a skipping motion, and distortion of his body, 
not unlike our Antiques. Sandys, Travailes, p. 133. 
skippingly (skip'iug-li), adr. In a skipping 
manner; by skips or leaps. 
skipping-rope (skip'ing-rop), n. A piece of 
small rope, with or without wooden handles, 
used by children in the sport of skipping the 
rope. Also called jumping-rope and skip-rope. 
See to skip the rope, under skip 1 . 
Skipping-teach (skip 'ing-tech), n. In sugar- 
making, a kind of pan for removing concen- 
trated syrups from open evaporating-pans. It 
fills, when lowered into the evaporating-pans, through an 
inwardly opening and outwardly closing valve, and after 
filling is raised so that syrup adhering to its exterior may 
drip back, to avoid waste in transferring its contents. 
Improved modern evaporating-paus have rendered this 
device practically obsolete. 
skip-rope (skip'rop), n. Same as skipping-rope. 
skip-shaft (skip'shaft), . In mining, a special 
shaft for the ascent and descent of the skip. 
skip-wheel (skip'hwel), n. In a carding-ma- 
chine, a wheel which regulates the mechanism 
for lifting the top flats in a prearranged order 
for their successive cleaning. The method is gen- 
erally to lift every alternate flat ; but in some cases the 
flats near the feeding-cylinder become soonest clogged, 
and are lifted more frequently than the others. 
skirt, r. i. Au obsolete form of sour 1 . 
skirgaliardt, n. [Early mod. E. skyrgalyard; 
of. galliard, n., 1.] A wild, gay, dissipated fel- 
low. Halliwell. 
Syr skyrgalyard, ye were so sky t, 
Your wyll than ran before your wyt, 
Skelton, Against the Scottes, 1. 101. 
skirkt, v . i. [A var. of scrike*, shriek.] To shriek. 
I, like a tender-hearted wench, skirked out for fear of 
the devil. Sir P. Sidney, Arcadia, ii. (Davies.) 
skirl, i'. and n. A Scotch form of shirl^ for 
shrill. 
Skirlcock (skerl'kok), n. The mistlethrush : 
so called from its harsh note. C. Swainson. 
[Prov. Eng.] 
skirling (sker'ling), n. [Verbal n. of skirl, v."] 
The act of emitting a shrill sound; also, a shrill 
so_und; a skirl. [Scotch.] 
skirmt , v. [ME. skirmen, skyrmen, < OF. eskermir, 
eskiermir, esquermir, esquiermir, escremir, escri- 
mer, scriinir, also eskermer, escremer, fence, play 
at fence, lay hard about one, F. escrimer, fence, 
= Pr. eserimir, escremir = Sp. Pg. esgrimir = 
It. schermarc, schermire, fence, < OHG. scirman, 
scirmen, shield, protect. MHG. schirmen, scher- 
men, shield, defend, fight, G. schirmen, shield, 
defend, < OHG. scirm, scerm, MHG. schirm, 
scherm, G. schirm, a shield, screen, shelter, 
guard (> It. schermo, protection, defense); cf. 
Gr. anipov, a parasol, ama, shade, shadow. 
Hence ult. skirmish, scrimmage, and (< F.) 
escrime, scrimer.~\ I. intrans. To fence; skir- 
mish. 
There the Sarsyns were strawyd wyde, 
And bygane to skyrme bylyve, 
As al the worlde schul to-dryve. 
Wright, Seven Sages, 1. 2693. 
II. trans. To fence with ; fight ; strike. 
Aschatus with skath [thou] wold skirme to the deth, 
That is my fader so fre, and thi first graunser. 
Destruction of Troy (E. E. T. S.), 1. 13801. 
skirmeryt, [ME. skirmerie, (.OF.escrimerie, 
< escrimer, fence : see skirm.~] Defense ; skir- 
mishing. 
The kynge Bohors, that moche cowde of skirmerie, re- 
sceyved the stroke on his shelde, and he smote so harde 
that a gret quarter fill on the launde. 
Merlin (E. E. T. S.), ii. 368. 
skirmish (sker'mish), . [Also dial, or colloq. 
scrimmage, skrimmage; early mod. E. also skir- 
magc, scarmage, scarmoge; < ME. scarmishe, 
scarmysshe, scarmich, scartnych, scarmuch, schar- 
ms, < OF. (and F.) escarmouche = Pr. escar- 
mussa = Sp. escaramuza = Pg. escaramuqa = 
It. scaramuccia, prop, schermugio (the scara- 
muccia form being in part a reflection of the 
OF., which in its turn, with the Sp., and the 
MHG. scharmutzel, scharmitzel, G. scharmiitzel, 
D. schermittseling, Sw. skarmytsel, Dan. skjser- 
mydsel, which have an added dim. term., is from 
the It. schermugio), formerly schermuzio, a skir- 
mish ; with dim. or depreciative suffix, < scher- 
ekirr 
mire, fence, fight: see xkirm. Of. n<-<iriiin<iHi-1i, 
ult. from the same It. source.] 1. An irregu- 
lar fight, especially between small parties; an 
engagement, in the presence of two armies, be- 
tween small detachments advanced for the pur- 
pose either of drawing on a battle or of conceal- 
ing by their fire the movements of the troops 
in the rear. 
Of Troilus, that is to palays ryden 
Fro the gcarm'ich of the which I you tolde. 
Chaucer, Troilus, ii. 934. 
A yeare and seuen moneths was Scipio at the siege of 
Numantia, all whiche time he neuer gaue battell or skir- 
inixhe, but only gaue order that no succour might come at 
them. Gueeara, Letters (tr. by Hellowes, 1577), p. 32. 
McPherson had encountered the largest force yet met 
since the battle of Port Gibson, and had a skirmish nearly 
approaching a battle. 
U. S. Grant, Personal Memoirs, I. 490. 
2f. Defense. 
Such cruell game my scarmor/es disarmes. 
Spenser, V. Q., II. vi. 34. 
3. Any contention or contest ; a preliminary 
trial of strength, etc. 
They never meet but there 's a skirmish of wit. 
Shak., Much Ado, i. 1. 64. 
Of God's dreadful Anger these 
Were but the first light Skirmishes. 
Cowley, Pindaric Odes, xiv. 14. 
= Syn. 1. Rencounter, Brush, etc. See encounter. 
skirmish (sker'mish), c. i. [Early mod. E. also 
xkyrmysshe; < ME. skarmysshcii, scarmishen, < 
OF. escarmoucher, escarmoucier, F.escarmoucher, 
skirmish, < escarmouche, a skirmish: see skir- 
mish, .] 1. To fight irregularly, as in a skir- 
mish ; fight in small parties or along a skirmish- 
line. 
He durst not gyue them battayle vntyll he had sum- 
what better searched the Region. Yet did he in the meane 
tyme skyrmysshe with them twyse. 
Peter Martyr (tr. in Eden's First Books on America, 
[ed. Arber, p. 91). 
Colonel Spinelli, who took part in the council, suggested 
the middle course, of a partial attack, or a kind of skir- 
mishing, during which further conclusions might be 
formed. A. Gindely, Thirty Years War (trans.), I. 247. 
2f. To defend one's self ; strike out in defense 
or attack. 
And [he] be-gan to scarmyshe and to grope a-boute hym 
with his staff e as a wood devell. 
Merlin (E. E. T. S.), iii. 648. 
3. To be in a position of guarded and cautious 
attack; fence. 
We should no longer fence or skirmish with this ques- 
tion. We should come to close quarters with it. 
Gladstone, quoted in Philadelphia Times, April 9, 1886. 
skirmish-drill (sker'mish -dril), n. Drill in 
skirmishing. 
In the skirmish-drill the officers and non-commissioned 
officers will constantly aim to impress each man with the 
idea of his individuality, and the responsibility that rests 
upon him. Upton, Infantry Tactics, 638. 
skirmisher (sk6r'mish-er), . [< skirmish + 
-er 1 ."] One who skirmishes ; a soldier specially 
detailed for the duty of skirmishing; one of the 
skirmish-line (which see). 
When skirmishers are thrown out to clear the way for 
and to protect the advance of the main body, their move- 
ments should be so regulated as to keep it constantly cov- 
ered. Every company of skirmishers has a small reserve, 
whose duty it is to fill vacant places and to furnish the line 
with cartridges and relieve the fatigued. 
Upton, Infantry Tactics, 629, 630. 
Skirmishing (sker'mish-ing), . [< ME. skai:- 
mysshynge; verbal n. of skirmish, r.] Irregu- 
lar fighting between small parties; a skirmish. 
At a skannysshynge 
She cast hire herte upon Mynos the kynge. 
Chaucer, Good Women, I. 1910. 
skirmish-line (sker'mish -lin), n. A line of 
men, called skirmishers, thrown out to feel the 
enemy, protect the main body from sudden at- 
tack, conceal the movements of the main body, 
and the like. Upton. 
Skirophoria (skir-o-fo'ri-a), n. pi. [< Gr. ZKI/M- 
<t>6pia, pi., < aKip<xj>6po(, < aicipov, a white parasol 
borne in honor of Athene (hence called Stupaf), 
+ -<t>opof, < iprpuv = E. feearl.] An ancient At- 
tic festival in honor of Athene, celebrated on 
the 12th of the month Skirophorion (about July 
Skirophorion (skir-o-fo'ri-on), . [< Gr. 
<t>opt<M>, the 12th Attic month, < ^Kipot/iopta: see 
Skirophoria."] In the ancient Attic calendar, 
the last month of the year, containing 29 days, 
and corresponding to the last part of June and 
the first part of July. 
Skirr 1 (sker), n. [Imitative.] A tern or sea- 
swallow. [Ireland. ] 
Skirr 2 , F. See seur 1 . 
