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 1606. John Day, Isle of Gulls, Act ii., Sc. 2, p. 39. A wise man's bow goes with a two-fold string.

1748. Smollett, Rod. Random, ch. xvii. He was resolved to have two strings to his bow, that in case the one failed, he might use the other.

(?) T. Brown, wks. IV., 115, ed. 1760. A man in Amsterdam is suffer'd to have but one religion, whereas in London he may have two strings to his bow.

1886. Mrs. Riddell, For Dick's Sake, ch. iv., p. 11 (S.P.C.K.). She had a second string to her bow, which suited her far better; and she sent Dick back his letters and his presents, and a note beginning, 'Dear sir,' and ending 'Yours truly.'

to draw the long bow, phr. (colloquial).—To exaggerate; to 'gas'; to 'talk up.'

1819-24. Byron, Don Juan, xvi., 1. They draw the long bow better now than ever.

To draw the bow up to the ear, phr. (colloquial).—To do a thing with alacrity; 'to put on full steam'; to exert oneself to the utmost.

1860. Macmillan's Mag., Feb., p. 258. So Miller, the coxswain, took to drawing the bow up to the ear at once.

Bow-Catcher, subs. (common).—A kiss-curl. For synonyms, see Aggerawator. [A corruption of 'beau-catcher.' Cf., Bell-rope.]

Bowdlerize, verb (colloquial).—To expurgate by removing offensive or questionable words from a book or writing. [From Dr. T. Bowdler's method in editing an edition of Shakspeare, in which, to use his own words, 'Those expressions are omitted which cannot with propriety be read aloud in a family.']

1836. Gen. P. Thompson, Let. in Exerc. (1842), IV., 124. Among the names are many, like Hermes, Nereus, which modern ultra-christians would have thought formidably heathenish; while Epaphroditus and Narcissus they would probably have bowdlerized.

1870. Notes and Queries, 4 S., vi., p. 47. No profane hand shall dare, for me, to curtail my Chaucer, to bowdlerise my Shakspeare, or to mutilate my Milton.

1874. E. L. Linton, Patricia Kemball, ch. iii. Her uncle had not made her read much beside the Bible and Shakspeare, which last he had bowdlerised on his own account with a broad pen and very thick ink.

From this comes bowdlerization, squeamish emasculation of a work; also bowdlerizer, etc.

1882. Westm. Review, April, p. 583. The bowdlerization which the Editor has thought necessary is done in an exceedingly awkward and clumsy fashion.

Bower, subs. (American thieves').—A prison—a transferred usage of the orthodox word. For synonyms, see Cage.

Bowery Boy, Bowery Girl, subs. (American).—The 'Arry and 'Arriet of New York of some years ago. The Bowery is a well known thoroughfare in the American metropolis. [Formerly spelt bouwerij, and derived from bouw, tillage, or bouwen, to till, to cultivate, being equivalent to the modern Dutch word boerderij, a farm, or the business of farming. The Bowery was the farm of Governor Stuyvesant.] Cf., Blood tub.

Bowlas, subs. (common).—Explained by quotation.

1851-61. H. Mayhew, London Lab. and Lon. Poor, vol. I., p. 208. Bowlas, or round tarts made of sugar, apple, and bread.

Bowled, ppl. adj. (Winchester).—Croppled (q.v.).