Page:Notes and Queries - Series 10 - Volume 12.djvu/451

 10 s. XIL NOV. 6, 1909.] NOTES AND QUERIES.

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or what is more commonly called (after Benjamin Franklin) a " Franklin stove," and in it was placed for ornament " bushed asparagus in fading green."

On examining my notes, I find that I sent this very passage to Sir James Murray as long ago as 1893, explaining what " frank- lin " meant. Sir James did not enter the word in the ' N.E.D.,' perhaps because he did not think it of sufficient importance, or perhaps because he was reserving it for " stove." In the ' Century Dictionary ' a Franklin stove is fully described under " stove." ALBERT MATTHEWS.

Boston, U.S.

Franklin. MB. MACMICHAEL has made a misguess, for Lowell's " franklin " is not a table dainty, but a stove. The "franklin stove," so named from its inventor, Benjamin Franklin (though he himself called it " the Pennsylvania fireplace"), was an open fireplace of cast iron, jutting out from the chimney to which it was attached, so as to give heat from three sides, and add much to warmth while economizing wood. Their manufacture began in 1744, and until nearly the middle of the last century they were found in most houses of the better class in New England and the Middle States. In summer, careful housewives made the fire- place clean, and filled the hollow with some- thing decorative occasionally with flowers, but oftener with greenery that needed less attention, a bush of asparagus being a common choice. If left too long, it faded, of course.

Hide-and-coop. This variant of the hiding game was familiar to American children long before 1850. I have played it scores of times. In " hide-and-seek " the hiders kept as quiet as possible, but in " hide-and-coop " each called out from his secret place a faint, long-drawn " c-o-o-p," in a way to mislead the seeker as much as possible.

Horse of another colour. Cf. "My pur- pose is, indeed, a horse of that colour" (' Twelfth Night,' Act II. sc. iii).

Hum-hum. ' The Century Dictionary ' gives this as an East Indian word, with the definition " a kind of plain, coarse Indian cloth, made of cotton."

Ironweed. The American ironweed (Vernonia novaboracensis), one of the com- posite family, is a native perennial differing widely from the viper's bugloss, which is of the borage family, and, growing wild here as an English emigrant, adds its bright blue to the dry fields of midsummer, while our ironweed covers low, moist meadows with

reddish-purple bloom in the autumn. It received its botanical name in 1791, but I cannot say just now how long the common name has been in use.

Knuck. This is a New England colloquial- ism, used in speaking, e.g., of a " knuckle of veal."

Liberty Pole or Tree. These are two distinct things. The " Liberty Tree " was the Boston elm on which, in their excitement about the Stamp Act, the citizens hanged the effigies of obnoxious persons, and around which the Boston " Sons of Liberty," supporters of the revolt from England, held meetings, the first one being in 1765.

A " Liberty Pole " was a tall mast, at first surmounted by a Phrygian cap, erected in many places, and used as a rallying-place by the Sons of Liberty ; but the first one was put up in New York City, 4 June, 1766, to celebrate the news of the repeal of the Stamp Act. It floated a banner inscribed : " To his gracious Majesty George III., Mr. Pitt, and Liberty." The banner was torn down, and after several attempts the pole was cut down, by the British soldiers, who also destroyed three of its successors ; but the fifth pole remained until the British occupation of the city in 1776. In fact, the first blood of the Revolution was shed in a defence of one of these poles. As before said, the custom spread the country over, and wherever republicanism abounded, there could be found a Liberty Pole. M. C. L. New York.

MB. MACMICHAEL in his first paragraph hints that Lowell's suggestive word " shiver " is connected with the common word " shive," a slice. The idea would have given a shiver indeed to the author of * The Lady of Shalott.' H. P. L.

Joke, or jouk. To jouk is to avoid any- thing by a bending or sidelong motion. Its meaning can perhaps be best illustrated by the old Scotch proverb, " Jouk, and let the jaw gae by." The ' N.E.D.' has no illustration of this word in the sense of "to deceive," and the quotations given by MB. MACMICHAEL do not seem to me to have that meaning. The reference to Gait's ' Provost ' is from chap. vii. of that story, where Bailie McLucre narrates his visit to the Nabob's house in London. " Jookit " here clearly means dodged, evaded. In the quotation from Crockett, to play " jook my jo " with the lasses no doubt means to play fast and loose with them ; but " jook my jo " is a sort of tig, where the word " jook " again means to elude, to evade. T. F. D.