Page:Notes and Queries - Series 12 - Volume 9.djvu/422

 344 NOTES AND QUERIES. [i2S.ix.ooT.2o f i92i. CHINKS. The Chinese_Labour Corps. CIVVY. A civilian. CLUTCHING HAND. Quartermaster. COBBA. Friend. CONCHIE (CoNsciE). A conscientious objector. DIE-HARDS. Nickname given to the Middlesex Regiments. DIGGER. Soldier of the Australian or New Zealand Expeditionary Force. DUGKHE. Earl (Douglas) Haig. DUG-OUT. One who has seen his best days. A white-haired Colonel would invariably receive this distinction. (See C.) DULLMAJOR. Name given by prisoners of wai to an interpreter (from the German Dolmetscher= interpreter). ERB. Substitute used when a man's Christian name is unknown. FIRESIDERS. Men who did not join up. FRITZ. A German. (See also B.) FROGGIES. French soldiers. FUJILTERS. Fusiliers. GAS-PDPE CAVALRY. Army Cyclist Corps so called because of the bicycles. GERRY. German. GRASSHOPPER. Policeman derived from " Cop- per." GUY. American for " Tommy." GYPO. An Egyptian. HEINIE. German (American word). JERRY. A German. JOCK. Any Scotsman. JOCKS. The Scotch troops. JOHNNY. A Turk. KID. American word for " Tommy." KITCH. A man who enlisted hi Lord Kitchener's new Army. LANCE- JACK. ' A lance- corporal. LINSEED LANCERS. Royal Army Medical Corps. NOTTS AND DOTTS. Notts and Derby Regiments. O.C. SOCKS. A man detailed for a one-man job such as collecting the platoon's socks would be " Officer Commanding Socks." OLD CHINA. A friend or pal. OLD MAN (THE). The Company Commander or Commanding Officer ; Colonel. OLD SWEAT. A pre-war time-serving soldier. PADRE. The battalion Chaplain. PORK AND BEANS. Portuguese troops. POULTICE PUNCHER (POULTICE WALLOPER,). A member of the R.A.M.C. POULTICE- WALLAH. Medical man. Hindustani. PRIVATE (A). " Called a private because he has less privacy than a goldfish." PULLTHROUGH. A tall thin soldier. PUSHER. A young woman. QUARTER BLOKE. The Quartermaster Sergeant. QUARTERS. Quartermaster Sergeant. RED CAPS. Military Police. At the Base these wore hats having the crowns covered with a red material. RED HAT. Staff Officer. RED HERRINGS. Staff Officers wearing red hat- band and tabs on home service. RoB-ALL-MY-coMRADEs. Royal Army Medical Corps, the initials being the cause of this honourable nickname. ROOKIE (RooKEE). Recruit. Question to Re- cruit : " What were you in civil life ? " Answer : "Happy, Sergeant." SQUAREHEAD. A German. SQUARE-PUSHER. A " perfectly correct " young woman who for once indulges in flirtation. SQUATTI. A private. TAFFIES. Welsh troops. TREYS. Infantry. WALLAH. A servant; a slacker or one who has an easy job. Roottee- wallah the orderly who doled out bread. Hindustani. WAR BABY. The youngest member of a platoon. B. MILITARY TERMS. AMMO. Ammunition. ARCHIES. Anti-aircraft guns ; anti-aircraft shells. BIG BERTHA. The German long-range gun' a which fired on Paris. BLACK MARIA. Heavy high-explosive German shell so called on account of thick black smoke emitted when bursting. COAL-BOX. German heavy shell ; name given from thick black smoke emitted on bursting. COMMO. Communication, e.g., " Commo trench." CRUMP. H.E. shell from the sound of the burst. FIREWORK DISPLAY. A heavy bombardment, usually accompanied by red, white, green, and blue lights. FLYING PIG. Large type of trench mortar. Inter- trench torpedo shell. It has fin-like pro- jections and in flight its shape suggests a pig. FOOTBALL. A circular-shaped trench-mortar missile used by British about the size of a football. FRITZ. A German aeroplane, shell, or anything aggressive. (See also A.) GRANDMOTHER. Heavy howitzer. GRANNY. A 9-2 gun. HIPE. Rifle. HUSH-HUSH. A caterpillar tank. INDIA-RUBBER GUN. German high-velocity gun. IRON RATIONS. (Properly, tinned tea and sugar, tinned corned beef, &c., which every soldier carried with him for emergencies only.) Shells. " Gerry is sending us plenty of iron rations to-night." " Gerry's iron rations '* were the shells of our artillery. JACK JOHNSON. German heavy high-explosive shell ; so called from the thick, black smoke emitted on bursting. LANDSLIP. A caterpillar tank. LID. Steel helmet. MILLS. The Mills hand-grenade (British). MINNIE. A Minenu-erfer (German trench mortar > shell, a drum of high explosive ; a " land mine." NUMBER ON (GOT YOUR). A bullet or shell in- tended for you. ONE OF OURS. Said of shell dropping near the- front-line trenches. " It's all right ; it's one of ours." OURS OR THEIRS ? Expression frequently heard in. the trenches when a shell came over. OVER THE TOP. Taking a position at the point of the bayonet. Used of ascending from the trenches to No Man's Land. PIG-STICKER. Bayonet. PINEAPPLE. So called because its side and ex- ternal surface is similar to a pineapple. A trench mortar explosive used by Germans. PIP-SQUEAK. Rifle grenade ; also German shelL PLUM-PUDDING. Heavy trench-mortar shell. POM-POM. French 75mm. cannon. POT-HOLE. Shell-hole.