subs. (old).—1. A shilling; 1s: see RHINO: formerly of good currency; now only of counterfeit coin.
2. (common).—A decoy or confederate of any kind: e.g., a confederate of a confidence trick man, a sham buyer at an auction, etc.: also BUTTONER (q.v.): Fr. allumé.
1742–4. R. NORTH, The Lives of the Norths. And herein she served herself another way, for her adversary defamed her for swearing and unswearing, and it was not amiss to HAVE A BUTTON IN THE ROOM.
1877. BESANT and RICE, This Son of Vulcan, ix. The BUTTON, that is the confederate who egged on the flats.
3. (common).—In pl. = a place: also BOY IN BUTTONS.
1860. THACKERAY, Lovel the Widower, 289. [Herein quoted as the name of a page.]
1873. Chambers’s Journal, 605. Even the smallest BOY IN BUTTONS would have been a retainer too costly for us.
1874. H. MAYHEW, London Characters, 311. Others limit their views to a page, or BUTTONS.
1885. Illustrated London News, April 11, 376, 1. Such a man is only fit to be dressed like a BUTTONS, and set to open the door to visitors who come to call on his family.
Verb. (common).—To decoy; to act in confederacy: Fr. aguicher.
BUTTON OF NAPLES, subs. phr. (old).—A syphylitic bubo.
[?]. Extract (no reference) quoted by NARES. Specially because his souldiers were much given to venerie. The Frenchmen at that siege got the BUTTONS OF NAPLES (as we terme them) which doth much annoy them at this day. But the first finding of this grievous sickness, was brought into Spaine, by Columbus at his coming home, so that all Christendome may curse the king and Columbus.
NOT TO CARE (or BE WORTH) A BUTTON (or BRASS-BUTTON), phr. (old).—To care (or be worth) nothing at all.
1630. TAYLOR (‘The Water Poet’), Workes, 7. A lawyer hath but a bad trade there, for any cause or controversie is tryed and determined in three dayes, quirks, quiddits, demurs, habeas corposes, sursararaes, procedendoes, or any such dilatory law-tricks are abolished, and not WORTH A BUTTON.
1654. Witt’s Recreations.
| As cid and goat, and great goats mother, | |
| And runt, and cow, and good cows uther: | |
| And once but taste of the Welse mutton, | |
| Your Englis sheep’s NOT WORTH A BUTTON. |
c. 1816. Old Song, ‘The Night before Larry Was Stretched’ [FARMER, Musa Pedestris (1896), 79]. For the neckcloth I don’t CARE A BUTTON.
TO DRINK ONE’S BUTTONS OFF, verb phr. (old).—To tipple heavily: see LUSH, and cf. ‘to gamble one’s shirt off one’s back.’
1640. GLAPTHORNE, The Lady’s Priviledge.
| As, in the common proverb, | |
| The Dutchman DRINKS HIS BUTTONS OFF,—the English | |
| Doublet and all away. |
TO HAVE A BUTTON ON, verb. phr. (old).—To have a fit of the BLUES (q.v.) to be despondent.
TO HAVE LOST A BUTTON (or BE A BUTTON SHORT) verb. phr. (common).—To be slightly crazy; to have a TILE (q.v.) loose.
TO BUTTON UP, verb phr. (American Stock Exchange).—When a broker has bought stock on speculation and it falls suddenly on his hands, whereby he is a loser, he keeps the matter to himself, and is reluctant to confess the ownership of a share: this is called BUTTONING UP.
DASH (or DAMN) MY BUTTONS (WIG), phr. (common).—A mild oath.
1860. W. H. RUSSELL, My Diary in India, I., 26. DARN MY BUTTONS if I haven’t jest a mind to …
TO HAVE A SOUL ABOVE BUTTONS, phr. (common).—To be above one’s work or duty; to think one’s ability superior to one’s position: see quot. 1795.
1795. G. COLMAN, Sylvester Dagger-wood, I. (1808), 10. My father was an eminent Button-Maker … but I HAD A SOUL ABOVE BUTTONS … I panted for a liberal profession.
1821. P. EGAN, Life in London, i. Few, if any, writers, out of the great mass of living scribblers, whether of Grub-Street fabrication, or of University passport … possess SOULS ABOVE BUTTONS.
1833. MARRYAT, Peter Simple, I. i. But my father, who was a clergyman of the Church of England, and the youngest brother of a noble family, had a lucrative living and A ‘SOUL ABOVE BUTTONS,’ if his son had not.
1855. THACKERAY, The Newcomes, III., 93. If I were to say to Captain Crackthorpe, ‘What pretty buttons!’ he would be delighted. But you—you HAVE A SOUL ABOVE BUTTONS, I suppose.
TO MAKE BUTTONS, phr. (old).—1. To look sorry; to be sad; to be in great fear. Hence (2) = to SHIT (q.v.) through fear e.g., ‘His tail makes buttons’ = He is in great fear.
1593. G. HARVEY, Pierce’s Supererogation, in Wks. II., 238. Thy witt already MAKETH BUTTONS.
1653. MIDDLETON, The Spanish Gipsy, IV., iii. Sam. O Soto, I MAKE BUTTONS!
