subs. (old).—See quots. 1665, 1748, 1755, 1785 and 1876.
ENGLISH SYNONYMS. Abram-man (or -cove); bawdy-basket; Bedlam-beggar; blue-gown (old Scots’); cadator; cadger; canter; croaker; curtail; durry-nacker; dry-land sailor; filer; frater; goose-shearer; Irish toyle; keyhole whistler; master of the black art; maunder; milestone-monger; moucher; mud-plunger; mugger; mumper; munger; needy-mizzler; niffler; overland-mailer (or -man); palliard; paper-worker; pikey; ruffler; scoldrum; shivering James (or Jemmy); shyster; skipper-bird; skitting-dealer; silver-beggar; street-ganger; strolling-mort; sundowner; swag-man; tinkard; Tom of Bedlam; traveller; turnpike; uhlan; upright man; washman; whip-jack.
For foreign synonyms, see SHYSTER.
1665. R. HEAD, The English Rogue, Pt. I. ch. v. p. 50 (1874). MUMPERS, Gentile [genteel] Beggars.
1690. D’URFEY, Collin’s Walk through London and Westminster, C. I. p. 27.
| That even Vagabonds and MUMPERS, | |
| Have from my bounty had full Bumpers. |
1690. CROWNE, The English Friar, ii. 1. My lady is … rather a MUMPER; she has begg’d the backhouse, the gardens, to lay herself and her goods in.
1693. CONGREVE, The Old Batchelor, iii. 6. Lucy. Hang thee—Beggar’s cur!—Thy master is but a MUMPER in love, lies canting at the gate.
1694. Poor Robin [NARES]. Since the king of beggars was married to the queen of sluts, at Lowzy-hill, near Beggars-bush, being most splendidly attended on by a ragged regiment of MUMPERS.
1703. WARD, The London Spy, pt. I. p. 7. He is one of those gentile MUMPERS, we call Cadators; he goes a Circuit round England once a year, and under Pretence of a decay’d gentleman, gets both Money and Entertainment at every good House he comes at.
1705. WARD, Hudibras Redivivus, pt. 4.
| Here, said I, take your MUMPER’S fee, | |
| Let’s see one; thank you, sir, said she. |
1712. Spectator, No. 509. The MUMPERS, the halt, the blind, and the lame.
1748. T. DYCHE, A New General English Dictionary (5 ed.). MUMPERS (S.) among the Gipsy Crew, is called the 47th order of canters or genteel beggars, who will not accept of victuals, but only money or cloaths.
1754. The World, No. 64. I was at his door by nine; where, after the fashion of MUMPERS, I gave but one single knock for fear of disturbing him.
1755. JOHNSON, A Dictionary of the English Language (1814), s.v. MUMPER. In cant language. A beggar.
1777. BAILEY, English Dictionary, s.v. MUMPER, a genteel beggar.
1785. GROSE, A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, s.v. MUMPER, originally beggars of the genteel kind, but since used for beggars in general.
1830. SCOTT, The Doom of Devorgoil, ii. 2.
| The courtier begs a riband or a star, | |
| And, like our gentler MUMPERS, is provided | |
| With false certificates of health and fortune | |
| Lost in the public service. |
1834. W. H. AINSWORTH, Rookwood, p. 130 (ed. 1864). ‘Ha, ha! Are you there, my old death’s head on a mopstick?’ said Turpin, with a laugh. ‘Ain’t we merry MUMPERS, eh? Keeping it up in style. Sit down, old Noah; make yourself comfortable, Methusalem.’
1849. MACAULAY, The History of England, iii. A Lincoln’s Inn MUMPER was a proverb.
1859. G. W. MATSELL, Vocabulum; or, The Rogue’s Lexicon, s.v.
1868. Temple Bar, xxiv. 537. When he can’t go on in that racket he’ll turn MUMPER.
1876. C. HINDLEY, ed. The Life and Adventures of a Cheap Jack, p. 64. A big MUMPER—that is a half-bred gipsey.
