or -man, -monger, -merchant; Brother, or Knight of the Quill, subs. phr. (common).—A penman—author, journalist, clerk, or (racing) bookmaker: Fr. rond de cuir. Also HERO OF THE QUILL = a distinguished author. Hence QUILL-DRIVING = clerking; TO DRIVE THE QUILL = to write.—GROSE (1785).
1680. Observations on a Late Famous Sermon, Intituled, ‘Curse ye Meroz,’ 7. This Aphorism is but borrowed from another BROTHER OF THE QUILL.
1691–2. Gentleman’s Journal, 2 March. I know some of your sturdy tuff KNIGHTS OF THE QUILL, your old Soakers at the Cabbaline Font.
1719. D’URFEY, Wit and Mirth; or Pills to Purge Melancholy, iv. 319.
| When Inns of Court-Rakes, | |
| And QUILL-DRIVING Prigs. |
1721. SWIFT, Epilogue to a Play for the Benefit of the Weavers in Ireland.
| Their brother QUILL-MEN, workers for the stage, | |
| For sorry stuff can get a crown a page. |
1761. A. MURPHY, The Citizen. Dramatis Personæ QUILDRIVE, clerk to old Philpot.
1827. BULWER-LYTTON, Pelham, xlix. Tolerably well known, I imagine, to the GENTLEMEN OF THE QUILL.
1836. M. SCOTT, Tom Cringle’s Log, vii. A dozen clerks were QUILL-DRIVING. Ibid., The Cruise of the Midge, 3. I had much greater license allowed me than … any of my fellow QUILL-DRIVERS.
1853. C. KINGSLEY, Hypatia, xii. Some sort of slave’s QUILL-DRIVING.
1885. Weekly Echo, 5 Sept. This most eccentric of QUILL-DRIVERS gets up his facts in a slap-dash fashion.
1899. BESANT, The Orange Girl, 25. An overwhelming disgust fell upon my soul as I thought of the … long hours … DRIVING THE QUILL all the day.
