TERM. "Now Monsieur Term will come to town, Term is derived from Terminus, the heathen God of boundaries, landmarks, and limits of time. In the early ages of Christianity, the whole year was one continued term for hearing and deciding causes; but after the establishment of the Romish church, the daily dispensation of justice was prohibited by canonical authority, that the festival might be kept holy. Advent, and Christmas, occasioned the winter vacation; Lent and Easter, the Spring; Penticost the third; and hay-time and harvest, the long vacation, between Mid-summer and Michaelmas. Each term is denominated from the festival day immediately preceding its commencement; hence we learn the term of St. Hilary, Easter, the Holy Trinity, and St. Michael. There are in each term days called dies in banco (days in bank), that is, days of appearance in common bench. They are usually about a week from each other, and have reference to some Romish festival. All original writs are returnable on those days, and they are therefore called the return days. TOMB STONE. The compound word Tomb-stone, which signifies a tablet, on which is inscribed the virtues, or peculiarities, of the deceased, is derived from toma, a volume. The hillocks of earth, over the majority of graves, originated from the Roman Tumuli, or Mound, which they placed over their dead, and those who are at all versed in history, are aware, that a great many of our artificial hills are the Tumuli of numbers who have been slain in battle. VOLUME. Volume is derived from the Latin volvo, to roll up, the ancient manner of making up books, as we find in Cicero's time, the libraries consisted wholly of such rolls. WALLOON. The Body Guard of the Spanish monarch, denominated the Walloon Guard, receive their name from the Walloons, a people in the Low Countries, so called. They were famed for making and dyeing fine Woollen Cloths. The Duke of Alva, who was Governor of the Netherlands for Philip 2d of Spain, in order to flatter those whom he ruled, selected a body guard from among the Walloons for the Spanish monarch, and gave to it the appellation of the Walloon Guard, or Walloon Guards. WHOOHE! Whoohe! a well known exclamation to stop a team of horses, is derived by a writer, in the "Gentleman's Magazine," 1799, from the Latin. "The exclamation used by our waggoners when they wish to stop their team for any purpose (an exclamation which it is less difficult to speak than to write, although neither is a task of great facility), is probably a legacy bequeathed us by our Roman ancestors; pre 355 cisely a translation of the ancient Ohe! an interjection strictly confined to bespeaking a pause-rendered by our lexicographers,enough! oh, enough! 66 WHIFFLER. This word, which we so often meet with in Shakspear's plays, is a term, Mr. Douce says, undoubtedly borrowed from whiffle, another name for a fife, or small flute; for whifflers were originally those who preceded armies, or processions, as fifers, or pipers in process of time, the word whiffler, which had always been used in the sense of a fifer, came to signify any person who went before in a procession." He observes, that Minshew defines him to be, a club or staff bearer, and that it appears, whifflers carried white staves, as in the annual feast of the printers, founders, and ink-makers, as well as in funeral processions, &c. WAITS. The term Waits, as applied to our midnight musicians, is derived from the simple circumstance of waiting upon us during the hours of sleep. It has been presumed that Waits in very ancient times meant Watchmen, and that they were minstrels at first attached to the King's Court, who sounded the watch every night, and prevented depredations. WIFE. "Domens et placens uxor."-Horace. "Thy house, and (in the cup of life That honey drop) thy pleasing wife." This term, appropriated to a man's better-half, as she is termed, is derived from the Saxon husewyf, or house-wife-signifying one who has the superintendance of household affairs. Wyf, or wyfe, but as it is now spelt wife, implying a matron. WINE. This appellation of the "juice of the grape," is derived from the Saxon word wyn. October was called Wyn-monath; and albeit they had not anciently wines made in Germany, yet in this season had they them from divers countries adjoining. 66 WOMAN. And this is Woman's fate All her affections are called into life By winning flatteries, and then thrown back Our Saxon ancestors, in order to distinguish the sexes, called the male Man, and the female Womb-man, but which has in the course of time been corrupted (perhaps our squeamish sensitives would say improved) into Woman. There is something, however, to a manly mind, so truly delightful in the associations connected with the etymology of the appellation, used to distinguish the female from the male sex, that a mere notice of it cannot be expected to suffice. The cruel and reckless neglect, which the female sex are but too often subject to, would, one would suppose, less frequently occur, were the simple origin of their appellation brought oftener to mind. The ignorant may plead their ignorance as an excuse; but the bitter treatment this weaker part of humanity too often experience, arises most generally from those who should have no such excuse to offer. But, alas! like "the flower plucked in the morn" to be admired and caressed, when satiated with its odours, are cast away to perish, amid the desolating frowns of those, who, in their own esteem, are "holier than they." "The odour from the flower is gone, Which thy kisses breath'd on me; Thus imagination, nay, sad reality, places before us the complaint of the deserted female; perhaps, at last, through cruel neglect, reduced to that state-" abhorring all, and by all abhorred. Reader, if in thy thoughtlessness thou hast injured such an one, think but on thy own origin, think but on the etymology of the appellation of the female sex, and thou wilt not, canst not, entirely forsake her. WARDMOTE. Wardmote is a compound of the words Ward and Mote, i. e. the Ward Court; for in London parishes are as towns, and wards as hundreds; wherefore the Ward Court resembles that of the Leet in the County for as the latter derives its authority from the county court, so does the former from that of the Lord Mayor; as is manifest by the annual precept issued by the Lord Mayor to the several Aldermen, for holding their respective Leets, for the election of proper officers in each Ward. WAPENTAKE. There have been several conjectures as to the origin of this word; one of which is, that anciently musters were made of the Armour and Weapons of the inhabitants of every hundred, and from those they could not find sufficient pledges of their good abearing, their weapons were taken away, and given to others; whence it is said this word is taken. Wilkins, an old writer, says, "In England every man was a soldier, and the county meetings were styled wapen-takes,' from the custom of going armed to the assembly, and of touching the spear, of the magistrate, to shew the readiness of each man for action. Slaves, he says, were not suffered to carry arms about them; the very gift of a weapon conferred freedom. On the other hand, the free man never stirred abroad without his spear; and laws were actually made to guard against the damages occasioned by the careless bearer." The word is of Saxon origin, says another authority, the meaning whereof is the same as hundred, a division of a county so called, because the inhabitants did give up their arms in token of subjection. With King Alfred, the dividing of this kingdom into counties originated, and of giving the government of each county to a sheriff; these were afterwards divided into hundreds (some say from its containing a hundred families, or from its furnishing a hundred able men for the king's wars), of which the constable was the chief officer. These grants were at first made by the king to particular persons, but they are not now held by grant or prescription; their jurisdiction being devolved to the county court; a few of them only excepted. at have been by privilege annexed to the crown, or granted to some great subjects, and still remain in the nature of a franchise." THE END. Plummer and Brewis, Printers, Love Lane, Little Eastcheap. |