Poisse, f. (popular and thieves’), thief, “prig.” For synonyms see [Grinche].
Voilà comment on devient grinche, l’homme pauvre devient gouêpeur, on l’envoie à la Lorcefé, il en sort poisse.—Vidocq. (That is how one takes to thieving; a poor man becomes a vagrant, he is sent to La Force, when he leaves he is a thief.)
Une —— à la détourne, a shoplifter, or “sneaksman,” termed formerly “buttock-and-file.” “Robbing a shop by pairs is termed ‘palming’—one thief bargaining with apparent intent to purchase,” says the Slang Dictionary, “whilst the other watches his opportunity to steal. The following anecdote will give an idea of their modus operandi. A man once entered a ‘ready-made’ boot and shoe shop, and desired to be shown a pair of boots, his companion staying outside and amusing himself by looking in at the window. The one who required to be fresh shod was apparently of a humble and deferential turn, for he placed his hat on the floor directly he stepped into the shop. Boot after boot was tried on until at last a fit was obtained, when in rushed a man, snatched up the customer’s hat left near the door, and ran down the street as fast as his legs could carry him. Away went the customer after his hat, and Crispin, standing at the door, clapped his hands, and shouted, ‘Go it, you’ll catch him?’ little thinking that it was a concerted trick, and that neither his boots nor the customer would ever return.” Detectives occasionally learn something from thieves, as appears from the stratagem resorted to by a French member of the Sûreté some time ago, who, himself a small man, and having a warrant for the arrest of an herculean and desperate scoundrel, proceeded as follows. He dogged his man, who pretended to hawk chains and watches, and, watching his opportunity, when the man had laid down his merchandise on the table of a wine-shop, he suddenly caught up one of the articles, and made off in the direction of the police station, followed thither by his quarry in hot pursuit, and crying out, “Stop thief!” Needless to say that the result was quite the reverse of that anticipated by the burly malefactor. (Dandies’) La ——, the world of cads, of “rank outsiders.”
Poissé, adj. (thieves’), stolen; caught. Au bout d’un an —— avec une pesée de gigot que j’allais fourguer. After one year nabbed with some leg of mutton which I was taking away to sell.
Poisser (popular and thieves’), to catch; to steal, “to cop, to clift, or to claim;” —— les philippes, or l’auber, to steal money. See [Grinchir].
Il fait nuit, le ciel s’opaque.
Viens-tu? J’vas poisser l’auber...
Au bagn’ j’aurai eun’ casaque!
C’est pas rigolo, l’hiver.