Trotters.—The feet. Walk your trotters, to be off. Trotter-cases, shoes. Trotter shakers, dancers.
Turkey Merchant.—A poulterer.
Turf—The.—The race course; the profession of horse racing, which is done on turf or grass. One who lives by the turf, or one on the turf, is one whose chief occupation or means of living is derived from running horses or betting on races. All men are equal on the turf and under it.—Lord George Bentinck.
U.
Umbrella.—Otherwise mush, spread, summer cabbage, water-plant, gingham, &c. The first person who used an umbrella in the streets of London was Jonas Hanway, founder of the Magdalene Hospital, who died 1786.
Uncle.—The pawnbroker. See My Uncle.
Under a Cloud.—In debt and difficulties. Not able to show out, or come to the front in daylight.
Undergoing a Three Months’ Preparation.—The modern “New way to pay old debts,” or taking the Benefit of the Act! Sometimes resorted to by an honest man overwhelmed by the harpies of the law, but more generally in use among swindlers, scamps, blacklegs, rogues, and vagabonds of every description.
Under the Rose.—Sub rosa.—Secretly, confidentially. Amongst the ancients the rose was an emblem of silence.
Under the Screw.—In prison.