BOWSING KEN. An ale-house or gin-shop.
BOWSPRIT. The nose, from its being the most projecting
part of the human face, as the bowsprit is of a ship.
BOW-WOW. The childish name for a dog; also a jeering
appellation for a man born at Boston in America.
BOW-WOW MUTTON. Dog's flesh.
BOW-WOW SHOP. A salesman's shop in Monmouth-street;
so called because the servant barks, and the master bites.
See BARKER.
BOWYER. One that draws a long bow, a dealer in the marvellous,
a teller of improbable stories, a liar: perhaps from
the wonderful shots frequently boasted of by archers.
TO BOX THE COMPASS. To say or repeat the mariner's compass, not only backwards or forwards, but also to be able to answer any and all questions respecting its divisions. SEA TERM.
TO BOX THE JESUIT, AND GET COCK ROACHES. A sea term for masturbation; a crime, it is said, much practised by the reverend fathers of that society.
BRACE. The Brace tavern; a room in the S.E. corner of the King's Bench, where, for the convenience of prisoners residing thereabouts, beer purchased at the tap-house was retailed at a halfpenny per pot advance. It was kept by two brothers of the name of Partridge, and thence called the Brace.
BRACKET-FACED. Ugly, hard-featured.