BELL-HORSE [buul au's]. The leader of a team. Formerly it was common, and even now it is sometimes seen, that the leader carries a board with four or five bells hung under it, attached to his collar by two irons: these irons hold the bells high above the horse's shoulders. The bells, which are good-sized and loudsounding, are hidden from sight by a fringe of very bright red, yellow, and green woollen tasse's; as the horse moves the jangle is almost deafening.

In setting children to run a race the start is given thus:

Bell-horses! bell-horses, what time o' day?
One o'clock, two o'clock, three and away!

Bellows. A black

BELLIS [búl'ees, buulees, búl'eesez], sb. smith of my acquaintance always speaks of his [búl'eesez,] bellises. This form is quite common. In farm-houses, where wood is still the principal fuel, the bellows is in constant use. It is thought very unlucky to put the bellows on the table; many a housewife would be horrified at the sight.

A few years ago might be seen in Exeter, on a signboard:

Here lives a man what dont refuse

To mend umbrellases, bellowses, boots and shoes.

BELL-ROSE [buul roauz], sb. daffodil-Narcissus Pseudo-narcissus.

Commonest name for the

I knows a orchet a covered wi they there bell-roses.—Feb. 21, 1881.

BELLY [buul'ee], sb. Womb. A very common bucolic saying, precisely expressive of what is called "discounting" in commercial talk, is [Aiteen dhu kyaa'v een dhu kaewz buulee,] eating the calf in the cow's belly.

Bely. Venter, alvus, uterus.—Promp. Parv.

BELLY-GOD [buul'ee gaud]. A glutton.

I calls he a proper belly-god; all he do look arter is stuffin his ugly guts.

BELLY-PART [buulee paart], sb. The thin bacon which comes from the abdomen of the pig.

BELLY-TIE [buul'ee-tuy], sb. The strap belonging to the harness which passes under the horse's belly. There are always two; one to fasten on the saddle, and the other to prevent the shafts from rising. Called elsewhere wanty-i. e. womb-tie.

BELLY-TIMBER [buulce túm'ur], sb. Victuals and drink; food in general.

[Kau'm soaus! ed-n ut tuy'm vur t-ae'u sum buul·ee-túm'ur?], come mates! is it not time to have some victuals? Well, I calls it very purty belly tim'er; I wish I midn never meet way no wisser.

BELONG [beelaung], v. To appertain. Used peculiarly in the dialect so as to make the person appertain to the thing, instead of the converse. For the question: "To whom do these houses belong?" we should say: [Ue du beelau'ng tu dhaiʻzh-uur aew-zez?] -i. e. who belongs to these houses?

A "forreigner" from Halse (about six miles off), seeking work, said to me: Be you the ginlmun, make so bold, that do belong to this here house?

At any fair or market it is very common to hear: Who do belong to these here bullicks?

The following shows this construction to be no modern corruption on the part of dialect speakers.

And whanne pe dame hath ydo: pat to be dede longith,
And hopith for to hacche: or heruest begynne,
Thanne cometh per a congioun, &c.

Langland, Rich. the Red. III. 1. 43.

BELVY [buul vee], v. i. To bellow, as a cow; to roar (always). [Dhoal Júpsee doan taek u beet u noatees oa ur kyaav; ur aan u buul vud nuudhur wauns-neet-s aay-v u yuurd,] the old Gypsy does not take any notice of (the loss of) her calf; she has not once bellowed-not that I have heard.-September 1884.

BEMEAN [beemain], ref. v. To disgrace, to stoop, to lose caste. [Aay kaa'n dhingk aewúv'ur uur kèod beemai'n urzuul· vur tae'u jish fuul ur-z ee',] I cannot think how she could have stooped to have such a fellow as he.

BEN [bai'n], sb. Part of the frame of a carding-engine. It is probably bend, as its shape is semicircular; it serves to carry the various rollers parallel to the main drum or cylinder.

BENDS [bai'nz], sb. The ridges in land which has been thrown up into "ridge and furrow" (q. v.).

BENOW. See BY-NOW.

BENT. See BONNET.

BEPITY [beepút ee], v. To commiserate.

[Aay shèod u beepúteed uur moo'ur, neef t-ad-n u-bún ur o'n fau ut,] I should have pitied her more, if it had not been her own fault.

BERK [buurk], sb. Bark of a dog.

BERKY [buur kee], v. i. To bark (always).

I yeard-n (a fox) berkin, and gee-in tongue jist the very same's a hound. Our Tip on't never berky 'thout he yearth a stranger. See GIVE TONGUE.

Our dialectal pronunciation seems to be the archaic, and in this case again the literary form is the corruption.

Gif þu berkest agein. þu ert hundes kunnes.

Ancren Riwle, p. 122, 1. 3.

he koured lowe

to bi-hold in at pe hole whi his hound berkyd.

William of Palerme, 1. 47. (See also 1. 55.)

Berkar, as a dogge. Latrator.

Berkyn. Latro, baffo, baulo.

Wappon, or berkyn, idem quod, Berkyn, supra.—Promp. Parv.

Berkyng of a dogge, aboyement.-Palsgrave.

And pt pe whelpus wt in hur' body i þe tyde,*
Burke fast at Je kyng and hur' also.

BERRIN. See BURIN.

BERRY [buuree], sb.

Chron. Vilod. st. 222. (See also Ib. st. 227.)

66

A group of rabbit-holes having internal communication. Called also [u buur ee u oalz,] a berry of holes. Hal. is wrong. The word does not mean a herd of conies," but applies to the burrows; for it is applied equally to the "earths " or holes of foxes or badgers; never applied to a single hole.

[Dhu buuree wuz dhaat baeg, dhu fuur uts kèod-n git um aewt,] the berry was so big the ferrets could not get them (the rabbits) out. A single hole might be called a burrow, though rarely, but never a buuree.

A Hole (or berry) made by a Conny. Tute.-Cotgrave, Sherwood.

BERRY [buur ee], v. i. To dig a hole with the feet; to burrow: applied to any animal. Of a badger I have often heard it said: Tidn a bit o' good to dig arter-n; he can berry vaster-n you can. A dog is said to berry, when he marks and digs at a rabbit-hole.

BESCUMMER [beeskúm'ur, beeskuum'ur], v. To besmear, either with filth or (fig.) with abusive language.

[Ee bees kuum urd-n oa vur wuul,] he abused him thoroughly; but [Ee beeskuum'urd-n au·l oa'vur,] means he besmear'd him all over with filth. Minute changes of this kind often make vast changes in the meaning.

BESOM [búz'um], sb. The broom plant, often called [gree'n búzum]-sarothamnus scoparius. An infusion of the leaves of this plant is held to be the great specific in dropsical cases; but this infusion I have never heard called anything but [brèo'm tai,] broom-tea.

Bwoil down some green besom, 'tis the finedest thing in the wordle, when anybody 've a catched a chill or ort.

BESTEST [bas'tees], adj. (Very com.) Double superlative of good; the very best.

[Dhaat dhae'ur-z dhu bastces úv'ur aay-d u-gaut,] that is the very best I ever had. See INTRODUCTION.

BEST-PART [bas pae'urt]. The greater part; very nearly the

whole.

[Dhu bas paeurt u dhu wai,] nearly the whole way.

[Dhai bún u-gèo bas par urt-uv u aaw'ur,] they have been gone nearly a whole hour.

BE SURE [bee shoatur]. To be sure; certainly.

[Bee-shoa ur ted-n dún'ur-tuym urad'ee,] to be sure it is not dinner-time a'ready. [Bee gwai'n t-ab-m? Bee shoa ur aay bee,] are you going to have it? Certainly I am.

BETHINK [becdhing·k, p. t.; beedhau't, p. p.; u-beedhau't, and u-beedhau tud: often beedhing kt, u-beedhing kt], v. To begrudge, to abstain from.

[Ee wúd-n núvur beedhing k dhu muunee,] he would never begrudge the money. [Ee ded-n beedhing k tu au lur, vur aul ee ded-n aarlee tich oa un.] he did not a stain from (or begrudge himself the satisfaction of) crying out (to halloo), though he scarcely touched him. This phrase means more than this; it implies that he bellowed very loudly for a very slight blow.

When used in the above senses the past tense is always formed, either by the periphrastic did, as in the example above given, or by the weak forms of the perf. and past part., and the construction is generally negative as above. But on the other hand, the use of the strong forms of the perfect and p. p. bethought, or frequently bethoughted [beedhau-tud], completely changes the meaning to the literary sense of remembered, recollected. Unlike the literary usage, however, it does not necessarily require the reflective form (bethought me, or myself, &c.). We should say: Hon I come to think it over, I bethoughted all about it--i. e. Í remembered all the circumstances. The present tense, bethink, is not used, except as above-i. e. to begrudge: never to express recollection.

BETIME [beetuym], adv. Early; not simply in good time. [Muy'n un bee dhae'ur beetuym,] mind and be there early. I shall be up betime to-morrow morning--i. e. early. Betimes is never used.

BETTER [bad'r], adj. comp. More in quantity or time; later in time.

[Dhur wuz bad r-n u diz'n oa-m,] there were more than a dozen of them. [Bad'r-n u naaw'ur u-gaun,] more than an hour ago. [Twuz bad r-n dree u klauk,] it was past three o'clock.

BETTER-FIT [badr fút], phr. (Very com.) It would be better if.

[Bad'r fút dhai-d muyn dhur oa'n búz'nees,] it would be better if they would mind their own business. [Bad'r fút ee ad'n u-wai'nt u nee us dhu plae'us,] it would be better if he had not gone aneast the place.

BETTERMENT [bad'rmunt]. Same as BETTERNESS.

BETTERMOST [bad'rmaus, bad'rmoo'ees], adj. Almost the best-not quite.

[Dhai wuz aul bad rmaus soa urt u voaks luyk,] they were all very respectable people, but not quite the highest class.

I 'spose 'tis the [bad'rmoo ees,] bettermost way vor to wrop-m up (ie. a burst pipe); but the bestest wid be vor to cut-n out and put in a new one, nif could let out all the water.-Jan. 10, 1887.

Improvement.

BETTERNESS [bad'rnees], sb. [Lat s zee u lee'dl bad'rnees een dhúsh yuur wuurk, uuls yùe un aay shl vaal aewt,] let us see a little improvement in this work, otherwise (else) you and I shall fall out.

BETTER-WORTH [bad'r waeth]. Higher in price, worth more. (Very com.)

The sheep were rather better worth, especially breeding ewes, which were sold at from 35s. to 42s. each.-Market Report in Wellington Weekly News, Aug. 19, 1886.

BETWEEN-WHILES [tween wuyulz]. At odd times, at

leisure intervals.

[Yue kn due ut vuur ee wuul tween wuyulz,] you can do it very well at spare moments.

BETWIXT [beetwúk's], adv. Between. Usual form. Final t never sounded. To go "betwix th' oak and the rind," is a very com. phrase to express trimming, want of decided, manly, straightforwardness.

Tidn no good to reckon 'pon he; he do like to go betwix th' oak and the rind. He'll promise very fair like, but tidn in un vor to zay Ees, or No.

Ther com a kyte, while that they were wrothe,
And bar awey the boon bitwixe hem bothe.

BETWIXT-AND-BETWEEN

Chaucer, Knightes Tale, 1. 321. [beetwúks-n-beetween],

adv.

Neither one thing nor the other; half-and-half; undecided.

I likes vor vokes to zay hot they do mane; but he's like zome o' the rest o-m, all betwix-n-between, nother one way nor tother; you can't never make sure which way he'll go arterwards.