Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1872-05-31

strokes tOlu - or counted at the emu OF
a knell were according TO the theory now
under consideration called, from their
office "tellers. " This term was cor
rupted into tailors," on account of the !
sounds coming at the tail or end OF the !
knell Nine of these being given to anA
nounce The death OF an adult male, Il be |
ing Ineligible that nine tellers or tailors, |
denote or make a man, an adult male
from which we may slide easily into |
mime tailors make man." This writer
Is certainly correct on one point-telling
having the same meaning as counting
reckoning the number of strokes, When
Richard III. was In his tent at Bosworth
Field, and the clock strikes, he said, "Tell
the clock there;" that is, "count the
hours"
And now, which theory will the reader
accept-the making of man by befriend
ing him in the time of need, or number
ing the strokes on bell TO denote the
death of man, as distiDg guished from
woman OF a childg In either case, Mine
tailors make a man" may be accepted
without any discredit to the useful class
Of handicraftsmen. j
There Is, however, another set of old
jokes, which come heavily on the frater-
nifty in regard to honesty. In bygone
houses Of his customers, and make gar
ments of cloth which they had purchased
TIE list and small cuttings were acknowl-
edged to be his perquisites but he was
constantly accused of apprOpriating other
portions of the cloth. Sometimes the
tailor worked in his own shop, but still
upon materials which had been furnished
to him; and like unfavorable accusation
was often hurled at him. The Jokes seem
to point to period when the tailor was
usually a workman plying the needle for
customer; the master or employer, If
there were one, being draper, and often
so called In Flanders, there is a saying
which separates debt to tailor from
all others, as an honorable debt" one
that need not he paid in a hurry, as the
creditor has already found some means or
other to pay himself, partially if not
wholly. Messenger says, in one of his
plays
Were one of ye, knights Of the needle,
Paid by the ninth part OF his customers,
Once in nine years, the ninth pert OF his bill,
He would be nine times over paid -
an almost appalling example of the re-
suits of repeatedly dividing by nine. A
cruel old saying issss'Put tailor, weaver
and miller into sack, and the first that
puts his head out is thief" The tailor's
cabbage has not escaped the wits, The
word seems to have originated in the
wrongful appropriation of cloth, above
adverted to. But, then, why ''cabbage?"
What does the word mean? Some think
it may have come from "eabotage," q
kind of smuggling; one traces it to cab
lesh, a name in some countries for wind
| falls, fruit that comes to you by luck and
not by choice. Phillips, in his "History
of Cultivated Vegetables" tells us that
| among the brassica tribe, comprising the
cabbage, cole, caulifiower, broccoli, etc,
cabbage is really the proper name for
the firm head or ball that is formed by
the leaves turning close over one another;
insomuch that ''the cole has cabbaged
has a definite meaning in connection with
the growth of the vegetable. He adds:
From thence arose the cant word ap-
| piled to tailors, who formerly worked at
| the houses of their customers, where they
were often accused of cabbaging; that
is, rolling up good cloth with the waste
or perQuisites."
The stories about tailors are numerous,
comical, and in many cases evidently
made up for the purpose. After the
battle of Waterloo, when the treaty of
| peace reopened communication between
! England and France, two master tailors
| from the West End went over to Paris
to pick up the fashions. They went to
good hotel and ordered breakfast
" CeItdiHeHent, messieurs, tout [heure, "
said the obliging garcon. Upon which,
| looking at each other, one of them ex-
! claimed: 1.-TWO tailorsl Are we discOv-
cred already?" The late Daniel O'Con-
nell, addressing a large meeting once in a
public building, was interrupted by a
! poica opnppcr tbn an6itOra VUhn nrOtpqtp6
against the conduct of a man who obsti-
nately persisted In standing up and inter
rupting the view of those who were sit
ting. Pray, let the worthy gentleman
have his way" said O'Connell "he's a
tailor, and wants to rest himself" This
sally at once brought down the obnoxious
individual to his seat-tailor or not
Desbois, in his "Recueil de Bons Mots,
tells story of tailor who grew rich,
lived in style, wished the world to forget
what he had been, and had favor
ite and comfortable seat at church. A lady,
on one occasion, asked if he could kindly
make room for her. He discourteously
refused, whereupon she remarked; 81
forgot, you have been accustomed to take
up good deal of room in sitting" In {
Paisley church-yard there is a tombstone
with the inscription, George Mattley
Taylzeour, 1704;" beneath the name is {
pair of tailors' shears, and between thu
blades of the shears is tailors' goose
A ''tailors' mense," ration, or allowance
is, according to an old saying, a small por
ton of meal left for good manners
only one ninth part of the quantity re
quired for a man.
One thing is quite certain, that thi
custom of poking fun at particular trad
| il frOinu Innah ont Of nen The tome n
society tells against it;4he organization
among the average and better members o
the craft is quite as rational and well
planned as among other bodies of work
ingmen. Nor must we forget that ther
have been learned tailOrs as well as learne'
shoemakers. There was John Speed, TIN
Cheshire historian and antiquarian
There was John Stow, the excellen
topographer of London, concerning
whom we read that "Grindall, Bishop o
London, wrote letter to the Privy COun
Gil, announcing that a search had bee
made for papistical books by his chaplain
at the house of John Stow, the tailor;
but it does not appear that the search il
anywise compromised Stow, for the book
in his house mostly related to the topog
raphy, buildings, manners and customs Q
old times. There was Sir John Hawk
> wood, VINO had Deen TAILOR, ana Wh
was knighted by one of our early mon
archs for his gallantry; Hardwood, il
the quaint language of old Fuller, "turne
his needle into sword, and his thimbl
into shield F" There was Benjamin Rot
ms, the tailor of Bath, and afterward
compiler of the narrative of Lord Anson'
voyage. There was Robert Hill, the tailo
of Buckingham, who, amid the struggle
incident to the support of large family
} taught himself Hebrew, and left manu-
I script commentary on the margins Of
t Latin Bible. There was Henry Wild, tn
/ learned tailor Of Norwich, who mos
cre6itably maintained position in tn
| very center OF learning, He worked seN
i eral years as an apprentice, and seven a
] a journeyman, at the tailoring trade; fe
, i'll; relieved the monotony of the sicl
i room by reading works on controversies
: divinity; studied Hebrew and was ser
! by Dean Prideaux TO Oxford. He wa
n A.