To ribroast. To beat: I’ll ribroast
him to his heart’s
content.
Rich face, or nose. A red pimpled, face.
RICHAUD Snary. A dictionary. A country
lad, having
been reproved for calling persons by their
christian names,
being sent by his master to borrow a dictionary,
thought
to shew his breeding by asking for a Richard
Snary.
Rider. A person who receives part of the
salary of a place
or appointment from the ostensible occupier,
by virtue
of an agreement with the donor, or great
man appointing.
The rider is said to be quartered upon
the possessor, who
often has one or more persons thus riding
behind him. See
quartered.
Ridge. A guinea. Ridge cully; a goldsmith. Cant.
Riding st. George. The woman uppermost
in the amorous
congress, that is, the dragon upon St.
George. This
is said to be the way to get a bishop.
Riding skimmington. A ludicrous cavalcade,
in ridicule
of a man beaten by his wife. It consists
of a man riding
behind a woman, with his face to the horse’s
tail, holding
a distaff in his hand, at which he seems
to work, the woman
all the while beating him with a ladle;
a smock displayed
on a staff is carried before them as an
emblematical standard,
denoting female superiority: they
are accompanied
by what is called the rough music,
that is, frying-pans, bulls
horns, marrow-bones and cleavers, &c.
A procession of
this kind is admirably described by Butler
in his Hudibras.
He rode private, i.e. was a private
trooper.
Riff raff. Low vulgar persons, mob, tag-rag and bob-tail.
Rig. Fun, game, diversion, or trick.
To run one’s rig
upon any particular person; to make him
a butt. l am
up to your rig; I am a match for your
tricks.
Rigging. Clothing. I’ll unrig
the bloss; I’ll strip the
wench. Rum Rigging; fine clothes.
The cull has rum
rigging, let’s ding him and mill
him, and pike; the
fellow has good clothes, let’s knock
him down, rob him,
and scour off, i.e. run away.
Right. All right! A favourite expression
among thieves,
to signify that all is as they wish, or
proper for their
purpose. All right, hand down the
jemmy; every thing is
in proper order, give me the crow.
Rigmarole. Roundabout, nonsensical.
He told a long
rigmarole story.
Ring. Money procured by begging: beggars
so called it
from its ringing when thrown to them.
Also a circle formed
for boxers, wrestlers, and cudgel-players,
by a man
styled Vinegar; who, with his hat before
his eyes, goes
round the circle, striking at random with
his whip to
prevent the populace from crowding in.


