me into these perils. Ibid. (1602), Othello, i. 1, 26. Mere prattle without practice Is all his soldiership. Ibid. (1606) Macbeth, iv. 2, 64. Poor prattler, how thou talk'st.
d.1626. Breton, Mother's Blessing, lxxiv. A prattle-basket or an idle slut.
1636. Heywood, Love's Mistress, 26. Prince of passions, prate-apaces, and pickl'd lovers . . . admiral of ay-mes! and monsieur of mutton lac'd. Ibid. (1637), Royall King, Sig. B. You prittle and prattle nothing but leasings and untruths.
1638. Ford, Lady's Trial, i. 2. Now we prattle of handsome gentlemen.
1659. Bramhall, Church of England Defended, 46. It is plain prittle-prattle.
1673. Wycherley, Gentleman Dancing Master, ii. 2. Y'fackins but you shant ask him! if you go there too, look you, you prattle-box you I'll ask him.
1693. Congreve, Old Bachelor, iv. 9. Nay, now I'm in, I can prattle like a magpie.
1697. Vanbrugh, Provoked Wife, ii. 1. By your ladyship's leave we must have one moment's prattle together.
1720. Durfey, Pills to Purge, vi. 11. Her prittle-prattle, little tattle.
1725. Bailey, Erasmus (1900), i. 78. Don't be a Prittle prattle, nor Prate apace, nor be a minding anything but what is said to you.
1749. Smollett, Gil Blas [Routledge]; 261. These two noblemen . . . were listening with admiration to his prattle.
1757. [Paltock], Peter Wilkins, 1. ii. The old prattle-box made a short pause to recover breath.
1783. Cowper, Task, ii. 382. Frequent in park with lady at his side, Ambling and prattling scandal as he goes.
1821. Moncrieff, Tom and Jerry [Dick], 5. Jerry. Chaffing crib! I'm at fault, coz, can't follow. Tom. My prattling parlour—my head quarters, coz, where I unbend with my pals.
1836. The Thieves' Chaunt [Farmer, Musa Pedestris (1896), 121.] She's wide-awake, and her prating cheat, For humming a cove was never beat.
Prayer, subs.—Common colloquial
expressions are: To say prayers
= to stumble: of horses: cf.
Devotional habits; to say
prayers backwards = to blaspheme
(Ray); to pray with
knees upwards (Grose) = to
copulate: of women; at her
last prayers = of an old maid
(Ray); prayer-bones = the
knees.
1706. Ward, Wooden World, 42. All the Ship's Company daily pray for him, but they pray as they row, backwards.
1725. Bailey, Erasmus (1900), i. 73. Ra. Sirrah! did I not hear you mutter? Sy. I was saying my Prayers. Ra. Ay, I believe so, but it was the Lord's-Prayer backwards then.
Prayer-book, subs. phr. (gaming).—1.
A pack of cards.
2. (nautical).—A small holystone; a bible (q.v.}.—Clark Russell (1883).
1840. Dana, Before the Mast, xxiii. Smaller hand-stones, which the sailors call prayer-books, are used to scrub in among the crevices and narrow places, where the arge holystone will not go.
See Post-office prayer-book.
Prayer-book Parade, subs. phr.
(common).—A promenade in
fashionable places of resort, after
morning service on Sundays.
Prayer-powder, subs. phr.
(American).—See quot.
1825. Neal, Bro. Jonathan, ii. xiv. With a silver bullet—a leaf o' the Bible for wadding—and a charge of prayer-powder—powder, over every 365 grains of which the Lord's prayer has been said.
Pray-pray fashion, adv. phr.
(old).—Imploringly.
1753. Richardson, Grandison, ii. 183. 'Pray, sir, forgive me;' and she held up her hands pray-pray fashion thus.
