King Over the Water (The)

The Young Pretender, or Chevalier Charles Edward.

“My father so far compromised his loyalty as to announce merely ‘The king,ʹ as his first toast after dinner, instead of the emphatic ‘King George.ʹ … Our guest made a motion with his glass, so as to pass it over the water-decanter which stood beside him, and added, ‘Over the water.ʹ”—Sir W. Scott: Redgauntlet, letter v.

· ·

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Entry taken from Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, edited by the Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D. and revised in 1895.