/ · John S. Farmer’s Canting Songs and Slang Rhymes
The True Bottom’d Boxer
The True Bottom’d Boxer
1825
By J. JONES in Universal Songster, ii. 961. Air: “Oh! nothing in life can sadden us.”.
I
Spring’s the boy for a Moulsey-Hurst rig, my lads,
Shaking a flipper, and milling a pate;
Fibbing a nob is most excellent gig, my lads,
Kneading the dough is a turn-out in state.
Tapping the claret to him is delighting,
Belly-go-firsters and clicks of the gob;
For where are such joys to be found as in fighting,
And measuring mugs for a chancery job:
With flipping and milling, and fobbing and nobbing,
With belly-go-firsters and kneading the dough,
With tapping of claret, and clipping and gobbing,
Say just what you please, you must own he’s the go.
II
Spring’s the boy for flooring and flushing it,
Hitting and stopping, advance and retreat,
For taking and giving, for sparring and rushing it,
And will ne’er say enough, till he’s down right dead beat;
No crossing for him, true courage and bottom all,
You’ll find him a rum un, try on if you can;
You shy-cocks, he shows ’em no favour, ’od rot ’em all,
When he fights he trys to accomplish his man;
With giving and taking, and flooring and flushing,
With hitting and stopping, huzza to the ring,
With chancery suiting, and sparring and rushing,
He’s the champion of fame, and of manhood the spring.
III
Spring’s the boy for rum going and coming it,
Smashing and dashing, and tipping it prime,
Eastward and westward, and sometimes back-slumming it,
He’s for the scratch, and come up too in time;
For the victualling-office no favor he’ll ask it,
For smeller and ogles he feels just the same;
At the pipkin to point, or upset the bread-basket,
He’s always in twig, and bang-up for the game;
With going and tipping, and priming and timing
’Till groggy and queery, straight-forwards the rig;
With ogles and smellers, no piping and chiming,
You’ll own he’s the boy that is always in twig.
Notes
The Universal Songster, or Museum of Mirth; forming the most
complete collection of ancient and modern songs in the English
language, with a classified Index... Embellished with a Frontispiece
and wood cuts, designed by George Cruikshank etc. 3vols. London, 1825-
26. 8vo.
Stanza I, line 1. Moulsey-Hurst rig = a prize-fight:
Moulsey-Hurst, near Hampton Court, was long a favorite venue for
pugilistic encounters. Line 3. Fibbing a nob is most excellent
gig = getting in a quick succession of blows on the head is good
fun. Line 4. Kneading the dough = a good pummelling. Line 6.
Belly-go-firsters = an initial blow, generally given in the
stomach. Line 8. Measuring mugs for a chancery job = getting
the head under the arm or ‘in chancery’.
Stanza II, line 1. Flooring = downing (a man). Flushing
= delivering a blow right on the mark, and straight from the shoulder.
Line 5. Crossing = unfair fighting; shirking.
Stanza III, line 5. Victualling-office = the stomach. Line 6.
Smeller and ogles = nose and eyes.
Line 7. Bread-basket = stomach. Line 8. In twig = in form; ready.
Taken from
Musa Pedestris,
Three Centuries of Canting Songs and Slang Rhymes
[1536―1896], collected and annotated by John S. Farmer.
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