To sing. To publish an account in the newspapers. The kiddey was chaunted for a toby; his examination concerning a highway robbery was published in the papers.
Definition taken from The 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, originally by Francis Grose.
Chaunt * Chaw BaconNathan Bailey's 1736 Dictionary of canting and thieving slang
John S. Farmer's collection of canting songs and slang rhymes