Charlie

[Jesse Sheidlower]

On Fri, May 27, 2005 at 09:52:56AM +0100, Jonathon Green wrote:
> George Thompson wrote:
>
> >---------------------- Information from the mail header
> >-----------------------
> >Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >Poster:       George Thompson <george.thompson at NYU.EDU>
> >Subject:      Charlie
> >-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> >Here is an antedating for U. S. use, and also, it seems, the first wild-
> >caught passage in which the word is used, the OED's two earlier cites
> >(from England) were taken from dictionaries.
> >
> >
> 1821 Egan Life in London (1859) 269: Tom had the CHARLEY in his box down
> in an instant
>
> How the OED missed this - with several other potential 'Charley' cites
> it comes in a three page (plus Cruikshank illustration) episode in
> which 'our heroes' 'mill a charley', apparently a popular sport for
> contemporary young bloods - I cannot say.

Nor can I for sure, but my assumption would be that with a glossarial 1819
in hand, the editors wouldn't have bothered with this 1821 example, even
if it is in running text.

JTS