Pudding tame

[James A. Landau]

In a message dated 10/4/01 5:09:37 AM Eastern Daylight Time,
slang at BLUEYONDER.CO.UK writes:

> The EDD has _pudding time_: dinner time; fig. the nick of time.
>  Pudding, in this context (agricultural). being the _first_ course rather
>  than the last.

This answers a question that has been puzzling me for years.  The English
satirical song "Vicar of Bray" fifth stanza runs as follows:

49   When George in pudding time came o'er,
50       And moderate men looked big, sir,
51   My principles I chang'd once more,
52       And so became a Whig, sir:
53   And thus preferment I procur'd,
54       From our faith's great defender,
55   And almost every day abjur'd
56       The Pope, and the Pretender.
57         And this is law, I will maintain
58         Unto my dying day, sir,
59         That whatsoer king shall reign,
60         I will be Vicar of Bray, sir!

The "pudding time" in line 49 always puzzled me.

The Web page from which I copied the above text, URL

   http://www.library.utoronto.ca/utel/rp/poems/anon18th1b.html

has the following footnote on line 49

    pudding time. To "come in pudding time" is to come at the right motion.

That last word has to be a typo for "moment"

            - Jim Landau (at last unpuzzled)

P.S. There is an operetta entitled "Vicar of Bray", based on the song.  The
play was written by one Sydney Grundy with music by one Edward Solomon.
Isnt' there a Mother Goose rhyme that begins "This is the life of Solomon
Grundy"?