subs. phr. (Winchester College).—1. A large leathern jug for beer, holding two gallons. The term was not peculiar to Winchester; in olden times JACKS were common everywhere.
[?]. Simon the Cellarer.
| But oh, oh, oh! his nose doth show, | |
| How oft the BLACK JACK to his lips doth go. |
1630. TAYLOR (‘The Water Poet’), Workes, i. 113.
| Nor of BLACKE IACKS at gentle Buttry bars, | |
| Whose liquor oftentimes breeds houshold wars. |
c. 1696. B. E., A New Dictionary of the Canting Crew, s.v., BLACKJACK, a Leather-Jug to drink in.
2. (old).—A black leather jacket (1512).
3. (American).—Rum sweetened with molasses: with or without water.
4. (American).—A face blackened by difficulty of breathing; as the cause of such a face, hanging (BARTLETT).
1862. New York Observer, 5 June. If the rebel troops become guerillas, they will have to be hung. The BLACKJACKS will be far more fatal to them than yellow jack was to our troops.
