subs. (common).—1. The infernal regions. This allusion to the flames of hell, by constant use has been lessened in force, and like ‘bloody,’ few who employ such flowers of oratory have any notion of the proper signification. In most cases the word is now a meaningless intensitive, and takes rank with such expressions as LIKE ONE O’CLOCK, LIKE WINKEY, etc. Thus one says of an action that it is a BLAZING shame; that he has a BLAZING headache; that so-and-so is a BLAZING thief; that such a job is BLAZING hard work; that it is a BLAZING hot day. OLD BLAZES = The devil: see SKIPPER. GO TO BLAZES! = Go to the devil; go to hell. LIKE BLAZES = vehemently; with extreme ardour. HOW (WHO, or WHAT) THE BLAZES! = Who (or What) the Dickens. Drunk AS BLAZES (or BLAIZERS) = very drunk: see SCREWED.
1836. M. SCOTT, The Cruise of the Midge [Ry. ed. 18[?].], p. 292. Several flying fish had come on board that morning, and just as I was helping Dicky to a little water … a very large one flew right against Dennis Donovan’s check and dropped, walloping and floundering, into his plate, ‘BLAZES, what is that?’ ‘Oh, what a beautiful little fish!’ said the child.
1836. DICKENS, Pickwick Papers, LV., 479. ‘Pell,’ he used to say to me many a time, ‘HOW THE BLAZES you can stand the head-work you do, is a mystery to me.’
18[?]. DE QUINCEY, The Spanish Military Nun, sect. 24. The horse was so maddened by the wound, and the road so steep, that he went LIKE BLAZES.
1845. B. DISRAELI, Sybil, or The Two Nations, 330. Syllabubs LIKE BLAZES, and snapdragon as makes the flunkeys quite pale. Ibid., 369. ‘They pelted the police …’ ‘And cheered the red-coats LIKE BLAZES,’ said Mick. Ibid. She sets her face against gals working in mills LIKE BLAZES.
1849. Southern Literary Messenger, June. He looked, upon my word, like OLD BLAZES himself, with his clothing all on fire, and rage and despair in his face.
1851. H. MAYHEW, London Labour and the London Poor, III., 135. He jumps through a trap in the window with a bottle on it, marked ‘Old Tom,’ and a scroll falls down, written GONE TO BLAZES.
Ibid. III., 159. She liked this very much, in fact so much, that the other little ones used to cry LIKE BLAZES because I wouldn’t let them have a turn at them [the stilts].
1859. CHAS. DICKENS, Tale of Two Cities. I., 15 (in parts). A BLAZING strange answer.
1861. THACKERAY, The Adventures of Philip, I., 99. Old Parr Street is mined, sir—mined! And some morning we shall be blown into BLAZES,—into BLAZES, sir, mark my words!
1862. MRS. J. H. RIDDELL (‘F. G. Trafford’), Too Much Alone, 200. ‘Has no one been here this afternoon?’ ‘Yes one man, to ask his way to BLAZES, or some place else.’
1864. G. A. LAWRENCE, Guy Livingstone, or Thorough. They hate each other LIKE BLAZES.
1880. S. L. CLEMENS (‘Mark Twain’), Sketch (Mr. Skae’s Item). I could have told Johnny Skae that I would not receive his communication at such a late hour, and to GO TO BLAZES with it.
1882. PAYN, in ‘A Failure of Justice’, in Glow-worm Tales, 97. ‘Sir,’ cried I, authoritatively, ‘let me tell you I am a Middlesex magistrate.’ ‘Oh, yes: a likely story!’ was his audacious reply. ‘You’ve got ’Ighbury Barn written on your countenance, you have, GO TO BLAZES!’ and he slammed down the window.
1884. W. C. RUSSELL, Jack’s Courtship, xvii. ‘WHO THE BLAZES would recognise Jack Seymour in those shore-going duds?’
1891. LEHMANN, Harry Fludyer at Cambridge, 31. The cunning old rascal found me out, and barked LIKE BLAZES for joy.
1899. R. WHITEING, No. 5 John Street, xiv. Our yea was ‘Yes, mum,’ if our nay was ‘Go to blazes!’
2. (common).—Flunkey clothes: see episode of Sam Weiler and the ‘swarry.’
