subs. (common).—1. Dice: also ST. HUGH’S BONES (q.v.). Hence, TO RATTLE THE BONES = to play at dice.
c. 1386. CHAUCER, The Canterbury Tales, ‘The Pardoner’s Tale,’ 328.
| This fruyt cometh of the bicched BONES two, | |
| Forsweryngs, Ire, Falsnesse, Homycide. |
d. 1529. SKELTON, Works (ed. DYCE) I., 52. On the borde he whyrled a payre of BONES.
1608. DEKKER, The Belman of London, in Wks. (Grosart) III., 123. Who being left by his parents rich in money and possessions, hath to the musicke of square ratling BONES danced so long, that hee hath danced himselfe into the company of beggers.
1662. Rump Songs, ii., 152.
| Crispin and he were near of Kin, | |
| The gentle craft had a noble Twin, | |
| But he’d give St. Hugh’s BONES to save his skin. |
1698. DRYDEN, Persius, III., 96.
| But then my study was to cog the dice, | |
| And dexterously to throw the lucky sice: | |
| To shun ames-ace, that swept my stakes away; | |
| And watch the box, for fear they should convey | |
| False BONES, and put upon me in the play. |
1767. RAY, Proverbs, 65, s.v.
1772. FOOTE, The Nabob, Act ii. When your chance is low, as tray, ace, or two deuces, the best method is to dribble out the BONES from the box.
1849. THACKERAY, Pendennis, xviii. ‘I saw you sit down to écarté last week at Trumpington’s, and taking your turn with the BONES after Ringwood’s supper.’
1861. WHYTE-MELVILLE, Good for Nothing, xxviii. ‘What with speculations failing, and Consols dropping all at once, not to mention a continual run of ill-luck with the BONES, I saw no way out of it but to bolt.’
2. (common).—Pieces of BONES held between the fingers, and played Spanish castanet fashion, used as an accompaniment to banjo and other ‘negro’ minstrel music: In minstrel ‘shows’ one of the ‘lud’ men is called BONES.
1592. SHAKESPEARE, Midsummer Night’s Dream, iv. 1. l. 27. Tita. What, wilt thou hear some music, my sweet love? Bot. I have a reasonable good ear in music: let us have the tongs and the BONES.
1851. H. MAYHEW, London Labour and the London Poor, III., 195. Peter rolling about in his chair like a serenader playing the BONES, and the young Othello laughing as if he was being tickled. Ibid., 201. The BONES, we’ve real BONES, rib-of-beef BONES, but some have ebony BONES, which sound better than rib-BONES—they tell best, etc.
1865. Times, 17 July. Amateur negro melodists … thumped the banjo and rattled the BONES.
3. (common).—A member of a ‘negro’ minstrel troupe; generally applied to one of the ‘end’ men who plays the BONES (sense 2).
1851. H. MAYHEW, London Labour and the London Poor, III. First of all we formed a school of three—two banjos and a tambourine, and after that we added a BONES and a fiddle.
1867. BROUGHTON, Cometh up as a Flower, 236. The band clashes out; big fiddle and little fiddle, harp and BONES, off they go.
1884. The Saturday Review, June 7, 740, 1. A single row of negro minstrels, seated on chairs … while at the end are BONES and Sambo.
4. (common).—The bones of the human body, but more generally applied to the teeth: Fr. piloches (f.); and osselots (m.): cf. BONE-BOX, BONE-HOUSE and GRINDERS.
5. (common).—A surgeon; SAWBONES (q.v.).
1887. Chambers’s Journal, Jan. 8, 30. ‘I have sent for the village BONES, and if he can but patch me up, it may not yet be too late.
6. (stock exchange).—(1). The shares of Wickens, Pease and Co.; (2) North British 4% 1st Preference Shares; the 4% 2nd Preference Stock are BONETAS.
