subs. (common).—A shoemaker. [From Saints Crispin and Crispianus, the patrons of the ‘gentle craft,’ i.e., shoemaking.]
1785. GROSE, A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, s.v.
1861. Punch, vol. XLI., p. 246. CRISPIN, everybody knows to be a name for a shoemaker.
ST. CRISPIN’S LANCE, subs. phr. (old).—An awl. [From CRISPIN (q.v.) + LANCE, a weapon.] Fr., une lance.
