adj. (old).—See quots. [as applied to total abstinence, now recognised.]
1827. [REV. JOEL JEWELL, Letter to Century Dictionary]. In 1818 a temperance society at Hector, New York, pledged themselves to abstain from distilled spirits only, but in Jan. 1827 another pledge bound all syners to total abstinence. The two classes were distinguished by the initials O.P. (Old Pledge) and T. (Total): T = total became a familiar allocution.
1829. SPENCE, Tour in Ireland [EDWARDS, Words, Facts and Phrases, 561. He speaks of the word] ‘TEETOTALLY’ … in every-day use by the working classes.
1830–5. [W. S. WALSH, Handy-book of Literary Curiosities, 1049]. It is said that Richard Turner, an English temperance orator, who had an impediment in his speech, would invariably speak of T-T-TOTAL abstinence.
1843. B. R. HALL (‘Robert Carlton’) The New Purchase, II. 245. Stranjur—I’m powerful sorry—but we’re TEETOTALLY out—he tuk every bit of food with him.
1843–4. HALIBURTON (‘Sam Slick’), The Attaché, xii. The meetin’ houses ‘our side of the water’ … how TEETOTALLY different they be!
1839. DE QUINCEY, The Casuistry of Roman Meals. Dinner was an ugly little parenthesis between two still uglier clauses of a TEETOTALLY ugly sentence.
1841. E. G. PAIGE (‘Dow, Jr.’), Short Patent Sermons, xlii. I wouldn’t have you think that I am TEE-TOTALLY opposed to dancing in every shape—for the very plain reason that I used to heel and toe it a trifle.
1861. THACKERAY, A Mississippi Bubble [in Cornhill Magazine, iv. 758]. This giant had quite a small appetite … and was also a TEA-TOTALLER.
1882. SMYTHE PALMER, Folk-Etymology, 385. TEA-TOTALERS, an occasional misprint of TEE-TOTALERS, as if it meant those who were TOTALLY FOR TEA. It is more likely to be an intensive reduplication … as in tip-top for first-rate. Ibid., 655. It may be noted that TEE-TOTAL is the reduplication of a reduplication.
