WORM, a serpent of great magnitude, and of terrific description -a hideous monster in the shape of a worm or dragon.. The application of this title to the serpent tribe is very general, and has been used with great latitude. Indeed, the similarity of form naturally led to it. The Italian poets call the infernal serpent of old "Il gran Verme ;" and Milton's Adam is made to reproach Eve with having lent an ear "to that false worm." Shakspeare, too, speaks of slander's tongue as outvenoming "all the worms of Nile." Worm is a Teutonic word for serpent; and Germ. würm, is used for a dragon, as well as a worm. Mo.-Got. waurm, signifies a serpent; and orm has the same meaning in the Su.-Got. and Dan. languages. Sax. wurm, also, sometimes occurs in this sense. Popular tradition has handed down to us, through successive generations, with very little variation, the most romantic details of the ravages committed by these all-devouring worms, and of the valour and chivalry displayed by their destroyers. Without attempting to account for the origin of such tales, or pretending in any manner to vouch for the matters of fact contained in them, it cannot be disguised, that many of the inhabitants of the county of Durham in particular, still implicitly believe in these ancient superstitions. The Worm of Lambton is a family legend, the authenticity of which they will not allow to be questioned. Various adventures and supernatural incidents have been transmitted from father to son, illustrating the devastation occasioned, and the miseries inflicted by the monster-and marking the self-devotion of the Knight of the Lambton family, through whose intrepidity the worm was eventually destroyed. But the lapse of centuries has so completely enveloped in obscurity the particular details, that it is impossible to give a narration which could in any degree be considered as complete. The story related in my friend Mr. Surtees' splendid and elaborate History of Durham is incorrect in many particulars. Those parts, which allude to the profane fishing on a Sunday, and the consequences resulting from it, are mere modern disfigurements of the original tradition, Χ Χ utterly at variance with the state of the times-amusements on the Sabbath, in those days, when Catholicism prevailed, not being regarded as an act of profaneness. A conical hill is shown on the banks of the Wear, about two miles from Lambton Castle, which from time immemorial has been called the Worm Hill, and round which this great serpent is said to have coiled itself.-Another old, and well-authenticated Durham legend, is the Dragon, Worm, or Flying Serpent of Sockburn; described as a monster that devoured men, women, and children, and which was vanquished and slain by Sir John Conyers; in memory whereof his sovereign gave him the manor of Sockburn, to hold by the tenure of presenting to every Bishop, on his first entrance into the county after his election to the see, the falchion with which this gallant and successful adventure was achieved-a ceremony still continued, honoris causa. WORMIT, Worm-wood. The common people consider this herb a prophylactic against fleas, and accordingly place it about their beds. WORRY, to eat voraciously, to choak, to suffocate. V. Ray. is also applied to weak tea, or any other worthless liquor. WowL, to cry, to howl. Shakspeare uses wawl. WRANG, wrong. Pure Saxon.-WRANGSLY, falsely. WRAT, or RAT, a wart on the finger or face. Dut. and Sc. wrat. WRECK, sea-weed; much used for manuring land. WRECKLING, an unhealthy feeble child-the youngest or weakest of the breed among animals-the smallest bird in the nestany ill-grown creature. See Dowry. WRIDDEN, or WREEDEN, cross, ill-natured, perverse-writhen ; applied in particular to children. WROUT, to bore, to dig up like a hog, to root. Sax. wrotan, subigere. Chaucer has wrote. WUD, with.-Cumb. "God be wud her."—God rest her soul. WUDDLE, to sever by short and frequently-renewed efforts. For authority see WEASAN. WYE, WYA, well, yes.-WYE-WYE, very well; yes, yes. A common expression of assent. Fr. pui. WYLECOAT, a vest for a child; generally of flannel. V. Jamieson, wylecot. WYLLEMENT, or WULLEMENT, a pale, sickly looking person. Y.. Y. The use of this letter, as a vowel, is very frequent in the diphthongal language of the North; as yaits, oats; yak, oak; yearth, earth, &c. &c. In the country dialect the Saxon ea is almost uniformly pronounced ya. YABLES, YEBLINS, YEABLESAE, YEBBLESEE, perhaps. See AB LINS. YAITING, OF YEATING, a single sheaf of corn. Identical with GATING, or GAITING. See GATE, or GAIT. YAL, YALL, ale. A, in this, and many other provincial words, is sounded like yaw. YAMMER, to fret, to whine, to complain—or rather to repeat the same complaint. Also to cry like a dog in pain, or when it is wanting to follow its master if shut up from him. Germ. jammern, to complain. Swed. jåmra sig, to lament—jåmmer, lamentation. YAMMERING, making a loud and continual noise; such as proceeds from contentious women, or from fretful and peevish children. The word, indeed, stands for a very complex idea, into which enters a combination of habitual fretfulness, discontent, brawling, and anger. Come, dinna, dinna whinge an' whipe, Like yammering Isbel Macky. Song, Bob Cranky's Adieu. YAN, YEN, one.-YANCE, YENCE, once.-YANSELL, YENSELL, one's self. YAP, apt, quick. Sax. gep, astutus. In Peirs Ploughman I find yep, which Dr. Whitaker considers of the same origin, and explains in the sense of alert and vigorous. YAP, YEP, an opprobrious epithet to a youngster-an ape. YARK, or YERK, to wrench or twist forcibly-to jerk. YARK, to beat soundly, to correct severely. Isl. hreckia, pulsare. A favourite word among the vulgar. YARNUT, an earth-nut. See Arnut, Awnut. YATE, YAT, YET, a gate. Both Chaucer and Spenser use yate. "As old as Pandon-yate," is a local proverb of great antiquity; but Pandon Gate-the oldest of all the fine antique towers that once adorned those venerable walls, which, in the days of Leland, who visited them three hundred years ago, for 66 strength and magnificens far passeth al the cities of England, and most of the townes of Europe"-to the regret of every man of taste, was totally demolished in 1795; since which, a spirit of modern, and, it is feared, mercenary innovation, has attacked with unrelenting gripe, many other interesting memorials of our former state. The antiquary, who remembers, with kindred emotion, these ages that are gone by, has the yearly mortification of seeing one vestige after another give way to the most clumsy and tasteless substitute. Diversi tempi, diversi costumi. YATE-STOOP, YAT-STOOP, YET-STOOP, a gate post. YAUD, or YAWD, a common name among country people for a horse-a jade. A druidical temple, in Cumberland, goes by the name of the "Grey Yauds," probably from the colour of the stones. YAUP, to cry loudly and incessantly, to lament. Teut. galpen, gannire instar vulpis. Kilian.-YAUPING, crying, shouting. YAUP, v. to be hungry.-YAUP, a. having a keen appetite-hun gry. YEATHER, or YEDDER, a flexible twig used for binding hedges. YEBBLE, the Northern pronunciation of able. YEK, the oak. See AAC. "He's as hard as yek and iron”—a common Northumbrianism. YELD, barren; as a cow that does not give milk. YELL, ale. Sax. eale.-YELL-HOUSE, an ale-house.-YELL-WIFE, the lady of "mine host,"-also a hostess in her own right. See YAL, YALL. YELLOW-YOWLEY, a Northern name for the yellow bunting, or yellow hammer. Emberiza citrinella. Linnæus. A vulgar prejudice exists in Scotland against this bird. V. Jam. yeldring. YELP, to shout, to cry out; as it were like a dog. See YAUP. YELPER, a popular name for the avoset, which frequents the sea shores of this kingdom in winter, and makes a shrill noise. YERNING, rennet. Germ. gerinnen, to coagulate. A plant used in North Tindale, for the purpose of curdling milk for cheese, is called yerning grass. See KESLIP. YETLING, a small pan or boiler. So called, I suppose, from being made of cast metal. V. Jamieson, yetland. YEUK, v. to itch. Teut. jeucken, prurire. Dut. jeuken.—YEUK, s. a cutaneous disease-jocosely denominated the plague of Scotland; from an idea of its being so prevalent in that country. See SCOTCH-FIDDLE. YEUKY, prurient; especially in a sense inadmissible here. Yekin, pruritus, occurs in Prompt. Parv. YISSERDAY, yesterday.-YISSERNEET, yesternight. YOR, your.-YOR-SELL, yourself. YORK has the higher rack, but DURHAM the deeper manger, a homely Northern proverb, which the sagacious reader will have no difficulty in applying. YOUL, YOWL, to cry, to howl. Isl. gola, ululare. The superstitious are much afraid when they hear a dog youl near their |