Enjoying the elevated spirits of moderately advanced inebriation. “Tight” in the usual slang sense. Cf. tight in the Harlemese sense.
Affectionate diminutive for hindquarters. “It’s your hiney” means “It will cost you your hiney,” i.e., “You are undone.”
Kindling admiration. As overdone among jigs as is “marvelous” among fays.
Pronounced hot-choo. Equivalent to Oh no, now! q.v.
Why?
See boogy.
“You said it.” Ex “Some sheba, huh?”—“I mean.”
See boogy.
See boogy.
See boogy.
-
The modern American musical idiom, of course.
-
Sometimes synonymous with jive, q.v.
See boogy.
-
Pursuit in love or any device thereof. Usually flattery with intent to win.
-
Capture.
In either sense this word implies passing fancy, hence, deceit.
One who jives.
“Doggone.”
See boogy.
Extreme sarcasm for dickty, q.v.
Kitchen mechanic, i.e., cook, girl, scullion, menial.
Lost. State in which it’s one’s hiney.
Exclamation of wonder.
Potential or actual sweetheart.
Jocose designation of death. Derived from Bert Williams’ story: “Wait Till Martin Comes.”
Fail. A question is characteristically answered by use of “miss” or some equivalent expression. Ex. “Did you win money?”—“I didn’t miss” or “Nothing different.” “Do you mean me?”—“I don’t mean your brother” and so on.
Dude.
“Cake-eater.”
See boogy.
Nonspecific designation of “swell” whites. Ex. “Boy, bootlegging pays. That boogy’s got a straight-eight just like Mr. Charlie’s.” “Yea, and his mamma’s got a fur coat just like Miss Anne’s, too.”
See bring mud.
You said it. I mean.
Exclamation of admiration.
Dumbbell.
Beyond mortal experience or belief.
I.e., play that game, hence, to countenance or tolerate.
Be distinguished, excel.
Premature, hence, presumptuous. He who tries to break into a ticket-line is likely to be warned, “Don’t get too previous, brother.”
To report one to some enemy or authority in order to have one punished.
To handcuff. Hence to render helpless. Most frequently heard in reference to some form of gambling, such as card games and love affairs.
To injure one deliberately.
See boogy.
Somewhat hotter than hot. Extremely striking.
Somewhat in excess of perfection.
Nevertheless.
Antithesis of dickty.
Stronger than dog.
See boogy.
Give one aid. “See me go for breakfast?” means “Pay for my breakfast?” It is the answerer’s privilege to interpret the query literally, thus: “See you go—to hell.”
Striking “Keen.” A beautifully dressed woman is “sharp out this world.”
Queen. Frail. Broad.
-
Ball. Prom.
-
A slow one-step in which all the company gets happy.
-
To kid.
-
To slip in the dozens, to disparage one’s family.
See boogy.
“Give the once over.” Observe critically.
Verb—To calm, to quell anger. What sweet mamma does to cruel papa when he gets tight, q.v.
Adj.—1. Cunning, “slick,” as a smoothe jiver. 2. —Faultless, as a smoothe brown.
See do one’s stuff.
Exclamation of agreement and approval.
Designation of abstract authority. He who trespasses where a sign forbids is asked: “Say, biggy, can’t you read the man’s sign?”
This signifies complete agreement with a previous assertion. It is equivalent to saying, “That is beyond question.”
Tough. Redoubtable. Hard. Not “drunk” in the usual sense, for which the Harlemese is high.
To be bested.
To bear actual or pretended malice against.
-
Marvelous.
-
Extremely unfortunate.
Right. Unquestionable. Full remark is “You are doggone tootin’.”
To reduce the temperature of one who is hot, q.v. Hence, to choke.
Yes.
No.
High-hat.
How do you do?
No complaint.
See boogy.
Colophon
The Walls of Jericho
was published in by
Rudolph Fisher.
This ebook was produced for
Standard Ebooks
by
Weijia Cheng,
and is based on a transcription produced in by
Neal Caren
for
Crisis & Opportunity Books
and on digital scans from the
HathiTrust Digital Library.
The cover page is adapted from
The Walls of Jericho,
a painting completed in by
Aaron Douglas.
The cover and title pages feature the
League Spartan and Sorts Mill Goudy
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May you do good and not evil.
May you find forgiveness for yourself and forgive others.
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