30 THE DIALECT OF Cotf and Twys, the present name of a game played by boys ; really the designation of two kinds of buttons. The cot was a button off the waistcoat or trousers; the twy one off the coat, and, as its name implies, was equal to two ccfts. Formerly, when cash was mudi more rare than now it is amongst boys, these formed their current coin, with which they dealt in birds' eggs and other such matters as are interesting to youths ; and in these consisted their wealth. The game about 1820 seems to haye been chiefly one of tossing, and was played with buttons, then common enough. Now, metal buttons bein§ rare, it is played with pieces of brass or copper of any shape, and IS a game of skill, in which the element of chance iB almost entirely absent Each player first selects a ccut, or stone to pitch with ; on another stone called the Jiob the cots and twya are placed ; at some distance icopa are set in the ground. First of all they pitch &om the hob to the scop, and the one who gets nearest goes nrst. He then pitches at the hob, and if he knocks off the stakes he has them^ proyided his cast is nearer to them than the hob is ; in failure of this, the other player tries. In pitching up, one cast may rest on another, and if the boy whose stone is under- neath can lift it up to knock the other cast away, it has to remain at the place to which it has been struck ; if he does not succeed in doing this, the second player may lift off his cast, and place it by the side of the first Whoeyer knocks off the stakes, they go to the boy whose cast is nearest to them. The hob and scop are usually three yards apart. The expression, ' I hayen't a co< ' is sometimes used to signify that a person is without money. Cotteril, a small iron pin for &stening a bolt. Halliwell says ^a small round iron plate in the nut of a wheel.' The word 'cots' of
- cots and twys ' bemg originally buttons, i. e. circular pieces of metal,
must eyidently be connected with this word. Conk (pronounced as spelt, with ou bsid. out), a cinder. Conl (by some pronounced as spelt, t. e, the ou like ow in cow ; by others as though cocU, or cole)^ to scrape up the dirt off roads, &c. Conler. The true pronunciation of coul will of course affect this word also. It is tiie name of the instrument used in scraping the roads. Conlrake. This word is yariously pronounced cou'rake, coterake^ and co'raJce. It is an instrument similar to the aboye, and used chiefly for drawing coals upon the fire; many think it deriyes ite name from this circumstance, but that could hardly be, because then its name would probably haye been coilrake, to follow the pronuncia- tion of the word coil (i. e. coal). On the other hand, Hunter, in his Hallamshire OhMary^ calls the word cowrake^ and thinks it must be formed from couk and roke. Both I conceiye to be errors, for there can be no doubt that the first syllable of the word is oouZ, to scrape up. Counsel (pronounced caatwet), to gain the affections of. Counsel, sb, likeness. ' He's the very counsel of him,' i, e. verj much like him.
