To feague requires an eel and a horse

Mark Forsyth’s book, The Horologicon, is a fascinating examination and collection of English words laid out with regard to the relevance of the hour of day.  The richness and eccentricity of the English Language is well illustrated and I can recommend it as a delightful read.

To Feague is to insert a live eel into a horse’s rectum.  The idea is to cause the horse to lift its tail in a pretty way.  What an extraordinary thing to do and how extraordinary for it to have its own verb!

I have learnt that ,bumf, is short for bumfodder a term for toilet paper used in 1653 and, snollygoster, is a good name for all too many politicians as defined in 1890 by an American Journalist.

Needless to say I have had to train the spellchecker but at least there is that facility.