Chapter Homilies to Honour of H by Brewer's Readers Handbook

Homilies to Honour

Homilies (The Book of), under the direction of archbishop Cranmer (1547).

Hominy (Mrs.), philosopher and authoress, wife of major Hominy, and “mother of the modern Gracchi,” as she called her daughter, who lived at New Thermopylæ, three days this side of “Eden,” in America. Mrs. Hominy was considered by her countrymen a “very choice spirit.”—Dickens: Martin Chuzzlewit (1844).

Homo, man. Said to be a corruption of OMO; the two O’s represent the two eyes, and the M the rest of the human face. Dantê says the gaunt face of a starved man resembles the letter “M.”

Who reads the name
For man upon his forehead, there the M
Had traced most plainly.
   —Dante: Purgatory, xxiii. (1308).

N.B.—The two downstrokes represent the contour, and the V of the letter represents the nose. Hence the human face is

Honeim’s Shoes. I have brought nothing back but Honeim’s shoes. A Chinese proverb, meaning, “Mine has been a bootless errand.” The tale is that an Arab went to one Honeim to buy a pair of shoes; but, after the usual haggling, he said they were too dear, and left the stall. Honeim knew the road the man would take, and, running on in advance, dropped one of the shoes on purpose. Presently up came the man, sees the shoe in the road, and says, “How marvellously like is this to Honeim’s shoes! If now I could find the fellow, I would pick up this.” So he looked all about, but without success, and passed on. In the mean time Honeim had run half a league further, and dropped the other shoe, and when the Arab came to the spot and saw it, he regretted that he had not picked up the first shoe; but, tying his camel to a tree, he ran back to fetch it. On returning to the place again, he found his camel had been stolen, and when he arrived at home and was asked what he had brought back, he replied, “Nothing but Honeim’s shoes.”

Moses Primrose and the green spectacles may be compared with the Arab and Honeim’s shoes.

Honest George. General George Monk, duke of Albemarle, was so called by the Cromwellites (1608–1670).

Honest Man. Diogenês, being asked one day what he was searching for so diligently that he needed the light of a lantern in broad day, replied, “An honest man.”

Searched with lantern-light to find an honest man.
   —Southey: Roderick, etc., xxi. (1814).

Still will he hold his lantern up to scan
The face of monarchs for an honest man.
   —Byron: Age of Bronze x. (1821)

Honest Thieves (The).The “thieves” are Ruth and Arabella, two heiresses, brought up by justice Day, trustee of the estates of Ruth and guardian of Arabella. The two girls wish to marry colonel Careless and captain Manly, but do not know how to get possession of their-property, which is in the hands of justice Day. It so happens that Day goes to pay a visit, and the two girls, finding the key of his strong box, help themselves to the deeds, etc., to which they are respectively entitled. Mrs. Day, on her return, accuses them of robbery; but Manly says, “Madam, they have taken nothing but what is their own. They are honest thieves, I assure you.”—T. Knight (a farce).

(This is a mere rifacimento of The Committee. (1670), by the Hon. sir R. Howard. Most of the names are identical, but “captain Manly” is substituted for colonel Blunt.)

Honesty. Timour used to boast that during his reign a child might carry a purse of gold from furthest east to furthest west of his vast empire without fear of being robbed or molested.—Gibbon: Decline and Fall, etc. (1776–88).

A similar státe of things existed in Ireland, brought about by the administration of king Brien. A young lady of great beauty, adorned with jewels, undertook a journey alone from one end of the kingdom to the