Chapter Cap to Capite Censi of C by Brewer's Phrase & Fable

Cap-money Money collected in a cap or hat; hence an improvised collection.

Cap-a-pie The general etymology is the French cap à pied, but the French phrase is de pied en cap.

“Armed at all points exactly cap-a-pie.”
Shakespeare: Hamlet, i. 2.

“I am courtier, cap-a-pe.”
Shakespeare: Winter's Tale, iv. 3.

    We are told that cap à pie is Old French, but it would be desirable to give a quotation from some old French author to verify this assertion. I have hunted in vain for the purpose. Again, is pie Old French for pied? This is not a usual change. The usual change would be pied into pie. The Latin might be De capi te ad pedem.

Capfull of Wind Olaus Magnus tells us that Eric, King of Sweden, was so familiar with evil spirits that what way soever he turned his cap the wind would blow, and for this he was called Windy Cap. The Laplanders drove a profitable trade in selling winds; but, even so late as 1814, Bessie Millie, of Pomona (Orkney Islands), helped out her living by selling favourable winds to mariners for the small sum of sixpence. (See Mont St. Michel .)

Cape Spirit of the Cape. (See page 14, col. 1, Adamastor .)

Cape of Storms (See Storms .)

Capel Court A speculation in stocks of such magnitude as to affect the money market. Capel Court is the name of the place in London where transactions in stocks are carried on.

Caper The weather is so foul, not even a caper would venture out. A Manx proverb. A caper is a fisherman of Cape Clear in Ireland, who will venture out in almost any weather.

Caper Merchant A dancing-master who cuts “capers.” (See Cut Capers .)

Capet (Cap-pay). Hugues, the founder of the French monarchy, was surnamed Capetus (clothed with a capot or monk's hood), because he always wore a clerical costume as abbot of St. Martin de Tours. This was considered the family name of the kings of France; hence, Louis XVI. was arraigned before the National Convention under the name of Louis Capet.

Capital Money or money's worth available for production.

“His capital is continually going from him [the merchant] in some shape, and returning to him in another.”- Adam Smith: Wealth of Nations, vol. i. book ii. chap. i. p. 276.

   Active capital. Ready money or property readily convertible into it.
   Circulating capital. Wages, or raw material. This sort of capital is not available a second time for the same purpose.
   Fixed capital. Land, buildings, and machinery, which are only gradually consumed.
   Political capital is something employed to serve a political purpose. Thus, the Whigs make political capital out of the errors of the Tories, and vice versâ.

“He tried to make capital out of his rival's discomfiture.”- The Times.

Capital Fellow (A). A stock-jobber, in French called Un Capitaine, par allusion aux capitaux sur lesquels un agiote habituellement. A good-tempered, jovial, and generous person.

Capitals To speak in capitals. To emphasise certain words with great stress. Certain nouns spelt with a capital letter are meant to be emphatic and distinctive.

Capite Censi The lowest rank of Roman citizens; so called because they were counted simply by the poll, as they had no taxable property.