† span-farthing Obs.
[f. span n.1 or v.1 and farthing n.]
A game played with farthings after the same manner as span-counter.
| 1688 Holme Armoury iii. xvi. (Roxb.) 82/1 Playes with Instruments... Span Farthing. 1693 Locke Educ. Wks. 1727 III. 25 Learning to wrangle at Trap, or rook at Span-farthing. 1720 Swift Mod. Educ. Wks. 1755 II. ii. 36 His chief solace is to steal down, and play at span-farthing with the page, or young black-a-moor. 1764 Bp. Hurd Dial. Uses For. Trav. 70 You might as well..advance him directly to the boy's top and span-farthing, as [etc.]. 1777 Gamblers 6 Span-farthing, Hustle-cap, their joy and sport. |