▪ I. sheriff
(ˈʃɛrɪf)
Forms: α. 1 sc{iacu}rᵹeréfa, 2 scyrreve, pl. scirerevan, sirrefan, 2–3 scirreve, syrreve, 3 schyrreve, 3–5 schir(r)eve, 3–5, (7) shireve, 4–5 schyreve, shirreve, shyr(r)eve, schirrive, schyrryve, (5 pl. shirris), 6 shyreeve. β. 3 s(s)erreve, 3–5 scherreve, 4 sschereve, shereyve, 4–5 schereve, sher(r)eve, 5 s(c)heryve, sherreive, shurreve, 7 shearive, 7–8 sherive. γ. 3–6 schirref(f, 4–5 schirrif, schyr(r)eff, 4–6 shiref, shyref, 4–7 schiref(f, 5 schyriffe, shyryf(e, -yffe, shi-, shyrryf, shiriff, -efe, shirrieffe, Sc. schirrayf, 5–6 schir(r)effe, shirref, -if, -ef(f)e, 6 schyrriff(e, shyreff(e, shir-, shyreyffe, shirief(f)e, shyrryf(e, -efe, Sc. syreff, 6–7 shireff(e, shirif(e, -iffe, shirreff, 7 shierife, shirriff. δ. 4–5 scherref, sherref, -if, -yf, Sc. serefe, 4–6 sherreff, 4–7 sheref(f, -if, 5 sherefe, 5–6 schereff(e, -yf(e, sherief(e, -yf(e, 5–7 sherife, scheref, shereffe, 6 scherif, s(c)heryffe, sherrife, 6–7 sheriffe, sherriff(e, 7– sheriff. ε. 4–5 schreve, 5 sherve, schryve, 5–6 shryve, shreve, 6 schreyve, 6–7 shrive, 7–8 shreeve, 5–9 shrieve; ζ. 5 shirffe, 5–6 shreffe, scref(f)e, shryef, 5–7 shrief(e, 6 s(c)hrefe, shreef, shreyfe, shryffe, 6–7 shrife, 7 shrieff, sh'riff, 8 shreif. η. Sc. 4–5 schyrray, 5 schirrawe, schirra, schirraye, schyrray, pl. schirrais, 8–9 sherra, 9 shirra, sherry.
[OE. sc{iacu}rᵹeréfa, f. sc{iacu}r shire + ᵹeréfa reeve. The etymological form shire-reeve (q.v. under shire) has occasionally been used by legal antiquaries from the 16th c. downwards.
As the OE. sc{iacu}r had, in addition to its specific sense, the general sense of ‘district under a person's administration, province’, sc{iacu}rᵹeréfa had also a wider meaning, e.g. when the bishop is called ‘Christ's sc{iacu}rᵹerefa’. (Cf. sense 3 below.)]
1. a. England (and Wales). In England before the Norman Conquest, the sc{iacu}rᵹeréfa (also called sc{iacu}rman) was a high officer, the representative of the royal authority in a shire, who presided in the shire-moot, and was responsible for the administration of the royal demesne and the execution of the law. After the Conquest, the office of sheriff was continued, that title being retained in English documents, while in Latin and French the usual term was vice-comes, viscounte, which had been applied to similar functionaries in Normandy.
The functions of the sheriffs of counties have been greatly restricted by successive changes. At the present time the sheriff (more fully called high sheriff), appointed for one year by royal patent, is nominally responsible for the keeping of prisoners in safe custody, the summoning of jurors for the High Court, the execution of writs and of the sentence of death. In addition to these duties, which are discharged by the under-sheriff, the high sheriff acts as presiding officer at parliamentary elections for the county, and is required to attend (with the ceremonial state demanded by custom) on circuit judges.
Those boroughs and cities that were, until recently, ‘counties of themselves’, and also the city of Oxford, have or formerly had a sheriff (or in some instances two) chosen annually by the corporation; the office is now mainly honorary, the specific duties attached to it varying in different towns. The City of London elects annually two sheriffs, who were also Sheriffs of Middlesex until 1888.
In some counties the office of sheriff was formerly hereditary. The last surviving instance of this was in Westmorland; the hereditary shrievalty of that county was abolished in 1850 by the Act 13 & 14 Vict. c. 30.
| α c 1034 in Kemble Cod. Dipl. IV. 54 An scirᵹemot sæt æt æᵹelnoðes stane... Ðær wæs Bryning scirᵹerefa. a 1154 O.E. Chron. (Laud MS.) an. 963, Ic ᵹife þone tun..swa freolice þæt ne king ne biscop ne eorl ne sc[y]rreue ne haue þær nane hæse. c 1155 in Anglia VII. 220 Ealle mine eorlas & ealle mine scirereuan. ? a 1200 in Kemble Cod. Dipl. IV. 192 Eadward king gret..all mine heued men and mine þeȝnes and mine sirrefan. c 1200 Moral Ode 50 in Trin. Coll. Hom. 221 Ne mai hit us binime no king ne no syrreue [other MSS. scirreue, schirreue, serreue]. a 1325 MS. Rawl. B. 520 lf. 52 b, Þe king hath igraunted to his poeple þat heo habben election of hoere schirreue þere ase schirreue nis noȝt þoru feo. c 1386 Chaucer Prol. 359 A shirreue hadde he been and [a] Countour. c 1460 Brut 522 Þe yong men of þe mercerie.. held þe Mair & Shyreves stil in Chepe. 1588 Fraunce Lawiers Log. i. xii. 52 Shyreeve. 1629 Coke On Litt. 168 Shireue. |
| β 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 11061 A freinss kniȝt was at gloucetre þe sserreue þoru þe king. c 1380 Wyclif Sel. Wks. III. 215 Justicis and schereves and stiwardis and bailifis. 1433 Rolls of Parlt. IV. 447/1 Retourned by the Shereve of the Shire. c 1450 Mirk's Festial 38 Gylbert, þat was scheryue of London. 1493–4 Rec. St. Mary at Hill (1904) 204 Item, payd to þe mayre and to þe ij sheryves. 1619 in Lismore Papers Ser. ii. (1887) II. 219 Paid the Shearives of Bristoll for the Costome dew to them. 1687 in Magd. Coll. & Jas. II (O.H.S.) 102 Whether the Bp. of Oxford was to be put in the presidents Office and y{supt} being a Freehold by any but the sherive. |
| γ 1375, c 1425 [see b]. c 1400 Brut 218 Sir Symond Ward..þat þo was shirryf of Ȝork. 1415 in York Myst. Introd. p. xxxiv, Ye Mair and ye shirefs of yis Citee. c 1450 Godstow Reg. 654 The shyryf of Oxenford-shyre. 1551 Coventry Leet Bk. 797 The Shireyffes of the Citie for the tyme beinge. 1559 Mirr. Mag., Northumb. xviii, The shirif therof, Rafe Rekesby. 1593 Norden Spec. Brit., Cornw. (1728) 29 Shirereue, vulgerly the Shiriffe. 1614 Selden Titles Hon. 226 Shirifes. |
| δ c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints xl. (Ninian) 965 Syne come þe serefe to the ton, &, to hald þe law, set done. c 1400 Gamelyn 602 (Sloane MS.), Here cometh the Sherryf [Petw. sheref] and wil haue oure heedes. 1522 Coventry Leet Bk. 680 All Comeners within this Cytte vndur the degre of a Scheryffe. 1554 Yaxley in Ellis Orig. Lett. Ser. iii. III. 314 Her Maiestie hath addressed forth her lettres to the Sheriefes of the Sheres. 1676 in Hatton Corr. (Camden) 132 Saterday last wase y⊇ day for choosing sherifs in y⊇ city and in y⊇ Hall. a 1700 Evelyn Diary an. 1634, My Father was appointed Sheriff for Surrey and Sussex before they were disjoyned. 1710 J. Harris Lex. Techn. II, Sherive or Sheriff. 1765 Blackstone Comm. I. 178 The county court is a court held every month or oftener by the sheriff. 1769 Junius' Lett. xi. (1788) 71 It is admitted, that the sheriffs obeyed the laws, and performed their duty [in returning Mr. Wilkes]. 1788 Encycl. Brit. (ed. 3) II. 209/2 An order was issued..to the sherives of most of the English counties. 1835 App. Munic. Corpor. Rep. ii. 1165 (Bristol), The two Sheriffs are elected by the common council..for a year. Ibid. iv. 2460 (Norwich), Two Sheriffs are chosen yearly; one, who is called the Court Sheriff, by the mayor, sheriffs, and aldermen; and the other by the freemen. 1846 M{supc}Culloch Acc. Brit. Empire (1854) II. 129 Petitions from the city of London..are brought at once to the bar of the House by the sheriffs. 1871 W. M. Fawcett Law Land-lord & Tenant 182 The sheriff must first levy for the rent and then for the execution. 1882 Act 45 & 46 Vict. c. 50 §170 The council of every borough being a county of itself, and of the city of Oxford, shall on the ninth of November in every year appoint a fit person to execute the office of sheriff. 1888 Act 51 & 52 Vict. c. 41 s. 41(8) The sheriffs of the city of London shall not have any authority except in the city. Ibid. s. 46(6) The right of the mayor, commonalty, and citizens of the city of London to elect the sheriff of Middlesex shall cease, and it shall be lawful for Her Majesty the Queen to appoint a sheriff of the county of Middlesex. 1972 Local Govt. Act c. 70 s. 219(1) Sheriffs appointed for a county or Greater London shall be known as high sheriffs. 1974 C. A. Cross Principles Local Govt. Law (ed. 5) xxvii. 488 The Queen in granting a charter to preserve the privileges of a city or borough existing prior to April 1, 1974, may confer on the city or borough the power to appoint a sheriff, as opposed to a high sheriff. |
| ε 1399 Langl. Rich. Redeles iv. 28 And sente side sondis to schreuys aboute, To chese swiche cheualleris as þe charge wold. 1461 Paston Lett. II. 28 The Shreve ys in a dought whedyr he shall make a newe eleccion of knyghts of the shyre. 1463 in Somerset Med. Wills (1901) 197 That thoo which were wrongfully hurt when I was Sherve may be recompensid. 1538 in Lett. Suppress. Monasteries (Camden) 195 Sir John Russell, schreyve of Wisitor schere. 1559 Mirr. Mag., Jack Cade xv, James Cromer shrive of Kent. 1605 Lond. Prodigal iii. ii. 122 Shreeue, take your prisoner. [1651 Cleveland Poems 14 Like Alderman, or Monster-Sheriffs, With Canvas backs, and velvet sleeves.] 1682 Oldham Imit. 3rd Sat. Juvenal Poems (1684) 192 For Shrieve how oft he has been known to fine. 1748 Richardson Clarissa (1811) III. xliii. 252 After condemnation..all will be the king's or the shreeve's. 1796 J. Anstey Pleader's Guide (1803) 62 But let the Plaintiff, ere he sue In debt or case for money due, Swear to the sum, the writ indorse, And let the Shrieve said writ enforce. |
| ζ c 1470 Harding Chron. ccv. vii, In Yorkeshyre so the Rokeby with them mette, Shrief of the shyre. 1481 Coventry Leet Bk. 495 To þe Maire & shirffes. 1518 Star Chamber Cases (Selden Soc.) II. 142 William Dale one of the Shreffes of the Towne of Bristowe. a 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VIII 61 b, The Mayre and Shrifes were there present. 1618 J. Taylor (Water P.) Pennyless Pilgr. C 3, Thus I..Was giu'n from Mayor to Shriefe, from Shriefe to Iaylor. 1691 New Disc. Old Intreague xxviii, Nor Shrieffs, nor Mayor, nor Common Halls excus'd. 1771 Foote Maid of Bath i. (1778) 19 The suit his honour made up twenty years ago comes next Lent, when he was shreif for the county. |
b. Scotland. In early times (from the 12th c.) a high officer of a county with functions more or less analogous to those of the English sheriff of the same period, together with a civil and criminal jurisdiction of very wide extent. The office was commonly held by a noble, and was often hereditary; its judicial duties were performed by the
sheriff-depute, who was necessarily a lawyer. The Act 20
Geo. II. c. 43 (1747) abolished heritable sheriffships, and in consequence of its provisions the office of sheriff, in the older sense, practically became extinct. The title of sheriff is now given to the sheriff-depute, who is the chief local judge in a Scottish county, and popularly to the sheriff-substitute, who usually hears cases in the first instance, subject to an appeal to the sheriff-depute. Both offices are now held for life, and the appointment rests with the crown
| 1375 Barbour Bruce i. 190 Schyrreffys and bailȝheys maid he then. c 1425 Wyntoun Cron. viii. xxvi. 4110 Schirrayf [v.r. Schirref] of Bute and of Cowalle. Ibid. 4389 Schir Gotheray þe Rose was..schirrawe of Ayr. c 1470 Henry Wallace vi. 791 Schirrais he maid that cruell was to ken. Ibid. xi. 1391 A schyrray gart this clerk son fra him pass. a 1567 Mure Ho. Rowallane 249 The Schereffe of Aire. 1712 Fountainhall Decisions (1761) II. 739 The brewers in and about Edinburgh, conceiving that the Sheriffs of Mid-Lothian had struck the fiars of victual too high. 1816 Scott Antiq. xx, The shirra sent for his clerk. 1818 ― Rob Roy xxix, I desire to be carried before some civil magistrate,..the sherra or the judge of the bounds. 1870 W. R. Greg Polit. Problems 114 The then Sheriff of Lanarkshire. |
c. Ireland. A high officer in an Irish county, whose status and functions were closely similar to those of the English high sheriff. There were also sheriffs in certain Irish cities and boroughs:
cf. a.
| 1542 Ir. Act 34 Hen. VIII, c. 1 (1621) 238 The said Sherife of the said Shire [of Meath] for the time being. 1612 Sir J. Davies Why Ireland, etc. 140 In each of these Counties Palatines, there were two Sheriffes:..As in Meth we find a Sheriffe of the Liberty, and a Sheriffe of the Crosse: And so in Vlster, & so in wexford. 1675 Essex Papers (Camden) I. 309 All is forfited and taken up by the Shiriffe or Senescall. a 1687 Petty Polit. Anat. (1691) 36 The Sheriffs of Counties, and of Cities and Counties in Ireland are 40. a 1687 [see sheriff's peer in 4]. 1817 Act 57 Geo. III, c. 68 Whereas it is expedient that the laws relating to Sheriffs in Ireland should be amended. |
d. U.S. (See
quot. 1828–32.)
| 1662 Laws of Virginia xliv. 26 The Sheriffs of James-City..shall be left to the Governour's free choice. 1788 Massachusetts Spy 8 May 3/3 The Mayor, the Sheriff, and some other persons interfered and rescued them, by lodging them in gaol. 1828–32 Webster s.v., The sherif, by himself or his deputies, executes civil and criminal process throughout the county, has charge of the jail and prisoners, attends courts and keeps the peace. a 1842 in Dickens' Amer. Notes xvii. (1868) 141 A man was suspected, and the Sheriff most probably has possession of him by this time. 1876 ‘Mark Twain’ Tom Sawyer xi, The Sheriff was confident that he [the murderer] would be captured before night. Ibid. xxiv, Then the judge arrived, and the sheriff proclaimed the opening of the court. |
2. a. With defining word, as
deputy sheriff,
under-sheriff,
vice-sheriff;
high sheriff, the sheriff (in England and Wales, and in some Irish cities) as distinguished from a deputy or subordinate.
| 1450 Paston Lett. I. 125 The shreve of Kent..sent his under shreve to the juges to wete what to doo. a 1455 Lett. Marg. Anjou & Bp. Beckington (Camden) 158 Th' occupacion of under sherreive in the countie of Midd. a 1500 Gest of Robyn Hode xv. in Child Ballads III. 57 The hye sherif of Notyingham. 1532 More Epitaph Wks. 1421/1 Thomas More..being one of the vnder shriefes of London. 1559 J. Aylmer Harborowe L ij, Then must the hyghe Shrife be his frende. 1622 F. Markham Bk. War iii. vii. 106 The proverbe is, Twise an Under Sherife, euer a knave. a 1674 Clarendon Hist. Reb. ix. §9 Colonel Long, the high shrief of the county. 1716 Act 3 Geo. I, c. 15 §10 It shall not be lawful..for any Person..to buy, sell, let, or take to Farm, the Office of Under-sheriff, Deputy-sheriff,..or any other Office..pertaining to the Office of High-sheriff of any County or Shire. 1830 Rep. Sel. Comm. Office High Sheriff 3 High Sheriffs are nominated by The King in Council, who, with His own hand, according to ancient custom, pricks the person appointed. Ibid. 5 The appointment of competent persons as permanent Under Sheriffs, throughout the several counties of England and Wales. 1835 Tomlins' Law Dict. (ed. 4) s.v., The under-sheriff usually performs all the duties of the office, a very few only excepted, where the personal presence of the high-sheriff is necessary. 1874 Stubbs Const. Hist. (1896) III. xx. 435 In 1319 Matthew of Crauthorn, who had been elected..to be Knight of the shire for Devon, petitioned the council against the undue return made by the vice-sheriff, who had substituted another name. |
b. Scotland.
sheriff depute,
sheriff substitute: see 1 b.
sheriff major,
sheriff principal: designations formerly given to the sheriff (in the original sense) to distinguish him from the sheriff depute; in
mod. use, the sheriff-depute is sometimes called
sheriff-principal in contradistinction to the sheriff-substitute.
† sheriff wardator: see wardator.
† sheriff in that part: a person appointed to supply the place of the sheriff for executing process.
| 1446 Registr. Aberdon. (Maitland Club) I. 244 Sir Alexander of Forbes..scheref depute of Aberdene. 1473 Acc. Ld. High Treas. Scot. I. 45 To Adam Bachillur, passande with the Kingis lettres, xvto Octobris, as schiref in that part for the inbringing of Schire William of Rendis gudis. 1489 Ibid. 109 The Schirra deput and bailȝeis of Hadington. 1501 Ibid. II. 115 Lord Erskin, schiref principale of Selkyrk. 1532 Ibid. VI. 116 The Shereffis Deputis of Edinburgh. a 1578 Lindesay (Pitscottie) Chron. Scot. (S.T.S.) I. 45 Conflict betwix The Sherrife of Perth and Johne Gormak the Shireff maior. 1597 in Spalding Club Misc. (1841) I. 176 Mr. Thomas Leslye, syreff deput of Abirdene. 1671 Aberdeen Reg. (1872) IV. 276 Tuo of the baillies..to goe to the Earle Marshell, shirreff-principal. 1752 J. Louthian Form of Process (ed. 2) 249 The said Lords Reverse the foresaid Sentence of the said Sheriff-substitute. 1815 Scott Guy M. x, The Sheriff-depute of the county arrived at Ellangowan next morning at day-break. Ibid. xii, A very decent man, sir; the Sheriff-substitute of the county. 1834 Tait's Mag. I. 442/2, 30 Sheriff-Deputeships, varying from {pstlg}300 to {pstlg}800 a-year. 48 Sheriff-Substituteships in the gift of the Sheriffs-depute..varying from {pstlg}150 to {pstlg}600. 1866 Cornh. Mag. Aug. 247 There are two orders of sheriffs—the sheriff-substitutes, who reside each in the locality to which he has been appointed, and the sheriff-deputes (or ‘sheriffs’ simply), who hold courts at intervals. 1894 Act 57 & 58 Vict. c. 40 §7 The expression ‘Sheriff’ shall not include Sheriff Substitute. |
3. † a. transf. Applied to officers (in foreign countries) with functions analogous to those of the sheriff; a governor of a district or city.
Obs.| a 1225 St. Marher. 2 Olibrius hehte schirreue of þat lond. c 1290 St. Leonard 103 in S. Eng. Leg. 459 Þe scherreue of leouns feteres made strongue. c 1300 Havelok 2286 In al Denemark ne was no knith, Ne conestable, ne shireue,..Þat he ne com biforn sire Ubbe. 13.. Seuyn Sag. (W.) 2564 Hit was a knight, a riche scherreue. 1535 Coverdale 2 Kings xxiii. 8 Iosua y⊇ shreue of the cite. 1535 ― 1 Esdr. iv. 47 Then Darius..wrote a letter vnto all the debytes and shreues. 1545 Joye Exp. Dan. ii. C viij b, Daniel and hys felowes were sought of Arioch the shryue to be slayne. 1562 Turner Herbal ii. 51 There was a certayn sherif in Egypt which tooke ij. naughty murtheryng robbers [etc.]. |
b. Short for
sheriff's officer (sense 4 a);
= bailiff 2.
| 1928 Daily Mail 30 July 7/1 You have had the sheriff in your house? Ibid., Who put the sheriff into your house? |
4. a. Comb.:
sheriff's clerk,
Sc. sheriff clerk, the clerk of the sheriff's court; hence
sheriffclerkship;
sheriff's court,
Sc. sheriff court, a court in which the sheriff or his deputy administers justice;
sheriff fee Sc., a payment due to the sheriff;
sheriff fiars pl. Sc. (see
fiars);
† sheriff('s geld (
gild,
yeld), the payment made by the sheriff for the ‘ferm’ (
farm n. 3) of his shire;
† sheriff('s gloves Sc., a perquisite of the sheriff levied at a fair;
† sheriff('s house, ? the official residence of a sheriff (or of a similar official in foreign countries);
sheriff('s mair Sc. [
mayor 3]
= sheriff's officer;
† sheriff-man Dublin = sheriff's peer;
† sheriff's man = sheriff's officer; also
Shropshire dial. the goldfinch (see
quot. 1796);
sheriff's officer (
Sc. also
sheriff officer), an official employed to execute the sheriff's writs, to distrain and arrest, etc.;
† sheriff's peer, one of a class of members of the corporation of Dublin (before 1840) ranking next to the aldermen, and including all ex-sheriffs;
† sheriff roll Sc., the roll on which the proceedings of the sheriff's court were recorded;
sheriff's sale N. Amer., a public sale conducted by a sheriff following a court order for seizure and sale of property to satisfy a judgment;
† sheriff silver = sheriff geld;
sheriff('s tourn (
turn,
tourney); see
tourn,
tourney n.2| 1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. iv. 168 A *schireues clerke. 1564 Reg. Privy Council Scot. I. 274 James Makbrok of Campsy, allegit heretabill Sherefclerk of the said Sherefdome. 1679 Acts of Sederunt (1790) 144 All Shirriff-clarks to bring in their registers of hornings to be marked by the clark of register. 1875 Encycl. Brit. III. 290/1 The counted and rejected papers..are..transmitted by the returning officer to the clerk of the Crown in Chancery in England, or the sheriff-clerk in Scotland. |
| 1564 Reg. Privy Council Scot. I. 274 The office of *Sherefclerkschip of the said Sherifdome. |
| Ibid. 275 To deliver to the said James Drummond the *Sherefcourt bukis. 1752 J. Louthian Form of Process (ed. 2) App. 264 That no Person shall be obliged to appear before the Sheriff-court, unless he be cited upon a proper Summons. 1835 Tomlins' Law Dict. (ed. 4) s.v. London, The Sheriffs' Court, holden before their steward or judge. |
| 1894 Scots Law Times I. 701 Except in Sheriff Court Cases, the figures refer to the number of the Case, and not to the number of the Page. 1962 T. B. Smith Scotland iv. 102 The sheriff court has jurisdiction to try all crimes committed within the sheriffdom, except treason, murder, attempt to murder, rape, incest, certain offences against the Official Secrets Acts, deforcement of messengers, and breach of duty by magistrates. 1978 Dumfries Courier 13 Oct. 2/5 The sequel took place at Dumfries Sheriff Court on Friday when Savage pleaded guilty to the offence. |
| 1603 Reg. Mag. Sig. Scot. 515/1 With all uther custumes, *schireff feis, dewteis and exactiones in and about the said burgh. 1765–8 Erskine Inst. Law Scot. i. iv. §38 Sheriffs were also intitled to the twentieth part of the sums contained in every decree, in name of sheriff-fee. |
| 1689 in Acts Parl. Scot. (1875) XII. 55/2 Þ{supt} the pryce of victwall payable furth of the shyre of fyfe to the Exchequer for cropt 1688 be payed conforme to the present *shirref fiars of the said shyre. |
| 1301 Yorksh. Inquisitions (Yks. Rec. Soc.) III. 145 Rendering annually to the said heiress for Castelward and *Schirefgeld 6d. 1376 Rolls of Parlt. II. 348/2 Une Rente q'est appelle Shereveyeld q amounte a xiiiili. xixs. id. par an, provenantz des ditz deux Rapes. 1385 Ibid. III. 211/2 Shereves-yeld. 1543 Mem. Fountains (Surtees) 407 Paid to the exchetor..for the Sherifgylde, ijs. |
| 1528 Burgh Rec. Edin. (1871) 3 That na *shereff gluiffes be tayne..fra na maner of persoun fra this present fair. 1603 Reg. Mag. Sig. Scot. 514/1 Lie schireff-gluiffis. 1641 Peebles Burgh Rec. (1872) 104 Thrie frie faires..togidder with the sheref fie, shereffis glowes, tolles [etc.]. |
| a 1505 Chron. Lond. (1905) 262 Sir William Capell, after his prisonment in the Countour, and *Shryvishouse was..commaundid to the Tower. 1583 T. Stocker Civ. Warres Lowe C. iv. 6 b, In witnesse whereof, the saied Deputies to this present Treatie haue sette to their handes, in the Sherief house of Gant. |
| 1812 W. Tennant Anster F. ii. xxxiii, Sheriffs learn'd, and unlearn'd *Sheriff-mairs, and messengers-at-arms. |
| c 1400 Gamelyn 583 It ben the *schirrefes men, that hider ben i⁓come. a 1500 Gest of Robyn Hode cliii, in Child Ballads III. 63 Now is Litell John the sherifes man. 1605 Camden Rem., Wise Sp. 226 When he [Sir T. More] was to mount the scaffold, hee saide to one of the Shiriffes men, I pray thee helpe mee vp, as for comming downe I take no care. 1667 Dryden Epil. Tempest 13 He sends me only like a Sh'riffs man here To let you know the Malefactor's neer. 1796 Rev. F. Leighton MS. Let. J. Boucher 10 May, I am promised some gleanings of Shropshire words. As to Sheriff's man for Goldfinch..the Corbets..were often Sheriffs of the County; their livery was black and yellow, the colour of the goldfinch's penfeathers. 1841 Hartshorne Salopia Ant. 562 Sheriff's Man, the seven coloured linnet, Carduelis of Linnæus. 1879 G. F. Jackson Shropshire Word-bk., Sheriff's-man, the Goldfinch. |
| 1703 Fountainhall Decisions (1761) II. 196 Here the *sheriff-officers were only brought pro more. 1818 Scott Hrt. Midl. xiii, The warrant's awa to Liberton wi' twa sheriff officers seeking ye. 1837 Dickens Pickw. xl, Giving Mr. Pickwick a friendly tap on the shoulder, the sheriff's officer (for such he was) threw his card on the counterpane. 1843 A. Bethune Sc. Fireside Stor. 70 The sheriff's-officers proceeded to take him into custody. 1932 Encycl. Laws Scotland XIII. 527 Sheriff Officers are the persons by whom writs are served and executions carried out in the Sheriff Courts. |
| a 1687 Petty Polit. Anat. (1691) 41 There are in the City of Dublin a Lord-Mayor, 2 Sheriffs, 24 Aldermen, 48 *Sheriffs Peers, and 96 of the Common-Council. |
| 1534 in Exch. Rolls Scot. XVI. 584 Quhilk charter is registrat on the bak of *schiref roll of this instant yer. |
| 1798 Pittsburgh Gaz. 6 Oct. 1/2 (Advt.), *Sheriff's Sales. 1883 Brandon (Manitoba) Daily Mail 9 Jan. 4/1 There will be a sheriff's sale of goods and chattels belonging to the late firm of Hambly & Miller, barbers, etc., on Saturday next. 1947 Steamboat (Colorado) Pilot 30 Jan. 2/8 The electric light plant..was sold at sheriff's sale. 1966 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 6 Sept. 30/1 Sheriff's Sale of Lands—Under and by Virtue of an Execution issued out of the Ninth Division Court of the County of York to me directed against the lands and tenements of [etc.]. |
| 1324 in Registr. Monast. de Winchelcumba (1892) 351 Faciendo insuper annis singulis *Schirreveselver et alia servicia forinseca. |
| 1432 Rolls of Parlt. IV. 403/2 Defautes for noun comyng unto ye *Shirrefs tourn. 1451 Ibid. V. 217/2 Sheref Tournes. 1536 in Hexham Priory (Surtees) App. p. cxxxix, The sade Sir Ingram..as shiref of Northumbeland..kept shiref-turnes at Alnwik. 1648 in J. R. Boyle Hedon (1895) App. 47 To the Sherifturne Jurie 0 4 8. |
b. In trivial and slang phrases:
† sheriff's basket,
tub, a basket or tub placed outside a prison to receive charitable doles for the prisoners;
† sheriff's posts, two painted posts, set up at the sheriff's door, to which proclamations were affixed (
cf. post n.1 2 b). (See also later
quots.)
| 1599 B. Jonson Ev. Man out of Hum. iii. iii. (1600) K j b, How long should I be ere I should put off To the Lord Chancelors tombe, or the Shriues posts? 1600 Nashe Summers Last Will 1678 Wks. 1905 III. 286 That's as plentifull almes for the plague as the sheriffes tub to them of Newgate. 1632 Massinger City Madam i. i. (1658) 5 Did our charitie redeem thee out of prison,..When the Sheriffs basket, and his broken meat Were your Festivall exceedings? 17.. in Grose Olio (1792) 232 Dancing on nothing at the Sheriff's ball. Foot-note, Sheriff's ball, an execution. 1785 Grose Dict. Vulgar T., Sheriff's Bracelets, handcuffs. Ibid., Sheriff's Hotel, a prison. Ibid., Sheriff's Picture Frame, the gallows. |
▪ II. sheriff see
shereef,
sherifi.