tompion

reesetee Oh dear. Aug 13, 2010

ruzuzu "1. Same as tampion.
2. The inking-pad of a lithographic printer. Also tampon.
3. A watch."

- Century Dictionary Aug 10, 2010

reesetee Well, thank heavens we've got that settled. I'm sure you're relieved...er, glad, c_b. Mar 27, 2008

chained_bear I had a very dangerous encounter with that page. *shudders* I may investigate the third-party option. Then again, I'll also want to just type the whole friggin' book into my Wordie account, which seems rather stupid.

So... Fire from forward or rear, as they bear. Mar 27, 2008

sionnach In Schott's Original Miscellany the list in question is on page 55, directly across from the Ivy League Fight Songs on page 54. Actually, three separate lists are included in the table: 'British', 'American' and 'Modern'.

In Schott's Almanac for 2007, an abbreviated table, specifying only the 'American' list, appears on page 343.

I don't have the 2008 Almanac, because I never got through the cornucopia of trivia in the 2007 version.

Either table could easily be posted over by a third party, now that you know where they are lurking.
Mar 27, 2008

bilby In the light of Dahl's revelation of spitball bear bung, I think we shall have to revisit c_b's original citation of O'Brian's advice. I'm also duty bound to take into account the possibly flatulent effects of awakening from hibernation. Thus:
'Prime. Fire from forward, and rear (as thy bear).' Mar 27, 2008

mollusque A search on Google Book's shows that the word anniversary doesn't occur in any of the four Schott Miscellanies. So I think you're safe, c_b. Still, it might be best to take reesetee's advice just as a precaution. Mar 27, 2008

reesetee I have an idea, c_b. Give the book to a third party. Have that person find the page where the anniversary gift list is and cover it completely, say with a piece of heavy paper. Glue it on. Then you'll never have to worry about coming across the list, and you can read the darn book. :-) Mar 27, 2008

chained_bear Oh, sorry, sionnach! I loved the other definition too. Being a bear myself, though, I didn't think it polite to comment publicly. I have never... well... MALE bears... Nevermind.

I have Schott's Miscellany. I'm afraid to read it. My S.O. and I have a deal never to find out what anniversary gifts are associated with which anniversaries. And the list of anniversary gifts is in Schott's Miscellany, so I'm afraid I'll accidentally come across them and then me and my S.O. will have to break up. It isn't worth it! No! Mar 26, 2008

reesetee I remain astounded at the things one can learn on Wordie. Mar 26, 2008

sionnach c_b: I'm surprised you didn't comment on the other definition of tompion I provided. Which is not in the least bit madeupical. Well, OK, Dahl may have made it up - it would be consistent with his particular brand of humor.

I came across the firing instructions in Schott's Miscellany (the 2002 version). A treasure trove o' trivia. Mar 26, 2008

chained_bear Ooh, those orders are sexy... Where did you find this info?

I'm guessing there are more of them, broken down into more steps, I mean, than when they're actually using the guns to, you know, kill stuff. In the Rev. War-era army (whose manual of arms came from the British one, so I'm guessing it was also true of British artillery), they had the preparatory orders "As on the parade ground..." or "As on the battlefield..." The basic difference between the sequence of orders that followed was that "battlefield" orders are quicker and the gun crew does more of the steps automatically. With parade-ground orders (and that's what the Nelson-era naval artillery orders here sound like), you wait for the officer to tell you every stupid step. Which sometimes means placing the rammer just at the edge of the muzzle and standing there, waiting for him to say "ram down cartridge."

But they're still sexy... Mar 26, 2008

sionnach Sequence of orders regulating the firing of a single shot from a stowed and loaded cannon in Nelson's navy:

Silence!
Cast loose your gun!
Level your gun!
Take out your tompion!
Prime!
Run out your gun!
Point your gun!
Fire!
Worm and sponge!
Load with cartridge!
Load with shot and wad to your shot!
Ram home shot and wad!
Put in your tompion!
House your gun!
Secure your gun! Mar 26, 2008

sionnach 'And now we need as it were a tompion to protect the contents of this flask from invading bacteria. I presume you know what a tompion is, Cornelius?'
....
'Oh, come on sir,' someone said. 'Tell us what it means.'
'A tompion,' A.R. Woresley said, 'is a small pellet made out of mud and saliva which a bear inserts into his anus before hibernating for the winter, to stop the ants getting in.'

Roald Dahl: "My Uncle Oswald" (page 62).


also, Tompion - a famous English clockmaker, a thoroughbred racehorse. Mar 26, 2008

reesetee Oh dear. This sounds like a very large version of a feminine hygiene product.

But it's a great word nonetheless. :-) Feb 24, 2008

chained_bear Usage note: "Then came the ritual words: 'Silence fore and aft. Cast loose your guns. Level your guns. Out tompions. Run out your guns.' And here there was a universal roar as eighteen tons of metal were heaved out as fast as they could go. 'Prime. Fire from forward as they bear.'"
--Patrick O'Brian, The Reverse of the Medal, 83 Feb 24, 2008