ca'canny

But the British laborer's policy of "ca'canny," which is the very honorable one of giving least for most, and which is likewise the policy of the English capitalist, is nevertheless frowned upon by the English capitalist, whose business existence is threatened by the great American scab.

The Scab 1905

He practices the policy of "ca'canny," which may be defined as "go easy."

The Scab 1905

Yet "ca'canny" is a disastrous thing to the British laborer.

The Scab 1905

The English laborer is faithful to the policy of "ca'canny."

The Scab 1905

Scotch phrase ca'canny, to go slow or be careful not to do too much.

The Armies of Labor A chronicle of the organized wage-earners Samuel Peter Orth 1897

But as they had no ready translation for the Scottish ca'canny, they ingeniously abstracted the same idea from the old French saying "Travailler a coups de sabots" -- to work as if one had on wooden shoes -- and sabotage thus became a new and expressive phrase in the labor war.

The Armies of Labor A chronicle of the organized wage-earners Samuel Peter Orth 1897