Patrick Weston Joyce

“ A man depending for success on a very uncertain contingency:—'God give you better meat than a running hare.' (Tyrone.)
To express the impossibility of doing two inconsistent things at the same time:—'You can't whistle and chaw meal.'
A man who has an excess of smooth plausible talk is 'too sweet to be wholesome.'
'The fox has a good name in his own parish.' They say that a fox does not prey on the fowls in his own neighbourhood. Often said of a rogue whose friends are trying to whitewash him. ”

“ A person waiting impatiently for something to come on always thinks the time longer than usual:—'A watched pot never boils.'
'A poor man must have a poor wedding': people must live according to their means. ”

“ The proverb is uttered when a person is incautiously giving expression to words likely to offend some one present. (Moran: Carlow.)
Be cautious about believing the words of a man speaking ill of another against whom he has a grudge: 'Spite never spoke well.' (Moran: Carlow.)
Don't encroach too much on a privilege or it may be withdrawn: don't ask too much or you may get nothing at all:—'Covetousness bursts the bag.'
Three things not to be trusted—a cow's horn, a dog's tooth, and a horse's hoof. ”

“ A person is sent upon some dangerous mission, as when the persons he is going to are his deadly enemies:—that is 'Sending the goose on a message to the fox's den.'
If a dishonest avaricious man is put in a position of authority over people from whom he has the power to extort money; that is 'putting the fox to mind the geese.'
'You have as many kinds of potatoes on the table as if you took them from a beggarman's bag': referring to the good old time when beggarmen went about and usually got a lyre of potatoes in each house. ”

“ Protect your rights: 'Don't let your bone go with the dog.'
'An old dog for a hard road': said in commendation of a wary person who has overcome some difficulty. Hard in this proverb means 'difficult.' (Moran: Carlow.)
'No use sending a boy on a man's errand': Don't be satisfied with inadequate steps when undertaking a difficult work: employ a sure person to carry out a hard task.
Oh however he may have acted towards you he has been a good friend to me at any rate; and I go by the old saying, 'Praise the ford as you find it.' This proverb is a translation from the Irish. ”

“ In some cases a small amount added on or taken off makes a great difference in the result: 'An inch is a great deal in a man's nose.' In the Crimean war an officer happened to be walking past an Irish soldier on duty, who raised hand to cap to salute. ”

“ He didn't know what the old cat was. 'Hallo, mother,' said he with a lofty air and a killing Cockney accent, 'What's yon long-tailed fellow in yon cawner?'
A person reproaching another for something wrong says:—'The back of my hand to you,' as much as to say 'I refuse to shake hands with you.'
To a person hesitating to enter on a doubtful enterprise which looks fairly hopeful, another says:—Go on Jack, try your fortune: 'faint heart never won fair lady.'
A person who is about to make a third and determined attempt at anything exclaims (in assonantal rhyme) ”

“ Patrick's Day.' About the 17th March (St. Patrick's Day) , the winter's cold is nearly gone, and the weather generally takes a milder turn.
'There are more turners than dishmakers'; meaning, there may be many members of a profession, but only few of them excel in it: usually pointed at some particular professional man, who is considered not clever. It is only the most skilful turners that can make wooden dishes. ”

“ A person remarks that the precautions you are taking in regard to a certain matter are unnecessary or excessive, and you reply 'Better be sure than sorry.'
'She has a good many nicks in her horn': said of a girl who is becoming an old maid. A cow is said to have a nick in her horn for every year.
A man of property gets into hopeless debt and difficulty by neglecting his business, and his creditors sell him out. ”