TAFFRIL 
 
 
   Taau, the god of thunder. The natives 
 of the Hervey Islands believe that thunder 
 is produced by the shaking of Taau's 
 wings.-John Williams, Missionary Enter- 
 prises in the South Sea Islands, 109 (1837). 
 
   Tabakiera, a magic snuff-box which, 
 upon being opened, said, Que quieres? 
 (" What do you want?"); and, upon being 
 told the wish, it was there and then ac- 
 complished. The snuff-box is the co unter- 
 part of Aladdin's lamp, but appears in 
 numerous legends slightly varied (see for 
 example Campbell's Tales of the West 
 Highlands, ii. 293-303, "The Widow's 
 Son").--Rev. W. Webster, Basque Le- 
 gends, 94 (1876). 
 
   Tabarin, a famous vender of quack 
 medicines, born at Milan, who went to 
 Paris in the seventeenth century. By his 
 antics and rude wit he collected great 
 crowds together, and in ten years (1620- 
 30) became rich enough to buy a hand- 
 some chateau in Dauphine. The French 
 aristocracy, unable to bear the satire of a 
 charlatan in a chateau, murdered him. 
   The jests and witty sayings of this 
farceur were collected together in 1622, 
and published under the title of L'inven- 
taire Universel des (Euvres de Tabarin, 
contenant ses Fantaisies, Dialogues, Para- 
doxes, Farces, etc. 
  In 1858 an edition of his works was 
published by G. Aventin. 
 
  Tachebrune (2 syl.), the horse of Ogler 
le Dane. The word means "brown spot." 
 
  Taciturnian, an inhabitant of L'Isle 
Taciturne, or Taciturna, meaning London 
and the Londoners. 
  A thick and perpetual vapor covers this is- 
land, and fills the souls of the inhabitants with a 
certain sadness, misanthropy, and irksomeness 
 
 
of their own existence. Alaeiel [the genius] was 
hardly at the first barriers of the metropolis 
when he fell in with a peasant bending under 
the weight of a bag of gold . . . but his heart 
was sad and gloomy . . . and he said to the 
genius, "Joy! I know it not; I never heard of 
it in this island."-De la Dixmie, IJIsle Taciturne 
et l'Isle Enjou&e (1759). 
 
  Tacket (Tibb), the wife of old Martin, 
the shepherd of Julian Avenel, of Avenel 
Castle.-Sir W. Scott, The     Monastery 
(time, Elizabeth). 
 
  Tackleton, a toy merchant, called Gruff 
and Tackleton, because at one time Gruff 
had been his partner; he had, however, 
been bought out long ago. Tackleton was 
a stern, sordid, grinding man; ugly in 
looks, and uglier in his nature; cold and 
callous, selfish and unfeeling; his look was 
sarcastic and malicious; one eye was 
always wide open, and one nearly shut. 
He ought to have been a money-lender, a 
sheriff's officer, or a broker, for he hated 
children and hated playthings. It was his 
greatest delight to make toys which scared. 
children, and you could not please him 
better than to say that a toy from his 
warehouse had made a child miserable 
the whole Christmas holidays, and had 
been a nightmare to it for half its child- 
life. This amiable creature was about to 
marry May Fielding, when her old sweet- 
heart, Edward Plummer, thought to be 
dead, r~turned from South America, and 
married her. Tackleton was reformed by 
Peerybingle, the carrier, bore his disap- 
pointment manfully, sent the bride and 
bridegroom his own wedding-cake, and 
joined the festivities of the marriage ban- 
quet.-C. Dickens, The Cricket on the Hearth 
(1845). 
 
  Taffril (Lieutenant), of H. M. gunbrig 
Search. He is in love with Jenny Caxton, 
                                    IV 
 
 
TAAU 
 
 
67