E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
Grey Hen (A).
A stone bottle for holding liquor. Large and small pewter pots mixed together are called “hen and chickens.”
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“A dirty leather wallet lay near the sleeper, … also a grey-hen which had contained some sort of strong liquor.”—Miss Robinson: White-friars, chap. viii.
