E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
Kiss the Gunner’s Daughter (To)
To be flogged on board ship, being tied to the breech of a cannon.
1
“I was made to kiss the wench that never speaks but when she scolds, and that’s the gunner’s daughter, … Yes, the minister’s son … has the cat’s scratch on his back.”—Sir W Scott: Redgauntlet, chap. xiv.
