bummery
English
editEtymology 1
editFrom bum + -ery and the idea that they were a collective of bums?
Noun
editbummery (uncountable)
- (originally derogatory, historical) The faction of the Industrial Workers of the World in the 20th century which favored direct action.
- 1924, Proceedings of the National Convention of the Socialist Labor Party, page 36:
- When De Leon broke with the I. W. W. in 1908 there were again members of the Party who declaimed against his abandoning the I. W. W. - members who had no sympathy with the bummery element.
- 2010, Todd DePastino, Citizen Hobo: How a Century of Homelessness Shaped America, page 95:
- But the hour belonged to the bummery. Proclaiming a millennial vision of “One Big Union,” the hobo insurgents won the day, ousting the home-guard and dedicating the IWW to direct economic action exclusively.
Etymology 2
editVariant form.
Noun
editbummery
- Obsolete form of bottomry.
- R. North
- There was a scrivener of Wapping brought to hearing for relief against a bummery bond.
- R. North
References
edit- “bummery”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.