/ · 1894 Brewer’s · B · Bless
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He has not a [sixpence] to bless himself with, i.e. in his possession; wherewith to make himself happy. This expression may probably be traced to the time when coins were marked with a deeply-indented cross. Cf. To keep the devil out of one’s pocket.
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Entry taken from Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, edited by the Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D. and revised in 1895.
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