/ · 1894 Brewer’s · C · Colporteur
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
A hawker or pedlar; so called because he carries his basket or pack round his neck. The term is more especially applied to hawkers of religious books. (Latin, collum, the neck; porto, to carry.)
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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.