E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
Perpendiculars.
Parties called crushes, in which persons have to stand almost stationary from the time of entering the suite of rooms to the time of leaving them.
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“The night before I duly attended my mother to three fashionable crowds, ‘perpendiculars’ is the best name for them, for there is seldom more than standing room.”—Edna Lyall: Donovan, chap. ix.
