criss-cross

Dictionary of American Words And Phrases by John Russell Bartlett.

1) A mark in the shape of a cross; especially that of those who cannot sign their own names. Mr. Hartshorne, in his interesting work on British Antiquities, has the following account of this custom: "From the earliest period since the introduction of Christianity, it has been customary for those who were unable to sign their names, to affix the mark of a cross instead. Witred, king of Kent, decreed, anno 694, that no deed was valid unless it bore this stamp. It is constantly observable in the charters of the Anglo-Saxon and Spanish kings, and in all those documents which recite property bequeathed for ecclesiastical purposes. Numerous proofs still remain, which testify that royal and noble personages were not ashamed to confess their ignorance of letters. Witred acknowledges, in a charter printed in Spelman's Concilia, p. 193, that on account of his ignorance of letters, he had confirmed what he had dictated by the signature of a cross.--Salopia Antiqua, p. 379.


2) A game played on slates by children, at school.

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