Chapter VERDURE to VIZIER of V by The Hobson Jobson Dictionary

VISS, s. A weight used in S. India and in Burma; Tam. visai, ‘division, Skt. vihita, ‘distributed.’ In Madras it was 1/8 of a Madras maund, and=3lb. 2oz. avoirdupois. The old scale ran, 10 pagoda weights = 1 pollam, 40 pollams = 1 viss, 8 viss = 1 maund (of 25lbs.), 20 maunds = 1 candy. In Burma the viss=100 tikals=3lbs. 5 5 1/3. Viss is used in Burma by foreigners, but the Burmese call the weight peiktha, probably a corruption of visai.

1554.—“The baar (see BAHAR) of Peguu contains 120 biças; each biça weighs 40 ounces; the biça contains 100 ticals; the tical weighs 3 1/5 oitaras.”—A Nunes, 38.

1568.—“This Ganza goeth by weight of Byze … and commonly a Byza of Ganza is worth (after our accompt) halfe a ducat.” —Caesar Frederike, in Hakl. ii. 367.

1626.—“In anno 1622 the Myne was shut up … the comming of the Mogull’s Embassadour to this King’s Court, with his peremptory demand of a Vyse of the fairest diamonds, caused the cessation.”— Purchas, Pilgrimage, 1003.

[1727.—“Viece.” See under TICAL.

[1807.—“Visay.” See under GARCE.]

1855.—“The King last year purchased 800,000 viss of lead, at 5 tikals (see TICAL) for 100 viss, and sold it at twenty tikals.” —Yule, Mission to Ava, 256.

VIZIER, WUZEER, s. Ar.— H. wazir, ‘a minister,’ and usually the principal minister, under a (Mahommedan) prince. [In the Koran (cap. xx. 30) Moses says: “Give a wazir of my family, Harun (Aaron) my brother.” In the Ain we have a distinction drawn between the Vakil, or prime minister, and the Vazir, or minister of finance (ed. Blochmann, i. 5 27).] In India the Nawab of Oudh was long known as the Nawab Wazir, the founder of the quasi-independent dynasty having been Sa’adat’ Ali Khan, who became Subadar of Oudh, c. 1732, and was also Wazir of the Empire, a title which became hereditary in his family. The title of Nawab Wazir merged in that of padshah, or King, assumed by G hazi-ud-din Haidar in 1820, and up to his dea th still borne or claimed by the ex-King Wajid ’Ali Shah, under surveillance in Calcutta. As most titles degenerate, Wazir has in Spain become alguazil, ‘a constable,’ in Port. alvasil, ‘an alderman.’

[1612.—“Jeffer Basha Vizier and Viceroy of the Province.”—Danvers, Letters, i. 173.]

1614.—“Il primo visir, sopra ogni altro, che era allora Nasuh bascià, genero del Gran Signore, venne ultimo di tutti, con grandissima e ben adorna cavalcata, enfin della quale andava egli solo con molta gravita.”—P. della Valle (from Constantinople), i. 43.