Green’s Dictionary of Slang

twiss n.

[an attack on the English writer Richard Twiss (1747–1821), who had published the highly critical ‘Tour in Ireland’. To take their revenge the Irish produced a chamberpot with a picture of Richard Twiss inside it, beneath which was inscribed the rhyme ‘Let everyone piss/On lying Dick Twiss’; the association seems to have been passed on to the UK writer and politician Horace Twiss (1787-1849). According to The Age (London) 31 July 1825, Twiss fought back in kind, having a chamberpot made in which there was painted his own portrait ‘looking up in an attiude of wonder, and exclaiming:— “Ah me! / What do I see!”, the imputation being that the answer was a urinating woman's genitals’]

(Irish) a chamberpot.

Show quotations
[UK]Grose Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue (3rd edn) n.p.: twiss A jordan, or pot de chambre. A Mr. Richard Twiss having in his ‘Travels’ given a very unfavourable description of the Irish character, the inhabitants of Dublin, by way of revenge, thought proper to christen this utensil by his name --- suffice it to say that the baptismal rites were not wanting at the ceremony.
[UK]Lex. Balatronicum.
[UK]Egan Grose’s Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue.
[UK]Age (London) 31 July 90/3: There was a certain nightly and morning ceremony [...] and accordingly bottom of that recipient which was indispensable in the ceremony [...] was decorated with an image of [Twiss] and the following rhyme was painted beneath:— ‘On thee I — / Poor Dicky Twiss’.
[UK]Crim.-Con. Gaz. 18 May 157/1: Massa ob de Rolls, Massa Bakers (created Lord Foozle), Attoney Generlal Horace Twiss, Esquire (created Lord Po).
[UK]London Mag. Feb. 55/2: Lord Pshormanby [...] has instituted [...] a very searching inquiry into the case of both the Jordans, and placed the legal management of the same in the hands of Horace Twiss — so celebrated for chamber-practice.