Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. (US gambling) in numbers, the n. a combination of numbers on which one bets.

1845

Nat. Police Gaz. (NY) 16 Oct. 54/2: More recent efforts of genius in the science of policies [i.e. numbers, the n. (1)] have invented ‘horses,’ ‘gigs,’ ‘whips’ and ‘saddles’ [...] those being fancy combinations.

2. a collection of money, an appeal for money.

1861		T. Hughes Tom Brown at Oxford (1880) 38: If they would stand a whip of ten shillings a man, they might have a new boat.
1873		J. Greenwood In Strange Company 76: It is paid by ‘whip’ – I mean a whip round.
1922		Joyce Ulysses 99: Martin is going to get up a whip for the youngsters [...] A few bob a skull. Just to keep them going till the insurance is cleared up.
1989		J. Morton Lowspeak.
1996		J. Cameron It Was An Accident 8: Lads had a whip like I said.

3. (US gambling) in numbers betting, a particular combination of numbers (specifics unknown).

1879

Nat. Police Gaz. (NY) 15 Nov. 14/3: Many a colored man and woman has pledged his or her shoes to get money enough to purchase a ‘gig,’ or a ‘cross-gig,’ or a ‘saddle.’ There are [...] such combinations as ‘dashboards’ and ‘whips’ but I am not well enough up in this particular ‘graft’ to clearly define its technicalities.

4. (US Und.) a bail bond.

1949

Monteleone Criminal Sl. (rev. edn).

5. (Scots drugs) a portion of a given drug, e.g. a single pill.

2020

G. Armstrong Young Team 124: The pills ir sold two quid a whip.