Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. to set a dog on; thus sooling n.

1885		Bulletin (Sydney) 31 Jan. 22/1: The gigantic intellect […] grabs his nose with his fingers when the nigger approaches, and philantropically ‘sools’ his dogs on him.
1898		W.A. Sun. Times (Perth) 23 Jan. 2/1: An excited councillor, with a rat and a string, trying to ‘sool’ the wonderful dog on to take the life of the rat.
1900		Bulletin (Sydney) 17 Mar. 14/1: What a time he will have in bush pubs. – working on the Bill-Adams-at-Waterloo line! – prating to listening crowds about the part he played in the battle of Pootchslingersterksburg, and showing the ‘never-healed-wound’ (made by the dog sooled on to him at the last station).
1916		C.J. Dennis ‘The Push’ Moods of Ginger Mick 37: Becos the bugles East an’ West sooled on the dawgs o’ war.
1926		J. Doone Timely Tips For New Aus. 23: TO ‘SOOL.’—To urge on. A term generally confined to dogs.
1937		A.W. Upfield Murder Down Under (1951) 47: I I fades away, the bank [...] will sool the D’s on to me.
1938		Press (Canterbury) 2 Apr. 18: ‘Swag,’ ‘wowser,’ ‘sool,’ and ‘shakedown,’ words with a reckless open-air tang.
1953		T. Sutherland Golden Bush 122: ‘It is forbidden,’ says the Institute, ‘in any public place to set on, urge, encourage, aid or assist any dog to rush at, attack or worry any person or animal.’ This would seem to include baiting, egging, sooling and/or sic-ing.
1983		J. Byrell (con. 1959) Up the Cross 108: Klaus the Kraut’s just sooled his Doberman onto Fenmore.
1988		McGill Dict. of Kiwi Sl. 106/1: sool set a dog on somebody; from ‘sowl’, English dialect word meaning to handle roughly.
2003		McGill Reed Dict. of N.Z. Sl. [as cit. 1988].

2. to persuade someone to attack a third party.

1890		Bulletin (Sydney) 5 July 6/3: Certain venomous lodge-politicians [...] promoted a Bill with the object of bringing about the return of the good old system under which M’Clinsky [...] could be sooled on to bite the ear off Mr. Patrick O’Brien.
1900		Bulletin (Sydney) 24 Mar. 24/3: The crowd jeered and tried to sool Mitchell on, but ’twas no go; he fought in his own way.
1910		Sun. Times (Perth) 23 Jan. second section 1/1: They Say [...] That the health inspector is being ‘sooled on’ to the dirty habitation.
1924		G.H. Lawson Dict. of Aus. Words And Terms 🌐 SOOL—To incite.
1933		L. Stone Larrikin 307: Sool, sooling – to ‘sick on’ or encourage.
1951		D. Stivens Jimmy Brockett 84: I heard McGrath has sooled them on to you.
1968		S. Gore Holy Smoke 63: So they sool a coupla plainclothes men on to Him.
1989		R.G. Barratt ‘Wellington’s On the Other Foot’ in What Do You Reckon (1997) [ebook] [of a woman] She sooled the two girlfriends onto me [then] kicked me in the nuts.

3. of a dog, to worry.

1890		R.M. Praed Romance of a Station I 71: Sool him, Bluey!
1908		J. Gunn We of the Never-Never (1962) 37: The Head Stockman [...] with his faithful tawny-coloured shadow, ‘Old Sool’em’, beside him.
1918		C.J. Dennis ‘Grimbles & the Gnad’ Backblock Ballads 47: ‘Sool ’em, Towser!’ shouted Martin dancin’ ’mid his ravaged crops.
1928		A.W. Upfield House of Cain 261: Here, Fly! Sick ’em, old girl! Sool ’em!
1944		A. Marshall These Are My People (1957) 89: ‘Soolem!’ I cried to Kim. He tore away and I could hear the indignant cows galloping ahead of his furious barking.
1952		A.W. Upfield New Shoe 68: Bony softly cried ‘Sool-em, Stug!’, and the dog ran about with nose to the ground.
1984		Partridge DSUE (8th edn) 1114/2: 1896.

4. to confuse, to fool.

1902

Bulletin (Sydney) 9 Aug. 26/1: A neat little swindle went adrift lately on a northern racecourse. [...] Owners foregathered and arranged that [horse] A should win, carrying underweight, while [horse] B should run second, and, of course, gather in stakes and bets on A failing to scale. The gentle public was sooled onto A, and at the last moment a tidy commission was worked for B at an outside price.

5. to urge on.

1904

Sun. Times (Perth) 7 Aug. 1/1: The wife of a very-much-might-be Premier is sooling her man on to lead the Labor minstry.

6. (also sool off) lit. and fig., to chase (away).

1901		‘Miles Franklin’ My Brilliant Career 150: The boss is so dashed partickler too. I believe he’ll sool me off the place.
1912		Bulletin (Sydney) 18 July 30/3: There’s a kick coming, for certain, and I’d like to show Lord Chelmsford the glad eye in its happiest hunting ground before it is officially sooled out.
1933		Sun. Times (Perth) 20 May 45/9: And trouble must come when the tough guys / Are sooled by a Susie or Sal.

7. (Aus.) to dismiss.

1938

X. Herbert Capricornia (1939) 309: I know why you sooled Sam Snigger.

8. to run.

1945		M. Raymond Smiley 77: The man pulled two half-crowns and handed them to the boy. ‘There y’ are. Now sool.’ Smiley sooled off at top speed [AND].
1951		J. Devanny Travels North Queensland 137: He ‘sools’ along quietly for a time, as though he does not mean business [AND].