Ĭassell's Dictionary of Slang traces uses of fruit meaning an easy victim in the late 19th century and also as an eccentric person (along with fruitball, fruit basket and fruit merchant). "Alright, me old fruit?" is an example of this as "fruit gum" is translated as meaning " chum" (a friend or acquaintance). For instance, the most popular of these rhyming slang phrases used throughout Britain is probably "telling porkies" meaning "lies" as "pork pies" rhymes with lies. Out of the East End of London traditional Cockney rhyming slang developed, which works by taking two words that are related through a short phrase and using the first word to stand for a word that rhymes with the second. Two examples of their slang are referring to potatoes as " bog- oranges" likely developed from the phrase " Irish fruit" also referring to potatoes and "cool the delo nammow" which means 'watch out for that old woman' with the words essentially backwards cool (look), delo (old) and nammow (woman).
They gained a fairly unsavoury reputation for their "low habits, general improvidence, love of gambling, total want of education, disregard for lawful marriage ceremonies, and their use of a peculiar slang language". Costermongers have existed in London since at least the 16th century, when they were mentioned by Shakespeare and Marlowe and were probably most numerous during the Victorian era, when there were said to be over 30,000 in 1860. "seller", came to be particularly associated with the "barrow boys" of London who would sell their produce from a wheelbarrow or wheeled market stall. The term, which derived from the words costard (a type of apple) and monger, i.e. A costermonger was a street seller of fruit and vegetables.
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