QUEUE  or CUE (from Fr. queue, O . Fr. cue,

Lat. cauda, tail), a tail of hair, either of the natural hair when so worn or of a wig, plaited together and tied with ribbon, hanging down the back of the neck . In Europe and European colonies and settlements this method of wearing the hair prevailed after the heavy periwig had gone out of fashion . The bob-wig or tie-wig with the queue survives in the English barrister's wig . In the second half of the 18th century the queue was worn thick and short and sometimes encased in leather, when it was termed a " club." In the navy and army the queue survived its disuse in civil life . The three pieces of black velvet sewn on to the collar of the full dress tunic of the officers of the Royal Welsh Fusiliers, and styled the " flash," are said to be a relic of the ribbon which tied the queue . The most familiar use of this fashion of wearing the hair is the pigtail of the Manchus, which was imposed on all Chinese men as a symbol of loyalty and obedience at the conquest of China (see CHINA: Social Life) . A particular meaning of the word is for the line of persons formed in order awaiting their turn for admission to a theatre or other place . This appears also in French, from which it is borrowed . In the form " cue " (Fr. queue) the word is used of the tapering, striking implement in the game of billiards (q.v.) . It is often stated that the theatricaluse of " cue " for the concluding words of an actor's dialogue or speech which marks the beginning of another actor's part is merely an adaptation of the meaning " tail." The New English Dictionary points out that there is no trace of this use in French . In 16th and 17th century plays the endings of parts are marked Q. or qu-, which has been taken to represent Lat. quando, when .