Waif

n. [ OF. waif, gaif, as adj., lost, unclaimed, chose gaive a waif, LL. wayfium, res vaivae; of Scand. origin. See Waive. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

1. (Eng. Law.) Goods found of which the owner is not known; originally, such goods as a pursued thief threw away to prevent being apprehended, which belonged to the king unless the owner made pursuit of the felon, took him, and brought him to justice. Blackstone. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Hence, anything found, or without an owner; that which comes along, as it were, by chance. “Rolling in his mind old waifs of rhyme.” Tennyson. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. A wanderer; a castaway; a stray; a homeless child. [ 1913 Webster ]

A waif
Desirous to return, and not received. Cowper. [ 1913 Webster ]