Oliver Twist (Barnes & Noble Classics Series) (73 page)

BOOK: Oliver Twist (Barnes & Noble Classics Series)
6.4Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads
c
Gallows situated until 1783 in London at the junction of Oxford Street and Edgware Road.
d
Novel (1830) by Edward George Bulwer-Lytton, featuring a romantic portrayal of a highwayman.
e
Character in
The Brigand
(1829), by James Robinson Planché.
f
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, author of
Don Quixote
(1605).
g
Dickens’s
The Chimes
(1844) ridicules Laurie in the character of Alderman Cute.
h
Named Mudfog in the serialization, but unidentified in subsequent editions.
i
Physician hired to attend workhouse inmates for a low annual fee.
j
Thin porridge of oatmeal boiled in water.
k
Minor parish official whose duties included supervising paupers.
l
Popular tonic invented by Thomas Daffy, a seventeenth-century clergyman.
m
At age nine, pauper children were required to begin work.
n
Tear apart old ship’s ropes for reuse.
o
Prior to 1858 the only authority through which divorce could be sought.
p
Small, shallow bowl.
q
Meager rations, shared by a group.
r
Stoves with narrow vents to control the flow of heat and air.
s
Sniff ground tobacco.
t
Major manufacturing city in the midlands of England.
u
Local property taxes levied for support of the poor.
v
Professional mourners.
w
Pupil at a charity-supported school, recognizable by his leather breeches.
x
Bitter-tasting medicine used to induce vomiting.
y
Flat wool cap worn by charity-school boys.
z
Generic term for a prison, derived from a notorious London jail.
aa
Steps allowing people, but not animals, to climb over a wall.
ab
Toll-collector.
ac
Slang term meaning “friend.”
ad
Short leather boots.
ae
Slang terms for money: a shilling and a halfpenny.
af
Public hangings took place in front of Newgate prison until 1868.
ag
Embroidered monograms.
ah
Laborer repairing pavements.
ai
Racket used in an early form of badminton.
aj
Character in a popular puppet show.
ak
Prosperous suburb to the northwest of London.
al
A spicy dried sausage.
am
Police.
an
Receiver of stolen goods.
ao
Informed upon.
ap
The red lamp denoting a surgeon’s premises, here compared to theatrical lighting.
aq
Hood placed over the head of a criminal before hanging him.
ar
London’s meat market, situated north of St. Paul’s Cathedral.
as
Fashionable residential district in London’s West End.
at
St. Bartholemew’s street fair took place in London in early September.
au
Steward of a medieval household.
av
The main criminal court in the city of London.
aw
Prison uniforms.
ax
Cudgel loaded with lead.
ay
Two-wheeled carriage, drawn by a single horse, available for hire.
az
Stableman at an inn.
ba
Opium dissolved in alcohol; used as a sedative and analgesic.
bb
Lanterns equipped with shutters to reduce the light.
bc
Assistant to a druggist; workhouse inmates received cheap, unskilled medical care.
bd
The cards of an imaginary partner, openly displayed.
be
Set of three or five games of cards.
bf
Brand of shoe polish; slang name for cheap port.
bg
Opthalmia: inflammation of the eye.
bh
Corruption of the Latin legal phrase non est inventus, meaning “absent.”
bi
Prostitute.
bj
Notorious seventeenth-century hangman; generic name for the profession.
bk
Gin.
bl
Beadles presiding over chapels in rural communities far from a parish church.
bm
Coffin.
bn
Traveler who made a living mending pots and pans.
bo
Storage basket for household silverware.
bp
Small tray.
bq
Two-wheeled open carriage.
br
The London Gazette, a government publication in which bankruptcies were listed.
bs
Gun activated by a trip wire and used to catch poachers.
bt
Ribbons worn at ceremonies such as weddings and funerals.
bu
Small enclosed carriage available for hire.
bv
Wealthy and powerful supporters of Harry’s political ambitions.
bw
Rider of the leading horse of a post chaise, a four-wheeled, enclosed carriage.
bx
Large drinking bowl.
by
Plague.
bz
Pawnbroker’s receipt.
ca
Weak beer.
cb
London’s largest park, bordered by the wealthy neighborhoods of Kensington and Mayfair.
cc
An ironic comparison to the Roman goddess of chastity and the hunt.
cd
Brothels.
ce
Old ships used as prisons.
cf
Bridge across the Thames, connecting the City of London to Southwark.
cg
Main route into London from the north.
ch
Reticules, or purses.
ci
Pimping.
cj
Sign shaped like a pointing hand and indicating direction.
ck
Popular periodical detailing the lives and trials of notorious criminals.
cl
Prison.
cm
A social directory
cn
Storage cabinet.
co
Warriors of Achilles in the Iliad, by Homer; unquestionably obedient followers.
cp
Muslim.
cq
Member of a strict Jewish sect; here refers to an overzealous Christian.
cr
Pressured.
cs
Salesman of quack medicines and remedies.
ct
Money.
cu
A bad painting.
cv
A reference to syphilitic sores.
cw
District of warehouses and docks on the south bank of the Thames.
cx
Convict who had escaped while serving his sentence in the colonies.
cy
Straitjacket.
cz
Court hearings at the Old Bailey.
da
The railing around the dock in the Old Bailey.
db
Head covering donned by British judges when passing a capital sentence.
dc
Probably epilepsy, although he also appears to have suffered from syphilis.
dd
Informer.
de
Claypole entraps innkeepers by persuading them to sell liquor illegally on Sundays.
df
Cattle farmer.
BOOK: Oliver Twist (Barnes & Noble Classics Series)
6.4Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

Other books

My One and Only by Kristan Higgins
Everything He Promises by Thalia Frost
Weddings Can Be Murder by Christie Craig
Whispers by Dean Koontz
Surrender by Serena Grey
Just Her Type by Jo Ann Ferguson
Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo