by O. Henry
588.31–32 Mr. Blaney’s plays] Charles E. Blaney (1866–1944), American playwright known for his melodramas.
590.25 The queer] Counterfeit money.
590.25–26 Jerome’s] See note 541.23.
591.7 jay] Rustic, simpleton.
591.7 McAdoo’s] WIlliam McAdoo (1853–1930), New York City police commissioner, 1904–5.
591.8 shine] Fool.
591.11 Waterbury] Clock from the Waterbury Clock Company, Waterbury, Connecticut.
591.26 yellow-backs] Gold certificates.
591.39 old sledge] Card game.
592.7 Central Office] Headquarters for a vaudeville touring company.
592.8 gillie] Yokel or simpleton.
592.9 Tony Pastor] See note 546.14.
592.9–10 Mr. Scotty from Death Valley] Walter Edward Perry Scott (1872–1954), also known as Death Valley Scotty, a prospector and con man known for his fraudulent gold mine schemes.
592.12 skiddoo] Bad luck, exit.
592.26 Long Acre] Longacre Square in midtown Manhattan, renamed Times Square in 1904.
593.15 J. G. Brown] John George Brown (1831–1913), British-born American artist known for his paintings of street urchins.
594.11–12 Winged Victory] The Winged Victory of Samothrace, Greek statue of the second century B.C.E., which has been displayed at the Louvre since 1883.
594.13 Le Petit Journal] French newspaper with international circulation.
596.34 chaparreras] Chaps, leather riding pants without a seat.
597.1 Bradstreet’s] Weekly business publication.
597.1 Brigham] Perhaps Albert Perry Brigham (1855–1932), American geologist and author of Geographic Influences in American History (1903).
597.11 Culmbacher] A dark lager beer, usually spelled Kulmbacher.
598.5 Claremont] The Claremont Inn, restaurant on the banks of the Hudson River at 124th Street in New York.
598.13 Omar] See note 240.29.
600.18 “Delmonico’s,”] Famous restaurant near Wall Street in lower Manhattan. Eighth Street is a principal street in Greenwich Village.
600.19 bishop sleeves] Style of clothing in which a full, loose sleeve is gathered into a cuff.
606.3 the Elsie series] See note 551.22.
606.7 “with pitfall and with gin.”] “Oh Thou, who didst with pitfall and with gin,” opening line of Quatrain 38 of The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám (see note 240.29)
606.26 the unities] See note 547.17.
612.33 Gad’s Hill] Summer house of English novelist Charles Dickens (1812–1870).
612.36 Lost, Your Excellency] Cf. Dickens, Bleak House (1852–53): “Dead, your Majesty. Dead, my lords and gentlemen. Dead, Right Reverends and Wrong Reverends of every order. Dead, men and women, born with Heavenly compassion in your hearts. And dying thus around us every day.”
614.37 G. Bernard] George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950), Irish playwright.
624.16–17 sit upon the ground . . . death of Kings] Richard II, III.ii.155–56.
624.19 Bird Centre] Fictional small town created by cartoonist John T. McCutcheon (1870–1949).
624.21 Hendrik Hudson] See note 561.19.
625.5 chloral] Chemical used to make chloral hydrate, a sedative.
625.5 John L.] John L. Sullivan (1858–1918), American heavyweight boxer.
625.10 Knickerbocker’s] See note 567.29.
625.27 Lochinvars] See note 476.26.
626.5 Bryan] See note 459.16.
626.10 Crusoe] See note 292.11.
626.11 May Irwin or E. S. Willard] Irwin, comedian and vaudeville performer (1862–1938). Edward Smith Willard, English actor (1853–1915).
626.18 butterick] E. Butterick & Co., firm that publishes sewing patterns.
626.31–32 John W. Gates] American industrial magnate (1855–1911).
626.33 Edna May] Edna May Pettie (1878–1948), American actress.
627.24 Sara Bernhardt in ‘Andrew Mack’] Sarah Bernhardt (1844–1923), French-born actress. Andrew Mack (1863–1931), Irish American actor, singer, and comedian. There was no such play with that title.
629.3 “Bartenders Guide.”] Book by bartender Jeremiah “Jerry” P. Thomas (1830–1885) first published in 1862 and reissued under several different titles.
629.11 white ribboners] The symbol of the Woman’s Christian Temperance Movement.
629.17 skate] Alcoholic bender.
629.26 full] Drunk.
629.26 boiled owl] A drunk person.
630.24 Omar’s Rubaiyat] See note 240.29.
631.2–3 borax and formaldehyde tests] Tests for detecting the presence of alcohol.
631.33 giftie gi’ed] Cf. “To a Louse” by Robert Burns (1759–1796): “O wad some Power the giftie gie us [Oh would some power the gift give us] / To see oursels as ithers see us!”
633.38–634.2 “Come, fill the Cup, . . . on the Wing!”] Cf. Quatrain 21 of The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám.
634.16–21 “ ‘Ah! Love, could you . . . Heart’s Desire!’ ”] Quatrain 99 of The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám.
636.23 Flatiron] See note 425.19.
636.24–25 ‘Under the Old Apple Tree’] “In the Shade of the Old Apple Tree,” popular song (1905) written by Harry Williams and Egbert Van Alstyne.
636.27 Mrs. Winslow] Mrs. Winslow’s Soothing Syrup, patent medicine for calming teething children, which contained generous levels of alcohol and morphine sulfate.
636.40 crowbait] Worn-out, emaciated horse.
639.39 cash girl] Messenger in a store who takes money from a customer to a cashier and returns with change.
640.11 Diana’s] Diana, sculpture by Augustus Saint-Gaudens (1848–1907), which was installed at the top of the second Madison Square Garden building (demolished 1925).
642.12 Blue Point] Small oyster, typically from the South Shore of Long Island.
642.25 Strephon seeks his Chloe] A married couple in the poem “Strephon and Chloe” by Jonathan Swift (1667–1745).
642.30 D’Artagnan] See note 288.27–30.
644.20 Culmbacher] See note 597.11.
644.35 A B C store] Dry goods store.
644.38 Skiddoo!] Get out, leave.
645.3 congress gaiters] Ankle boots with elasticated sides.
645.12 carbolic] Carbolic acid, substance used as a disinfectant that is toxic in large doses.
646.22 Terrible Turk] Stage name of Turkish professional wrestler Yusuf İsmail (c. 1857–1898).
646.27 Claude Melnotte] Romantic character in the play The Lady of Lyons (1838) by Edward Bulwer-Lytton (1803–1873).
649.29 North River] Hudson River.
667.4 King Cophetua] African king who, in the sixteenth-century ballad “The King and the Beggar-Maid,” falls instantly in love with a beggar.
668.4 Gladstone Dowie] A son (1877–1945) of Scottish-Australian evangelist John Alexander Dowie (1847–1907).
668.18 physiopathic] Having to do with disorders attributed to neural dysfunction.
670.4 duck-fit] Bout of hysterics.
670.32 Esau . . . keeps her birthright] Old Testament figure who sold his birthright for a bowl of stew; cf. Genesis 25.
671.10 Nimrod] Biblical figure called “a mighty hunter before the LORD.”
672.32 Gibsonian cop] Term coined by New York police commissioner Theodore A. Bingham (1858–1934) to refer to young, good-looking police officers.
675.2 Marion Crawford] Francis Marion Crawford (1854–1909), prolific American novel
ist.
675.3 Ella Wheeler Wilcox] American poet (1850–1919).
681.7 Sic transit gloria urbis] Latin: Thus passes the glory of the city.
683.17 Marathon] Coastal town in southern Greece.
683.29–30 Sam Loyd puzzle] Samuel Loyd (1841–1911), American chess player and puzzle creator.
684.9 frangipanni] See note 551.18.
684.10 Booth] Edwin Booth (1833–1893), American actor.
686.25 play Topsy without using the cork] African American character in Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1852) by Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811–1896). The novel was frequently dramatized, with Topsy played by a white actor in blackface.
686.29 Manhattan] Cocktail made with rye whiskey and sweet vermouth.
687.23 Würzburger] See note 540.11.
687.23 Extra Dry] Champagne.
688.5 John Drew] John Drew, Jr., American stage actor (1853–1927).
688.21 ‘Annie Laurie’] Scottish song dating from the early eighteenth century.
690.22 Mrs. Bluebeard] For Bluebeard, see note 557.34. Mr. Bluebeard was a 1903 Broadway production starring Eddie Foy.
692.4 Al Rashids] Hārūn al-Rashīd, Muslim caliph, or ruler, in the eighth and ninth centuries C.E.
692.13 Harun-haunted] See previous note.
692.14–15 one-eyed calendars . . . the Barber’s Sixth Brother.] Characters in The Arabian Nights. Calendars were an order of dervishes who dedicated themselves to fasting and prayer.
692.25 Barmecides’] Barmecide, character in The Arabian Nights.
693.6 lithia water] Mineral water containing lithium salts.
694.16 Hammerstein] Willie Hammerstein (1875–1914), New York theater manager and impresario and father of the lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II.
694.23–24 R. Fitzsimmons] Robert “Bob” Fitzsimmons (1863–1917), British boxer.
694.28–29 eyes of needles with the camels] Cf. Matthew 19:24.
695.27 Pure Food and Drugs Act] Pure Food and Drug Act, U.S. law passed in 1906.
697.2–3 optikos needleorum camelibus] Nonsense phrase referring to Matthew 19:24.
697.7 John Mitchell] Mitchell (1870–1919) was president of the United Mine Workers.
698.11 Pomona] City in California known for its production of oranges.
698.14 Fletcherized] Chewed thoroughly, based on the principles of Horace Fletcher (1849–1919).
699.6 “Fisher’s Hornpipe”] Traditional Celtic tune.
699.17 ‘Falling Waters’] Song (1874) by J. L. Truax.
699.21 strathspey] Slow Scottish dance.
699.29 carbonic] Carbonic acid, used in indigestion remedies.
700.17 “The Devil’s Dream,”] Traditional fiddle tune.
700.20 Morningside] Morningside Avenue, street in upper Manhattan.
700.30–31 Bryan couldn’t think . . . ‘postponer,’] For Bryan, see note 459.16. In 1907, Bryan called William Howard Taft “The Great Postponer.”
701.27 Nepenthe] In Greek literature and mythology, a drug that causes forgetfulness.
706.10 Panhards] French automobile.
706.14 Kyrle Bellew’s real name] Harold Kyrle Bellew, English actor (1850–1911).
706.14–15 The ravings of John McCullough] Irish-born American actor (1832–1885). A popular phonograph record titled “The Ravings of John McCullough” supposedly depicted McCullough late in life, when he suffered from general paresis, or paralytic dementia.
706.16 Ellen Terry] English actress (1847–1928).
706.16–17 Joe Weber . . . E. H. Sothern . . . Henry Miller] Weber, American vaudeville comedian (1867–1942); Edward Hugh Sothern, American actor (1859–1933); Miller, English-born American actor (1859–1926).
708.17–18 Mr. Frohman] Charles Frohman (1856–1915), theatrical manager and producer.
708.18–19 fifty-seven different kinds] “57 Pickle Varieties,” slogan of the H.J. Heinz Company.
710.23 Stanley’s ‘Explorations into Africa.’] The Welsh American explorer and journalist Henry Morton Stanley (1841–1904) wrote several books about his travels, though none with this title.
711.19 L. I.] Long Island.
711.20 Meadow Brook Hunt] Meadowbrook Hunt Club, Westbury, New York.
711.28 “Bluebeard, Jr.,”] Musical production conceived by and starring Eddie Foy (1856–1928).
717.32 frangipanni] See note 551.18.
718.4 Una] Lady of the Redcrosse Knight in The Faerie Queene (1590) by Edmund Spenser (c. 1552–1599).
719.30 “Who’s What?”] “Who’s What and Why in America,” a series of comic biographies by humorist John Kendrick Bangs (1862–1922).
729.11 Chautauqua conventions] Movement that brought speakers, concerts, and educational instruction to communities around the country.
729.12 diabolo] Game in which a two-headed top is balanced on a string suspended between two sticks.
729.19 “Knowledge comes, but wisdom lingers.”] From “Locksley Hall” (1835) by Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809–1892).
731.16 cop the lady out] Woo, win over.
731.33 chin ’em] Talk with.
732.35 grouch] Complaint.
733.23 Jim Jeffries] See note 460.35.
737.32 Amsden’s Junes] Variety of peach.
737.37 hydrogen out of all the peroxides] See note 528.3–4.
739.37 collodion] Solution used in developing photographs.
742.35–36 “life is rather a queer . . . Mr. Cohan’s song] “Life’s a Funny Proposition After All,” song (1904) by George M. Cohan (1878–1942).
743.38 Rosinante] Broken-down horse, from Don Quixote’s horse in Miguel de Cervantes’s novel (1605, 1615).
745.3 W. C. T. U.] Woman’s Christian Temperance Union
FINAL STORIES.
750.2 Battling or Lord Nelson] Oscar “Battling Nelson” (1882–1954), Danish American boxer who was world lightweight champion, 1905–6 and 1908–10. Horatio Nelson (1758–1805), vice admiral in the British navy.
750.32–33 lime hash . . . nux vomica tea] Lime hash, given to children by dentists to build up the lime salts in their teeth. Dog bread, a simple type of cornbread. Nux vomica, derived from seeds of the strychnine tree and used to treat a variety of ailments in traditional medicine.
751.4–5 Armour Packing Company] Armour & Company, Chicago meat-packing firm founded in 1867.
761.6 Réaumur] René Antoine Ferchault de Réaumur (1683–1757), French scientist for whom a temperature scale was named.
763.36 Thomas Tucker] See note 282.21.
764.26–27 Prince Camaralzaman’s] Character in The Arabian Nights.
765.35–36 potash and magnesia] Ingredients in carbonate, a remedy for indigestion.
765.36 Ananias] A member of the early Christian community who was struck dead for lying to God in Acts 5.
765.36 Nebuchadnezzar] See note 302.15–16.
766.15 non compos vocis] Latin: of unsound voice.
767.7 Fletcherizing] See note 698.14.
767.25–26 “Roughing . . . Mississippi.”] Works by Mark Twain, pen name of American author Samuel Clemens (1835–1910): Roughing It (1872), “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” (1865), and Life on the Mississippi (1883).
768.5–6 Rabelais who said . . . platters neat.”] In Gargantua and Pantagruel (1532–64), the French author François Rabelais (c. 1494–1553) wrote, “The great God made the planets, and we make the platters neat.”
769.9 Hongroise] A brand of pomade, used on beards and mustaches.
772.21 Drea
dnought] A type of battleship.
774.19 Lochinvar] See note 476.26.
777.5 “Death’s twin brother, Sleep.”] From The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám. See note 240.29.