by Paddy Hirsch
stump—a leg
swede—a head
T
Taffy—a Welshman
taper-fencer—a merchant who sells candles
tar—a sailor
tib—a girl
tickle—strong drink
tilly-tally—nonsense
tilt—a fight
tod—alone
togs—clothes
tol-lol—well enough
top lights—eyes
topping man—a boss
tumble—to have intercourse
twig—to realize, understand, or discover
V
vaulting school—a brothel
vellum—paper
vestal—a nun
W
ware—beware
ware hawk—the word to look sharp, a bye-word when a bailiff passes. (Grose)
wear the bands—to wear the bands, is to be hungry, or short of food for any length of time; a phrase chiefly used on board the hulks, or in jails. (Vaux)
well-breeched—wealthy. The swell is well breeched, let’s draw him; the gentleman has plenty of money in his pocket, let us rob him. (Vaux)
whid—a word
whid the scrap—he whiddles, he peaches. He widdles the whole scrap: he tells what he knows. (Grose)
windward passage—the anus
ALSO BY PADDY HIRSCH
The Devil’s Half Mile
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
PADDY HIRSCH is an award-winning journalist and online video host who produces the NPR podcast The Indicator from Planet Money. The author of The Devil’s Half Mile came to journalism after serving for eight years as an officer in the British Royal Marines, and lives in Los Angeles. He is also the author of a nonfiction book explaining economics, Man vs. Markets.
Visit him online at www.paddyhirsch.com, or sign up for email updates here.
twitter.com/paddyhirsch
www.facebook.com/paddyhirsch101
www.instagram.com/paddyhirsch
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CONTENTS
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
New York: September 1803
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Nine
Ten
Eleven
Twelve
Thirteen
Fourteen
Fifteen
Sixteen
Seventeen
Eighteen
Nineteen
Twenty
Twenty-One
Twenty-Two
Twenty-Three
Twenty-Four
Twenty-Five
Twenty-Six
Twenty-Seven
Twenty-Eight
Twenty-Nine
Thirty
Thirty-One
Thirty-Two
Thirty-Three
Thirty-Four
Thirty-Five
Thirty-Six
Thirty-Seven
Thirty-Eight
Thirty-Nine
Forty
Forty-One
Forty-Two
Forty-Three
Forty-Four
Forty-Five
Forty-Six
Forty-Seven
Forty-Eight
Acknowledgments
Glossary
Also by Paddy Hirsch
About the Author
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
HUDSON’S KILL
Copyright © 2019 by Patrick Hirsch
All rights reserved.
Cover art: Plan of the City of New York, In North America: Surveyed in the Years 1766 & 1767, from the New York Public Library
Cover design by Jamie Stafford-Hill
A Forge Book
Published by Tom Doherty Associates
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Forge® is a registered trademark of Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC.
The Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.
ISBN 978-0-7653-9916-8 (hardcover)
ISBN 978-0-7653-9918-2 (ebook)
eISBN 9780765399182
Our ebooks may be purchased in bulk for promotional, educational, or business use. Please contact the Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department at 1-800-221-7945, extension 5442, or by email at [email protected].
First Edition: September 2019