Лучшие рассказы О. Генри = The Best of O. Henry - читать бесплатно онлайн полную версию книги автора О. Генри (ч. notes)

Примечания

1

The Four Million – at the time when the stories were written, the population of New York City was 4 million people

2

Coney – Coney Island, an amusement area in New York City

3

County Sligo – a county in northeastern Ireland

4

Punch and Judy – popular characters in the Punch-and-Judy puppet show; Punch is brutal and deceitful, and Judy is his wife.

5

palmist – a person who reads character, fate and the future by the lines of the palm

6

segar = cigar

7

the Dagoes – a contemptuous name of the Italians, Spaniards and the Portuguese

8

meerschaum – white clay-like substance, and a pipe made of it

9

idiosyncrasies – idiosyncrasy is a way of behavior or thinking peculiar to a person

10

physiognomy – the study of psychological characters by the features of the face and body structure

11

the Queen of Sheba (10th century BC) – in the Old Testament, a ruler of the Kingdom of Saba in Arabia who visited the legendary King Solomon of Israel to test his wisdom, and brought a caravan of gold, jewels and spices with her

12

a mammoth task = a tremendous task

13

cosmopolite – a person with wide experience of the world, free from national prejudices

14

garçons = waiters (French)

15

mélange = mixture (French)

16

Würzburger – a sort of beer

17

Mauch Chunk – a town in the state of Pennsylvania

18

table d’hôte – here: a set meal with a fixed price

19

Hyderabad – a city in south-central India

20

Kanakas – the Kanaka people, the South Pacific islanders

21

Presto! = Quickly!

22

‘Dixie’ – a popular song written by Daniel Emmett (1815–1904) in 1859; during the American Civil War (1861–1865) it used to be the anthem of the Confederacy of the South.

23

hie = hurry (archaic)

24

Mosby – John Singleton Mosby (1833–1916), a Confederacy guerrilla band leader during the American Civil War

25

Upernavik – a town in Greenland

26

Cincinnati – a town in Ohio

27

Battle Creek – a town in the state of Michigan

28

Yokohama – a city and port southwest of Tokyo in Japan

29

Zulus – the largest ethnic group in South Africa, a branch of the Bantu people

30

Patagonians – residents of Patagonia, a region in southern Argentina

31

the Kaw River – a river in Vietnam

32

Titans – in Greek mythology, giants, the children of Heaven and Earth

33

Maine – the US state in the north-east of the country

34

answers to Lawson – here: court decisions

35

Bohemians – representatives of Bohemia, usually an artistic circle

36

faux pas = a false step, a mistake (French)

37

pounds – pound is a unit of weight equal to 0.4535 kg

38

Palm Beach – a famous resort on the Atlantic coast in Florida

39

cicerone – a guide who describes to sightseers the places of interest

40

Tuskageenial – the word invented by the author from Tuskagee, a city in central Alabama, and genial (kindly, sociable)

41

lambrequins – the Baroque style ornaments; originally the mantling on a helmet to shield the wearer from the sun’s rays.

42

tocsin = poisonous

43

goblin – in Western folklore, a mischievous and malicious spirit attached to a household

44

Stygian – here: terrible; from Styx, in Greek mythology, a river in the underworld.

45

epicedian tears – here: mournful tears

46

Falstaff – a fictional character in Shakespeare’s ‘Henry IV’

47

Momus – in Greek mythology, the god of mockery

48

Avaunt! = Go away! Off with you!

49

Helen – Helen of Troy, a beauty, the cause of the Trojan War

50

Cassiopeia – a constellation in the Milky Way Galaxy

51

balustrade – a row of banisters to support a handrail on a balcony, staircase, etc.

52

Erebus – here: darkness; in Greek mythology, Erebus (Darkness) is the offspring of Chaos.

53

debility – weakness (of health)

54

Wagner – Richard Wagner (1813–1883), a German dramatic composer

55

Waldteufel – Emil Waldteufel (1887–1915), a French pianist and waltz composer

56

Oolong – a famous sort of Chinese tea

57

the Golden Gate – the strait in California between San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean

58

Hatteras – Cape Hatteras in North Carolina

59

Cape Horn – a rocky headland on the southern tip of South America in Chile

60

the Labrador – the Labrador current in North Atlantic Ocean, between Canada and Greenland

61

Benvenuto Cellini (1500–1571) – a famous Florentine sculptor and goldsmith

62

inches – an inch is a unit of length equal to 2.54 cm

63

feet – pl. from foot; a unit of length equal to 30.48 cm

64

Astrakhan rug portieres – thick woolen curtains

65

Peoria – a city in central Illinois

66

parkscape – from park + landscape

67

the smile of the Cheshire cat – a very wide smile (idiom)

68

Paphian = sensual

69

typograph – a typewriter for the blind

70

the Battery – White Point Gardens in South Carolina with monuments and military relics

71

Gotham – a legendary village in Nottinghamshire in England; in English legend, Wise Men of Gotham were wise fools who pretended stupidity to avoid unwanted expenses.

72

Bellevue Hospital – a famous hospital in New York City

73

the Vesuvian Bay – the Bay of Naples in southern Italy with Vesuvius, an active volcano rising high above it

74

Boreas – in Greek mythology, the personification of the north wind

75

bluecoats – here: policemen

76

Blackwell’s – the name of the prison

77

the Riviera – the seacoast on the Mediterranean Sea in the south of France

78

Caesar (100 BC–44 BC) – a Roman ruler, general and dictator, assassinated by the group of conspirators

79

Brutus (85 BC–42 BC) – a Roman politician, one of the leaders in the conspiracy against Julius Caesar

80

Chablis – white wine of northern Burgundy in France, made of Chardonnay grapes

81

Camembert – cheese of Normandy, covered with white mold

82

Yale – a private university in New Haven, one of the oldest universities in the USA, founded in 1701

83

Hartford College – University of Hartford in Connecticut, founded in 1877

84

Arcadia – in Greek and Roman poetry and the Renaissance literature, the blessed country, paradise

85

Hendrik (Henry) Hudson (1565–1611) – an English navigator and explorer whose name was given to a river, a strait and a bay

86

Napoleon III (1808–1873) – president of the Second Republic of France, and since 1852 emperor of France

87

Minerva – in Roman religion, the goddess of handicrafts, profession and arts

88

the Palisades – high vertical rocks along the west side of the Hudson River

89

Yosemite – Yosemite Valley, a picturesque region in east-central California

90

Haydn – Joseph Haydn (1732–1809), a famous Austrian composer of the Classical style in music

91

Carnegie medal – the award given for heroic deeds, established by Andrew Carnegie (1835–1919), a famous American industrialist and philanthropist

92

Morgan – John Pierpont Morgan (1837–1913), an American financier and industrialist

93

the Badgers – the nickname of the residents of Wisconsin, the US state in the Midwest

94

Chilcoot – a mountain pass in the Rocky Mountains in Alaska; served as a way to the lands rich in gold.

95

Klondiker – here: a gold prospector; gold was found on the Klondike River in the late 1890s.

96

Pullmans – Pullman is a sleeping car designed by George Pullman (1831–1897), an American industrialist and inventor

97

Mount Saint Elias – a mountain range in the west of Alaska

98

Boadicea (1st century) – an ancient British queen who led the revolt against the Romans

99

the Bronx – the northern borough of the New York City

100

Mr. Kipling – Rudyard Kipling (1865–1936), an English writer and poet

101

Bryan – a city in east-central Texas, formally founded in 1855

102

Mont Pelée – an active volcano on one of the Caribbean islands

103

Bearoo – characters in Rudyard Kipling’s tales

104

Snakoo – characters in Rudyard Kipling’s tales

105

Tammanoo – characters in Rudyard Kipling’s tales

106

wootsey squidlums, etc. – pet names

107

Peau d’Espagne – a sort of soft cheese

108

Madison Square Garden – a sports arena in New York City, built in 1891

109

Mendelssohn – Felix Mendelssohn (1809–1847), a German composer, conductor and pianist of the Romantic period

110

Epictetus (55–135) – a Greek philosopher; his teaching was later recorded by Arrian, his pupil.

111

prestidigitator = juggler

112

the Campbells – Campbell is the name of the company producing foodstuff

113

sulphur-coloured = yellow

114

bonbon – a sweet

115

laudanum – sedative drug

116

paregoric – analgesic drug

117

glacé = icy, with frozen heart (French)

118

menstruum = solvent

119

socotrine aloes – different medicines

120

valerianate of ammonia – different medicines

121

gum benzoin – different medicines

122

Lochinvar – the main character of Walter Scott’s ballade who stole his beloved one on the very day of her wedding

123

Morpheus – in Greco-Roman mythology, the god of sleep

124

Elysium – in Greek mythology, the paradise to which immortal heroes were sent

125

Mammon – the god of wealth and greed

126

Eureka – here: a brand of soap

127

the Rambler – the name of a ship

128

the Bahamas – an archipelago of nearly 700 islands to the north of Cuba

129

Larchmont – a town in the state of New York

130

Wallack’s – a theatre in New York City, founded in 1852 by James William Wallack (1795–1864), a leading American actor and theatre manager.

131

Mazuma – here: Mammon

132

Greely – Adolphus Washington Greely (1844–1935), an American explorer of the Arctic

133

à la carte = for choice, at smb’s option

134

Hackett – a theatre in New York City, named for James Henry Hackett (1800–1871), a famous American actor.

135

per diem = a day (Latin)

136

entrées = the main course (French)

137

dimuendo con amore = gently dying away (Latin)

138

thanatopsis – here: drowsiness, laziness, lethargy

139

lethean = granting forgetfulness

140

Mukden – a city in northeastern China, the scene of the famous Battle of Mukden in 1905 during the Russo-Japanese war of 1904–1905

141

‘The Cloister and the Hearth’ – a historical novel by Charles Reade (1814–1884), an English novelist, dramatist and theatre manager

142

the Prodigal Son – a biblical character of the Old Testament

143

Crusades – participants of the Crusades, military expeditions of the 11th–13th centuries to the Holy Land, organized by the Catholic Church

144

Palisades – here: sward-bearers

145

the Sidereal System = the Star System, the Galaxy

146

Rudolf Steiner – the name of the main character coincides with the name of the famous Austrian spiritualist and the founder of antroposophy (the philosophy based on the ability of human intellect to contact spiritual worlds) Rudolf Steiner (1861–1925)

147

table d’hôte – here: a cheap restaurant with set meals for a fixed price

148

Miss Libbey – Lora Jean Libbey (1862–1924), an American writer, the author of sentimental novels

149

babel = noise

150

Himmel! = Heavens! (German)

151

Jehu – a commander of chariots, and later, in 842 BC–815 BC, the king of Israel

152

Jupiter – in Roman mythology, the chief god

153

hymeneal – adj wedding; Hymen, in Greek mythology, was the god of marriage.

154

Steeple Jack = steeplejack

155

hansom – a two-wheeled closed carriage with an elevated driver’s seat, designed by Joseph Hansom in 1834

156

foulard – light silk fabric, originally made in the Far East

157

al fresco = in the open air (Italian)

158

Tophet – an ancient ritual burial site in the eastern Mediterranean

159

radium – a radioactive silvery white metal

160

Gabriel – one of the archangels, the messenger of God; Archangel Gabriel is revered in Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

161

black and collars that buttoned behind – attire of the Protestant clergymen

162

in the ledger kept by G – here: in the book of God

163

Reverend Doctor – ‘the Reverend’ is the title of a clergyman in the Western Churches.

164

medulla oblongata – the lowest part of the brain at the base of the scull (Latin)

165

General Kitchener – Horatio Herbert Kitchener (1850–1916), a British field marshal and administrator; Kitchener became a symbol of national military victories.

166

William Muldoon (1852–1933) – an American wrestling and boxing champion and trainer

167

the Duchess of Marlborough – Sarah Jennings (1660–1744), the wife of John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, and a close friend of Queen Ann of Great Britain (1669–1714)

168

oleograph – a colour lithograph, a most popular method of colour reproduction in the second half of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries

169

caliph – a ruler of a Muslim country, usually powerful and rich

170

Cupid – in Roman mythology, the god of love

171

fauns – in Roman mythology, half-men and half-goats, gods of the woods and the fields

172

hamadryads – nymphs living inside trees and dying with them

173

Philomel – the brand name of a hand organ, the musical instrument generating sounds

174

acres – acre is a square measure equal to 4050 square metres

175

Croesus (6th century BC) – the last king of Lydia, an ancient country on the Aegean Sea, known for his great wealth

176

Eden – in the Old Testament, the biblical paradise on the Earth where the first man and woman, Adam and Eve, lived

177

incog. = incognito – with concealed identity, under an assumed name

178

bunco steerer – here: swindler

179

Fortunatus – Venantius Fortunatus (540–600), a French bishop and poet, the author of Latin poems and hymns

180

horologue = chronograph, a device for measuring time

181

Rubberneck Auto – a tour bus for sightseers; rubberneck means to drive slowly to be able to see the places of interest.

182

Russell Sage (1816–1906) – an American financier who took part in organizing the US railroad and telegraph

183

the Rialto – Rialto Bridge over the Grand Canal in Venice, built in the 16th century, with a broad deck carrying two arcades of shops

184

the Harlem River – a river in Harlem, the district in central New York City, with no fixed boundaries

185

H. P. = horse power

186

Epictetian philosophy – in Greek and Roman history, the philosophy of stoicism characterized by tranquility of mind and the mode of life based on certain moral principles

187

cardiaphone – the device for listening to the work of a human heart and other most subtle sounds

188

Bluebeard – a fictional character in European, Eastern and African folklore and Charles Perrault’s tale; he killed everybody who risked to enter the locked and forbidden room.

189

mfg. = manufacturing

190

wot = know (obsolete)

191

anthropology – the science which studies humanity in different aspects: biological, historical, cultural, evolutional, etc.

192

harlequin – one of the main characters in the Italian comedy of arts, a witty manservant

193

sacque = sack – here: a wide coat

194

Patrolman – a patrol policeman

195

a plain clothes man – an agent or detective (not wearing uniform)

196

hall bedroom – a one-room flat

197

the Flatrion Building – a famous skyscraper in Broadway, built in 1902

198

the great cathedral in Milan – Cathedral of Milan, a fine example of Gothic architecture, one of the largest churches in Europe, built in the 14th–15th centuries

199

regalia – emblems or decorations used at some occasions

200

début – the first appearance in society

201

bon vivants – people leading a merry life and enjoying it

202

habitués – usual customers or visitors

203

tulle – a party dress made of tulle, an extremely fine and soft fabric

204

vespertine – adj evening

205

cheviot – woolen fabric, slightly rough and heavy

206

beau monde – the best society, the elite

207

cotillions – cotillion is the 18th–19th century French court dance

208

wigwams – wigwam is a North American Indian dwelling consisting of a dome-shaped framework covered with mats

209

the tribe of the Manhattans – a North American Indian tribe that used to inhabit the island until 1626 when Manhattan was sold to the Dutch

210

the highway of Mammon and the auxiliary gods – here: the place where the rich live; Mammon is an ancient god of wealth.

211

to do de Johny act – here: to chase after a woman, to misbehave

212

diaphanous = semitransparent, translucent

213

troubadour – a lyric poet in Italy, France and Spain in the 11th–13th centuries

214

conservatory – a hot-house with glass roof and walls to protect plants from cold

215

impresario – a manager or sponsor of an actor, singer, etc. or an entertainment

216

calico – cotton fabric with plain designs, originated in Calicut, India, in the 11th century

217

ragtime – a musical style predominant in American popular music in the late 19th – early 20th century

218

lares et penates = native home (French)

219

polychromatic = multi-coloured

220

Huguenot – the French Protestant in the 16th–17th centuries

221

Psyche = Soul (Greek) – the personification of a human soul; in Greco-Roman mythology, a beautiful princess who aroused Cupid’s love.

222

Amazonian – from Amazon, in Greek mythology, a representative of the race of woman warriors who lived in the Black Sea area

223

cryptograph – a specialist in cryptography, the practice of using cipher with a secret code in messages

224

the worm dieth seldom – a part of the phrase from the Bible that describes the blazing inferno

225

rayjict = reject

226

the blowing of Gabriel’s dinner horn – Archangel Gabriel, the messenger of the God, according to the Old Testament texts blew a trumpet (horn)

227

‘Parsifal’ – opera by Richard Wagner, written in 1882 and based on the early 13th century epic poem of the same name, written by Wolfram von Eschenbach

228

Grecian = Greek

229

Eve-sister – any woman; in the Old Testament, Eve was the first woman on the Earth.

230

Sabine – a member of the Sabini, an ancient Italian tribe

231

Venus – in Roman mythology, the goddess of love, beauty, spring and gardens

232

Circe – 1) in Greek mythology, a sorceress, the daughter of the sun god and an ocean nymph; 2) an insidious seducer.

233

pompadour – high hair-do with a roll over the forehead, named after Marquise de Pompadour (1721–1764), the mistress of Louis XV of France

234

Persian lamb – expensive fur

235

Gabriel – in the Old Testament, and in the three religions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam, one of the archangels, God’s messenger often depicted with a trumpet

236

Tiffany(’s) – a famous luxury jewelry selling company founded in New York by Charles Lewis Tiffany and John B. Young

237

noblesse oblige = position entails responsibility(French)

238

dactylis – here: a ring with an engraving

239

Mormon – a member of the Mormon church founded in the United States by Joseph Smith (1805–1844) in 1830; the church is characterized by respect of authority and family life, desire for order, and work ethic.

240

physiopathic ward – here: ward for mentally ill patients

241

Esau – in the Old Testament, the son of Isaac who sold his birthright of the eldest son to his brother for a plate of pottage

242

she kept the lamp trimmed and burning to receive the bridegroom – in the Testament parable, the maidens kept their lamps burning to receive their heavenly bridegroom.

243

Nimrod – in the Old Testament, a biblical figure, a good hunter and a king of Assyria and Babel who is said to have built Nineveh, one of the most famous cities of the ancient world

244

Gibsonian – here: drawn by Charles Dana Gibson (1867–1945), a popular American artist and illustrator

245

Aeolian – from Aeolus, in Greek mythology, the god of the winds

246

al Raschids – Haroun al-Rashid (763–809), the fifth caliph of the Abbasid dynasty who ruled in Baghdad, the main character of ‘The Thousand and One Nights’

247

Wall Street – a short and narrow street in New York City where the main financial institutions are located, the financial centre of the United States

248

rubáiyát – in Persian literature and poetry, a quatrain, a rhymed couplet; the best known rubáiyát were written by Omar Khayyám (1048–1131), an outstanding Persian mathematician, astronomer and poet.

249

Scotch – famous whisky made of malted barley

250

Bohemia – a social group not living in a way that is considered normal or conventional in the society

251

booze = strong drink, alcoholic drink

252

sot = a heavy drinker or alcoholic

253

a dime and nickel = small coin; nickel = 5 cent coin, dime = 10 cent coin (American)

254

Sullivan County – a county in southwestern New Hampshire, US, on the border with Vermont

255

Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865) – the 16th president of the United States who abolished slavery and preserved the Union during the American Civil War

256

Darwin – Charles Darwin (1809–1882), an English naturalist, the author of the theory of evolution by natural selection

257

Chianti – dry red wine from the district of Chianti near Siena in Tuscany, Italy

258

rigadoon – the late 17th century French dance, named after its inventor, a dance teacher called Rigaud

259

banjo – a stringed musical instrument popular in the United States, brought by African slaves from their native land

260

quickstep – a dynamic dance, fast foxtrot

261

the Manhattan Elevated – the Manhattan Elevated Railroad in New York City

262

delirium tremens – the state of mental disturbance seen in severe cases of alcoholism

263

the Yalu – a river in Asia on the border between North Korea and China, the place of the battle during the Sino-Japanese War at the end of the 19thcentury

264

Aurora – in Greek and Roman mythology, the symbol of dawn and daylight

265

hymeneal = marriage (adj); in Greek mythology, Hymen is the god of marriage.

266

cherubim = pl. of cherub – in Jewish, Christian and Islamic tradition, a celestial being with wings; in the hierarchy of angels, the throne bearer of God.

267

Thanksgiving Day – the United States national holiday; its history goes back to 1621 when the English colonists celebrated the autumn harvest feast together with the Indians.

268

President Roosevelt – Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919), the 26th president of the United States in 1901–1909

269

Puritans – followers of Puritanism, a religious movement of the 16th–17th centuries that tried to ‘purify’ the Church of England

270

Plymouth Rocks – in American history, the place in southeastern Massachusetts where the first British colonists landed on December 26, 1620

271

the Magna C(h)arta – the charter of liberties granted by King John of England in 1215 to prevent the outbreak of civil war

272

Santos-Dumont – Alberto Santos-Dumont (1873–1932), a famous Brazilian aviator

273

the Declaration of Independence – the declaration adopted on July 4, 1776; it announced the independence of 13 British colonies in North America from Great Britain.