О. Генри - Лучшие рассказы О. Генри = The Best of O. Henry

Caracas – the capital of Venezuela, founded in 1567

the Grand Riders – a volunteer cavalry unit formed on the initiative of President Roosevelt in 1898 during the American-Spanish war

Knickerbocker – a descendant of Dutch settlers in the state of New York

autoists = motorists ( American )

Catherine wheels – Catherine wheel is a firework in the form of a coil

victoria – an elegant four-wheeled carriage pulled by one or two horses, named for Queen Victoria and imported into Britain from France in 1869

brut – dry champagne

Governor – here: father

incog = incognito = unrecognizable, concealing one’s name, origin, appearance, etc.

pagodas – towerlike Buddhist temples in Southeast Asia, first constructed in ancient India

hoi polloi = the common people, the broad masses ( Greek )

vulgarians – here: the common people

Odyssey – an epic poem by Homer (9th–8th century BC), a great ancient Greek poet

Limerick – a popular form of a five-line verse, always humorous and often nonsensical

Pittsburgh – a city in southwestern Pennsylvania

‘Othello’ – William Shakespeare’s tragedy in five acts written in 1604

Dockstader – Lew Dockstader, an American musician of the early 20th century, leader of Dockstader’s minstrel troupe

chansonette = song, ditty ( French )

Allons! = all right then, let’s go ( French )

blasée = bored, indifferent ( French )

the milky way – a luminous band of stars and gas clouds seen from Earth across the sky

Louisville – a large city in Kentucky, founded in 1778

St. Louis – a city on the west bank of the Mississippi River in east-central Missouri

frappéd = here: indignant

Samaritans = Good Samaritans – in the New Testament, in the Gospel of Luke, Samaritans are described as people who give help and sympathy to those in distress

Pomeranian – a popular breed of toy dog, named for Pomerania, a historic region of northeastern Europe on the Baltic coast

the late Mrs. Eve = the biblical Eve, the first woman on the Earth

To h– Harlem with you = to hell with you

Solomonski – the character is named for Solomon (10th century BC), king of Israel, known for his wisdom

the Tiger – the emblem of the New York organization of the Democratic Party

manna – in the Bible, food that helped the Hebrews to survive during the 40 years of the Exodus from Egypt

Havanas = famous Havana cigars

Olympus – a mount in Greece where, according to Greek mythology, the gods live

the Eleventh – here: the Eleventh electoral district

mogul – a very rich and influential person

Moses – a Hebrew patriarch of the 14th–13th century BC who delivered his people from Egyptian slavery

soutache – a decorative braid used to outline designs

surpliced – from surplice, a loose gown with wide sleeves

basque – a frill used to decorate the waist of a dress or blouse

pompadours – here: dummies

cheviot – soft woolen fabric originally made from the wool of Cheviot sheep

Japanitis – here: strong unexplainable love for Japan

Japs = the Japanese ( contemptuous )

Yalu looloos – here: war cry; Battle of the Yalu took place on September, 17 1894.

Nippon = Japan

the Mikado – the title of the emperor of Japan

Erebus – the names of the horses

Joe – the names of the horses

King Arthur’s Knights of the Round Table – the characters of Arthurian legend of the 12th–13th centuries; the knights used the round table to make all sitting at it equal.

Ellis Island – an island in upper New York Bay, southwest of Manhattan Island in New York City, named for Samuel Ellis, a merchant, who owned it in 1770s

protozoa – a microorganism, a simple life form

denarii – monetary units of different countries

scudi – monetary units of different countries

kopecks – monetary units of different countries

pfennigs – monetary units of different countries

pilasters – monetary units of different countries

Dago – a contemptuous nickname of an Italian, a Spaniard or a Portuguese

Hun – a member of the Huns, a nomadic people, who came from Asia and invaded central Europe in the 4th century

Finns – residents of Finland

the Hackensack – a river in northeastern New Jersey west of Manhattan Island

Hongkong-on-the-Ganges – the author’s mixture of Hong Kong, a city and administrative region of China, and the Ganges, the largest river of India

Magyar = Hungarian

Bessarabia – a region in eastern Europe, bounded by the Prut River, the Dniester River, the Danube and the Baltic Sea

Polocker = a Pole

jiujitsu – Oriental martial art based on Zen philosophy

slot-restaurant – a slot machine selling food and drink

Martini – dry alcoholic drink sometimes combined with other ingredients in cocktails

ounces – ounse is a unit of weight and volume; the fluid ounce is equal to 29.54 millilitres.

Nicaragua – a Central American country on the Caribbean Sea

the Tropic of Capricorn – in geography, the latitude of 23o 27’ of the Equator; on December 21, the Sun is directly over the Tropic of Capricorn.

ad valorem – in proportion to the estimated value of goods or the agreed price