Endnotes
A British slang term for ‘prison’.
A one-pound coin, called so because of the picture of the country’s sovereign on it.
In case you are wondering, these passages are actual quotes from the diary of Queen Victoria. This is not made up.
There is quite a bit of historical fact in this. Prince Albert waged a small war against the servants of Buckingham Palace because they apparently weren’t very good at their jobs.
Yes, it really is true: during the Victorian Era, the official polite term for sex was ‘congress’. I bet you are never going to see a congressional debate with the same eyes after this.
The tradition of the pinky swear did indeed already exist in Victorian times, as attested by this mid-19th-century rhyme:
Pinky, pinky bow-bell,
Whoever tells a lie
Will sink down to the bad place
And never rise up again
The origins of the practise are unclear, but some sources point to Japan, where the tradition usually involved having your pinky cut off if you broke the promise. For some reason, the rather more squeamish Western cultures did not include this aspect of the custom when they adopted it, however.
These views did not spring from my imagination. An article in the Hull Packet, only a few years after this story takes place, asserted practically the exact same message. Several phrases are actually quoted from this article.
This procedure is highly historically accurate, including the job names of the different crew members and every action they perform. Loading a cannon was a complicated business that involved lots of people with different tasks to do.
The currency of Argentina.
Halt! Who goes there?
Hey, Costa! Who have you got there?
Prisoners. The colonel told us to take them to the cells.
Poor bastards. Their lives ain’t worth shit now.
Yes, they're the prisoners' horses. Do you think they'd just be left to stand around idle? We've been told to bring them to the battalion out east.
May Allah forgive me for the lie and restore the innocence of my eyes!
‘The little death’ - Victorian expression for a certain nocturnal interaction between male and female.
An Arabic term, literally ‘Concealer of the Truth’, but usually translated as ‘unbeliever’, which is used by Muslims to refer to non-Muslims. It is a matter of debate in the Islamic community whether Christians and Jews should be considered unbelievers, since they do actually believe in God / Allah, but simply worship him in a different way.
A Victorian word for a lady’s breasts.
Corinthians 14:34-35, King James Version of the Bible: ‘Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience as also saith the law. And if they will learn anything, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church.’
I am aware of the fact that nowadays, ‘Indian’ or even ‘native’ are not exactly considered to be polite terms for the original inhabitants of the American continent, and that ‘indigenous people’ is the politically correct word. However, back in the 1850s, political correctness towards indigenous populations was not exactly high on anyone’s agenda, and the two former terms were much more common. Therefore, I use them here in an effort to maintain historical accuracy.
We are looking for a place. A secret place, hidden in the jungle. We need someone to guide us on safe paths. Can you do that?
No. There are men following us. Dangerous men. They want to kill us and take what we seek.
I see.
What are you offering?
I appreciate your sense of humour. However, if you do not want to end up hanging upside down from a tree with a dead snake stuffed up your ass, I suggest you refrain from jokes like this in the future.
The Derby Stakes, popularly known as The Derby, is a British horse race open to three-year-old horses. It was established in 1779 and named after Edward Smith-Stanley, 12th Earl of Derby.
Every one of those three expressions is a Victorian euphemism for ‘having sex’.
Another nice little Victorian euphemism for getting hot and sweaty with someone.
‘Penny dreadful’ was a name during the Victorian era for cheap stories (i.e. available for a penny) that were not very refined (i.e. dreadful). They were often printed as cheap leaflets and were the literature of the working masses. One of the most (in)famous and successful penny dreadfuls was a supernatural story called Varney the Vampire.
Old British slang for ‘goodbye’.
Victorian-era name for RLS (Restless legs syndrome).
Most people know El Dorado as the name of the mythical, fantastically rich city in the South American rain forest. However, it is also the name of the ruler of this mythical city, a man who supposedly covered his skin regularly in gold dust, and thus slowly collected a coating that made him the most valuable individual in the world.
Just so you know - back then, the income tax was at about three per cent.