Difference between revisions of "Chapter 39: 391-398"

Latest revision as of 10:39, 26 February 2014

Page 391

Squire Haligast predicts an end...
Which indeed does seem to be what happens; see pages 389, 373 & 366.

mephitic
of, relating to, or resembling mephitis : foul-smelling <mephitic vapors>

Page 392

Henry the Eighth
Henry VIII (28 June 1491 – 28 January 1547) was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was also Lord of Ireland (later King of Ireland) and claimant to the Kingdom of France. Henry was the second monarch of the House of Tudor, succeeding his father, Henry VII. Henry VIII was a significant figure in the history of the English monarchy. Although in the great part of his reign he brutally suppressed the influence of the Protestant Reformation in England, a movement having some roots with John Wycliffe in the 14th century, he is more popularly known for his role in the separation of the Church of England from the Roman Catholic Church. From WIKI

Page 393

Annapolis
Annapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland, as well as the county seat of Anne Arundel County. It is situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, 26 miles (42 km) south of Baltimore and about 29 miles (47 km) east of Washington D.C. Annapolis is part of the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area. The city was the temporary capital of the United States in 1783–1784. From WIKI

York
York, Pennsylvania is one of many cities that lay claim to the title of First Capital of the United States, although historians generally consider it to be the fourth capital, after Philadelphia, Baltimore and Lancaster. The claim arises from the assertion that the Articles of Confederation was the first legal document to refer to the colonies as "the United States of America". The argument depends on whether the Declaration of Independence, which also uses the term, would be considered a true legal document of the United States, being drafted under and in opposition to British rule. From WIKI

Baltimore
The Maryland colonial General Assembly created the Port of Baltimore at Locust Point in 1706 for the tobacco trade. The Town of Baltimore was founded on July 30, 1729, and is named after Lord Baltimore (Cecilius Calvert), who was the first Proprietary Governor of the Province of Maryland. Cecilius Calvert was a son of George Calvert, who became the First Lord Baltimore of County Cork, Ireland in 1625. Baltimore grew swiftly in the 18th century as a granary for sugar-producing colonies in the Caribbean. The profit from sugar encouraged the cultivation of cane and the importation of food. From WIKI

Calvert Connections
See pages 225 & 301

Hogsheads of Tobacco
A tobacco hogshead was used in American colonial times to transport and store tobacco. It was a very large wooden barrel. A standardized hogshead measured 48 inches (1220 mm) long and 30 inches (760 mm) in diameter at the head (at least 550 L, depending on the width in the middle). Fully packed with tobacco, it weighed about 1000 pounds (450 kg). From WIKI

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Williamsburg
Colonial Williamsburg is the historic district of the independent city of Williamsburg, Virginia. It consists of many of the buildings that, from 1699 to 1780, formed colonial Virginia's capital. The capital straddled the boundary of two of the original shires of Virginia, James City Shire (now James City County), and Charles River Shire (now York County). For most of the 18th century, Williamsburg was the center of government, education and culture in the Colony of Virginia. It was here that Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, James Monroe, James Madison, George Wythe, Peyton Randolph, and dozens more helped mold democracy in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the United States. From WIKI

Williamsburg is now also the place where you will hear this phrase more times than you can count: "This isnt the original... but this is the way that it would have looked."

Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands. A person from Glasgow is known as a Glaswegian, which is also the name of the local dialect. Glasgow grew from the medieval Bishopric of Glasgow and the later establishment of the University of Glasgow, which contributed to the Scottish Enlightenment. From the 18th century the city became one of Europe's main hubs of transatlantic trade with the Americas. From WIKI

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The Stamp Act
The Stamp Act of 1765 (short title Duties in American Colonies Act 1765; 5 George III, c. 12) was a tax imposed by the British Parliament on the colonies of British America. The act required that many printed materials in the colonies carry a tax stamp. These printed materials were legal documents, magazines, newspapers and practically all forms of paper used throughout the colonies. Like previous taxes, the Stamp tax had to be paid in valid British currency, not in colonial paper money. The purpose of the tax was to help pay for troops stationed in North America following the British victory in the Seven Years' War. The British government felt that the colonies were the primary beneficiaries of this military presence, and should pay at least a portion of the expense. The Stamp Act met with great resistance in the colonies. From WIKI

western Black-Boy
See Alphabetical Entry

May Session of the Burgesses
The Virginia House of Burgesses was the elected lower house in the legislative assembly in the New World established in the Colony of Virginia in 1619. Over time, the name came to represent the entire official legislative body of the Colony of Virginia, and later, after the American Revolution, the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Virginia. From WIKI

Mr. Patrick Henry
Patrick Henry (May 29, 1736 – June 6, 1799)[1] served as the first post-colonial Governor of Virginia from 1776 to 1779. A prominent figure in the American Revolution, Henry is known and remembered for his "Give me Liberty, or give me Death!" speech, and as one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. Along with Samuel Adams and Thomas Paine, he is remembered as one of the most influential (and radical) advocates of the American Revolution and republicanism, especially in his denunciations of corruption in government officials and his defense of historic rights. From WIKI

See Alphabetical Entry

Raleigh's Tavern
Raleigh Tavern in Williamsburg, Virginia, gained some fame in the pre-Revolutionary War Colony of Virginia as a gathering place for the Burgesses after several Royal Governors officially dissolved the House of Burgesses, the elected legislative body, when their actions did not suit the Crown. Such dissension became more common between the end of the French and Indian War in 1763 and the outbreak of the American Revolution in 1776. From WIKI

"Vine"
Vine charcoal is created by burning sticks of wood (usually willow or linden/Tilia) into soft, medium, and hard consistencies. From WIKI

Colonel Byrd
William Byrd II (28 March 1674 – 26 August 1744) was a planter and author from Charles City County, Virginia. He is considered the founder of Richmond, Virginia. From WIKI GoogleBooks Google

tall red-headed youth... "Tom"
This is Thomas Jefferson. Dixon toasts "to the pursuit of Happiness" and a young man named Tom asks if can use that phrase some time, which Thomas Jefferson did in the Declaration of Independence. The passage continues to confirm that this is Jefferson by discussing his interest in surveying, which was a very real interest of Jefferson's.

As a political philosopher, Jefferson was a man of the Enlightenment and knew many intellectual leaders in Britain and France. He idealized the independent yeoman farmer as exemplar of republican virtues, distrusted cities and financiers, and favored states' rights and a strictly limited federal government. Jefferson supported the separation of church and state and was the author of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom (1779, 1786). He was the eponym of Jeffersonian democracy and the co-founder and leader of the Democratic-Republican Party, which dominated American politics for 25 years. Jefferson served as the wartime Governor of Virginia (1779–1781), first United States Secretary of State (1789–1793), and second Vice President (1797–1801). From WIKI

Professor Fry
Colonel Joshua Fry (1699-1754) was a surveyor, adventurer, mapmaker, member of the House of Burgesses, and soldier. Born in Crewkerne, Somersetshire, England, he moved to Essex County, Virginia as a young man to marry the wealthy widow Mary Micou Hill, who bore him five children who grew to adulthood, viz., John, Henry, Martha, William, and Margaret. In 1743-1744 Fry and his family moved to the not-yet-established Albemarle County, Virginia to claim unclaimed plots of land and take advantage of surveying opportunities. There he built a house called Viewmont that sat on a 800-acre (3.2 km2) plantation bordering the Hardware River. Fry, along with fellow member of the Loyal Land Company, Peter Jefferson, created the famous Maryland-Virginia Fry-Jefferson Map in 1752. From WIKI

Page 396

Carolinians
The Province of Carolina from 1663 to 1712, was a colony of British America, controlled by the Lords Proprietary, a group of eight English noblemen led informally by member Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury. Dissent over governance of the province led to the appointment of a deputy governor to administer the northern half of the colony in 1691. The division between North and South became complete in 1712, but both colonies remained in the hands of the same group of proprietors. A rebellion against the proprietors broke out in 1719 which led to the appointment of a royal governor for South Carolina in 1720. After nearly a decade in which the British government sought to locate and buy out the proprietors, both North and South Carolina became royal colonies in 1729. From WIKI

Norfolk
Norfolk grew in the late 1600s as a "Half Moone" fort was constructed and 50 acres were acquired in exchange for 10,000 pounds of tobacco. The House of Burgesses established "Towne of Lower Norfolk County" in 1680. In 1691, a final county subdivision took place when Lower Norfolk County split to form Norfolk County (present day Norfolk, Chesapeake, and parts of Portsmouth) and Princess Anne County (present day Virginia Beach). Norfolk was incorporated in 1705 and in 1736, George II granted Norfolk a royal charter as a borough. By 1775, Norfolk developed into what contemporary observers argued was the most prosperous city in Virginia. It was an important port for exporting goods to the British Isles and beyond. In part because of its merchants' numerous trading ties with other parts of the British Empire, Norfolk served as a strong base of Loyalist support during the early part of the American Revolution. After fleeing the colonial capitol of Williamsburg, Lord Dunmore, the Royal Governor of Virginia, tried to reestablish control of the colony from Norfolk. Dunmore secured small victories at Norfolk but was forced into exile by the American rebels, commanded by Colonel Woodford. His departure brought an end to more than 168 years of British colonial rule in Virginia. From WIKI

Paronomasia
Fancy word for pun

Page 397

"Leg before Wicket"
In the sport of cricket, leg before wicket (LBW) is one of the ways in which a batsman can be dismissed. An umpire will rule a batsman out LBW under a complex series of circumstances that primarily include the ball striking the batsman's body (usually the leg) when it would otherwise have continued on to hit the wicket. The LBW rule is designed to prevent a batsman simply using his body to prevent the ball from hitting the wicket (and so avoid being bowled out) rather than using his bat to do so. From WIKI

It's usage in M&D, however, is anachronistic. The LBW rule was not introduced until 1788, 21 years after the line had been run: "On 30 May 1788, the Marylebone Cricket Club, which had been formed by the leading noblemen and gentlemen playing the game just one year before, produced its first Code of Laws... Previously, as cricket uses a hard ball and leg-pads were not used, players would naturally play with their legs away from the wicket. As batsmen started to wear pads, they became willing to cover their stumps with their legs to prevent the ball hitting the stumps and bowling them out. Therefore a "leg before wicket" rule was introduced so that a batsman preventing the ball hitting his stumps with his legs would be out." From WIKI

"Urania"
In Greek mythology, Urania was the muse of astronomy and astrology. Some accounts list her as the mother of the musician Linus. She is usually depicted as having a globe in her left hand. She is able to foretell the future by the arrangement of the stars. She is often associated with Universal Love and the Holy Spirit. She is dressed in a cloak embroidered with stars and keeps her eyes and attention focused on the Heavens. Those who are most concerned with philosophy and the heavens are dearest to her. From WIKI

Newcastle Pit Men playing at Quoits

A game similar to horseshoes played with quoits (from the middle english coyte, flat stone) particular to the Northeast. (source: thefreedictionary.com) Quoits (koits, kwoits) is a traditional game which involves the throwing of metal, rope or rubber rings over a set distance, usually to land over or near a spike (sometimes called a hob, mott or pin). The sport of Quoits encompasses several distinct variations. From WIKI

Is there a significance to the choice of quoiting over a pistol dual between Dixon and Fabian, which is independent of Dixon's religious pacifism?

Superficially, the game resembles the West Line: an invisible line defined by staked points along which objects (stones) fly. One could note the same, of course, about a duel -- so perhaps there is some other significance in the choice of quoit?

Ah, perhaps one point is that quoiting might be more 'civilized' a resolution since no one can be killed? MKOHUT 11:55, 16 September 2007 (PDT)

...the Metal hurtling thro' the Air, even, if you listen closely enough, a certain Hum--
In parallel with the above discussion of the game resembling the West Line: The quoits themselves (like bullets from a dueling pistol or launched rockets) travel an arc through the air,the path of which creates a gravitational rainbow. This would appear to be another allusion to the rockets in Gravity's Rainbow, especially considering the distinct noise that preempts the arrival of some of the rockets in GR. See also 378

the Rencontre
The Match

Joppa
Joppa, Maryland in Harford County, Maryland is now a planning region for the county, but there was originally a town at the center called Joppa. Joppa was founded as a British colonial settlement in the early 1700s, and takes its name from the biblical town of Joppa (Jaffa, Israel). The town of Joppa, on the Gunpowder River traded internationally in agricultural products, especially tobacco. At its peak, the port was home to about 50 homes, a church, prison, inns, shops, schools, armament factories, and warehouses. However, with the rise of Baltimore and Annapolis, Joppa declined as a port, and was slowly abandoned. From WIKI

Head of Elk
See pages 337 & 390.

Annotation Index