The Country of the Blind and other Selected Stories Read online

West Kensington: Residential area of London, bordering the Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and now part of the borough of Hammersmith and Fulham.

  Andy Sawyer

  Glossary

  Where cited OED is the Oxford English Dictionary (second edition).

  A. B.: Able Seaman.

  affection: In the sense of something influencing or affecting the eyes in ‘The Remarkable Case of Davidson’s Eyes’.

  albumens: Albumen is egg-white or similar tissue.

  Aldebaran: Bright reddish star in the constellation Taurus (The Bull). alisphenoid: Bone at the base of the skull.

  ambuscade: Ambush.

  Antares: Bright red star in the constellation Scorpio (The Scorpion).

  Antipodes Island: Island south of New Zealand, the closest land to the ‘antipodes’ or opposite point to Britain on the globe.

  a priori: ‘From the former’ (Latin): a term used in reasoning to argue from cause to effect.

  Argonauts: The crew of the ship Argo, captained by Jason in the Greek legend.

  Aurora: Dawn, but the capital (in ‘A Dream of Armageddon’) suggests the personified figure of the Greek goddess of the same name.

  axis fibre: Cell through which impulses are transmitted.

  Baffin’s Bay: Or Baffin Bay, a stretch of sea to the west of Greenland between the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans.

  ball governors: Device which regulates the speed of a steam engine by adjusting the flow of steam.

  bath-chair. Chair on wheels for invalids.

  black art: Magic.

  blackleg: Someone who works while his colleagues are on strike.

  blastopore: Opening in an embryo which will develop into the mouth or anus.

  Bogota: Capital of Colombia.

  bosh: Nonsense (slang).

  buckram: Coarse, stiffened linen cloth.

  bulldog: Short brierwood pipe.

  burthen: Alternative spelling for ‘burden’ or load.

  cab-runner: Someone who calls cabs for gentlemen in hopes of a tip.

  Cachalot: Sperm whale.

  Capella: Bright yellow star in the constellation Auriga (The Charioteer).

  capelline: Hood-like garment, especially for evening wear.

  capo: Short for ‘Captain’ or ‘Capitan’ (Spanish), but could simply mean ‘boss’.

  Capricorn: Tropic of Capricorn, latitude at 23o 2 6’ 2.2.” south of the Equator (which runs through southern Africa).

  caramba: Spanish exclamation of delight or surprise. It may be a euphemism for carajo, ‘penis’.

  casa: House (Spanish).

  cephalopods: Molluscs such as octopus or cuttle-fish, with tentacles attached to the head.

  chapped: Cracked.

  charabancs: Omnibuses, especially for tourists (from the French char-à-bancs, meaning ‘benched carriages’).

  Charon: In ancient Greek legend, the ferryman who took the souls of the dead across the River Styx.

  chloroform: Began to be used as an anaesthetic in 1847.

  cockney: Londoner, strictly one ‘born within the sound of Bow Bells’.

  Cordilleras: Mountain ranges.

  coruscating: Flashing.

  Cotopaxi: Volcano in Ecuador, about 150 miles from the sea.

  coup d’état: Sudden attempt at overthrowing a government or authority by force (French).

  cramming: Learning for an examination.

  Creole: Descendant of European settlers of mixed blood in Brazil and the Americas generally.

  cretonnes: Printed cloth, originally from Creton in France.

  ‘crib-hunting’: Looking for a job: ‘crib’ being a contemporary slang expression for ‘position’ or ‘job’.

  cribs: Previously-prepared answers.

  crinoid: Plant-like sea animals (such as the sea lily).

  crosiers: Staffs held by bishops to signify their pastoral roles, suggested by the rolled tops of the ferns which resemble such staffs.

  cryohydrates: ‘A solid hydrate formed by the combination of a salt or other crystalloid with water (ice) at a temperature below freezing-point’ (OED).

  cuberta: Small sailing-boat used on the Amazon river (Spanish).

  cutaneous: Affecting the skin.

  davits: Small cranes on the side or stern of a ship by which boats may be raised or lowered.

  detni-john: Large slender-necked glass bottle enclosed in wicker-work, frequently used to hold spirits such as rum.

  deputy-lieutenant: Deputy to the Lord-Lieutenant of an English county, an honorary post whose responsibilities include acting as representative of the Monarch and chairing legal and taxation committees.

  devil’s tattoo: The act of drumming, tapping or thumping, often used to describe rapping on a table with one’s fingers to express irritation or impatience.

  diatoms: Single-celled vegetable organisms.

  Dis: Roman name for the Greek god Hades or Pluto, god of the underworld.

  éclat: Energetic display (French).

  electrometers: Instruments for ascertaining the quality and quantity of electricity in an electrified body.

  Elysian Fields: Abode of the dead in Greek mythology.

  en rapport: In communication (French).

  epicycles: Circles whose centres move round in the circumference of a greater circle, as rotating planets revolve around the sun.

  Faraglioni: Craggy islets, one of Capri’s most famous tourist attractions.

  forecastle: Also fo’c’sle; upper deck of a ship forward of the foremast, where the crew’s living-quarters were situated.

  frangible: Breakable.

  furies: Monsters from Greek mythology and the embodiments of revenge.

  Futurus: (To) the future (Latin).

  galvanometer. Apparatus for detecting the existence, direction and intensity of a galvanic (electric) current.

  ganglion cell: A ganglion is a collection of nerve cells.

  genus: Next highest classification of animal or vegetable life above the single species.

  Great Bear. Ursa Major, the constellation also known as The Plough or Big Dipper.

  grog: Rum and water, traditionally drunk by sailors.

  Grotta del Bove Marino: On the north coast of Capri, known as the cave of the ‘Sea-cow’ because of the noise generated by waves during storms.

  harpies: Monsters from Greek mythology with the heads and bodies of women and with the wings and claws of vultures.

  Hedon: Name signifying ‘pleasure’ (Greek).

  Hercules: Constellation named after the Ancient Greek hero.

  Himmel: Heaven (German).

  Hindustan: Modern India.

  holland aprons: Made from brown linen cloth originally manufactured in Holland.

  hypophosphites: Compounds containing phosphorous and hydrogen. In combination with other chemicals, they can be explosive.

  impressed: Press-ganged, or forced into service.

  incubus: Vampiric demon which preys upon sleeping people.

  intercalary: ‘Inserted’ as a leap-year inserts an extra day (Z9 February) into the calendar.

  ironclads: Warships plated with metal for defence in war.

  Ischia: Largest island in the Bay of Naples, on the far side of the bay from Capri.

  Isle of the Sirens: The Grotte delle Sirene on the Sorrento peninsula is supposed to be the cave from which the Sirens, in Homer’s Odyssey, lured sailors with the sweetness of their songs.

  jack-o’-lantem: Or ‘will-o’-the-wisp’; light caused by the natural combustion of methane drifting around swamps, associated with stories about spirits leading travellers astray.

  jigger. In nautical terms, apparatus used to secure cables for hoisting equipment on or off the ship; also a tropical flea.

  jobbing... appointments: Using influence to secure positions for his favourites.

  Juggernaut: Title given to the Hindu god Krishna, and by extension a vast overwhelming object or force, after the huge wagon on which a statue of Krishna was drawn through the streets of the In
dian town of Puri on the Bay of Bengal. Frequent accidental deaths of devotees gave rise to a myth that they threw themselves under the wheels of the wagon to gain the god’s favour.

  knacker’s yard: Slaughterhouse for worn-out horses.

  Kümmel: German liqueur flavoured with cumin and caraway seeds.

  latninaria: Type of seaweed.

  lascar. Asian seaman.

  leading-strings: Reins to guide and keep safe children learning to walk.

  lenticel: Lens-shaped spots on tree bark, around the pores.

  Lisle hose: Stockings made from smooth cotton fabric named after Lille in France.

  loggia: Open, elevated gallery (Italian).

  Manitoba: Canadian province west of the Great Lakes.

  ‘mesoblast’: Middle layer of the bodily structure.

  mesoblastic somites: Middle layers of the body segments of embryos from which develop the skeleton and the muscular and connective tissues.

  microlepidoptera: Informal rather than scientific term for small moths.

  middy: Short for midshipman; junior non-commissioned officer or young cadet.

  Monte Solaro: Highest point on the island of Capri, in the Bay of Naples.

  monitor. Ironclad gunboat.

  mumchancer. From ‘mumchance’; to be sullenly silent (originally referring to mime or masquerade).

  muslin: Thin cotton cloth of open weave.

  nefas: Monster (Latin).

  niente: Nothing (Italian).

  Nobel prize: The Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel (1833–96) established a Foundation to award prizes for achievement in various categories, including Literature. Prizes have been awarded since 1901.

  odium theologicum: ‘Hatred of the kind which proverbially characterizes theological disputes’ (OED).

  opera hat. Collapsible tall hat.

  opium: Frequently used as an anaesthetic or for pain relief.

  Orion: Constellation named after the Greek hero Orion, the Hunter.

  ostended: Revealed.

  ovum: Egg.

  pachydermatous: Thick-skinned (like an elephant).

  Palaeolithic: Early Stone Age, roughly two million to ten thousand years ago.

  Panama hat: Wide-brimmed hat made from fine straw or similar material.

  pannikin: Small pan or drinking vessel.

  pantoum: A Malayan verse form. The beginning and ending rhyme are identical, here pointing out the circular form of ‘The Man who could work Miracles’.

  pariah dog: Indian ownerless dog; ‘pariah’ also means outcaste.

  paroquets: Variant spelling of ‘parakeets’ (small parrots).

  peccant. Offending, from the Latin peccare, to transgress, mistake or sin.

  perfect transport: Rapture or fit of strong emotion.

  personalities: Personal remarks.

  pharmacopoeia: ‘Stock’ of medical drugs and compounds.

  placoid: Plate-like scales, as of fishes.

  Pleiades: Cluster of stars (also known as The Seven Sisters) in the constellation Orion.

  pneumatics: Study of the mechanical properties of gases.

  Pole Star: Polaris, or the North Star; the last star in the tail of the constellation Ursa Minor (The Little Bear) which marks the North Celestial Pole.

  Pollux: One of the two main stars (the other is Castor) in the constellation Gemini (The Twins), named after mythological heroes.

  post-prandial: After-dinner.

  pot-banks: Local term for the potteries of the Stoke-on-Trent area.

  Preventive Service: Old term for the Coast Guard, originally established to prevent smuggling.

  privet: Shrub often used for hedges in suburban gardens.

  prognathous: Having projecting jaws, a suggestion of the ‘primitive’.

  pteropods: Marine molluscs with a modified foot that acts as a kind of fin.

  puddlers’ furnaces: Furnaces in which ‘pig-iron’ is purified into ‘wrought-iron’.

  puttees: Strips of cloth wound in a spiral from ankle to knee, worn as leggings by soldiers.

  rancho: Hut or hovel (Spanish). The North American term ‘ranch’, meaning extensive farm, is derived from this.

  Rangoon: Capital city of Burma, now Yangon.

  ranunculus: Family of flowering plants including the crowfoot, lesser celandine, and buttercup.

  Regulus: Brightest star of the constellation Leo (The Lion).

  Rhodian arch: In Greek legend, the island of Rhodes was guarded by a colossal animated statue of bronze, one of the Seven Wonders of the World.

  rocker microtome: Instrument for cutting material in very thin slices for examination under a microscope.

  rouleau: The cylinder (French) of money given Eden earlier, in ‘The Story of the late Mr Elvesham’.

  St Lawrence valley: The St Lawrence river flows through Canada eastwards from the Great Lakes to the Gulf of St Lawrence.

  salaamed: Bowed in greeting; from the Arabic Salaam Aleikum (Peace be upon you).

  sconces: Ornamental brackets for carrying a light.

  sea lilies: Animals related to starfish but attached to rocks by thin stalks.

  seidlitz-powder: Mild laxative or remedy for over-indulgence, named after a German spa-town.

  senior wranglers: Cambridge graduates who had come top of the list of Part 2 of the Mathematical Tripos.

  shake-up: OED gives shake-down for a makeshift bed.

  Sirius: Blue-white ‘Dog Star’, in the constellation Canis Major (The Great Dog), is the brightest star in the sky.

  skerry: Stretch of rocks or reef, covered at high tide.

  slop suit: Overalls.

  snatch division: Unexpected vote, with the result that the Government in ‘The Door in the Wall’ has not made sure that enough of its supporters are present to enable it to win comfortably.

  solar corona: Light around the disc of the sun, visible during an eclipse.

  somnambulistic: Sleep-walking.

  Southern Cross: Constellation only visible in the southern hemisphere.

  spectroscope: Instrument (especially used in astronomy) to analyse the chemical makeup of an object by means of the light it emits. Invented in 1859 by Gustav Robert Kirchhoff (1824–87) and Robert Wilhelm Bunsen (1811–99).

  spin-drift: Continuous driving spray whipped up from the sea.

  spiring: Shooting or sprouting like plants.

  spirit-lamps: Fed by methylated or other spirits.

  stoker: Person whose job it is to shovel fuel into the furnace of steamships, railway engines, etc.

  Styx: River which the souls of the dead had to cross to reach the Underworld (see note 2 to ‘Under the Knife’).

  talus: Slope of loose material fallen from a cliff-face.

  tamarisk: Shrub often used for hedges in suburban gardens.

  tapestry: Imitative of decorated woven or embroidered textiles.

  taxidermic material: Material for preparing, stuffing and mounting dead animals for display.

  temerarious: Heedless, rash or haphazard.

  tender. Carriage behind a locomotive engine which carries fuel and water for it.

  Terceira: Third largest island of the Azores group in the North Atlantic.

  thaumaturgisP. Worker of magic.

  Theriomorpha: Victorian (largely superseded) classification of mammal-like reptiles which flourished in the Early Mesozoic age, about 245 million years ago.

  Titans: Giants in Greek mythology, children of Uranus and Gaea.

  Trappistine: Liqueur made by the Trappist order of monks originally founded at the Abbey of La Trappe in France.

  Tropic of Capricorn: See Capricorn.

  truckle-bed: Low bed running on castors, which can be stored away when not in use.

  tuyères: Also known as ‘twyers’, pipes through which air enters a blast furnace (French).

  unpaired: When Members of Parliament are not going to be present at a vote, they arrange to be ‘paired’ with members of the opposite party who would have voted the opposite way.
In this way their votes cancel out.

  vans: Blades or leading-edges for the aircraft’s screw-propellers in ‘The Argonauts of the Air’.

  Vega: In the constellation Vega or Lyra (The Lyre), the fifth brightest star in the sky.

  velveteen: Fabric consisting of poor-quality velvet, consisting largely of cotton instead of silk.

  vertebrata: Backboned animals.

  vertebrated: With a backbone.

  vestry-meeting: Meeting of Church parishioners (from ‘vestry’, the room where the clergy and choir stored their robes) or the more secular Parish Council, part of the British system of local government.

  villas: Small (suburban) houses.

  viperine: Like the viper (or adder), the only poisonous British snake, identified by a ‘V-shaped marking on the head.

  viscus: One of the soft internal organs.

  vittles: Food (pronounced thus, but spelled ‘victuals’).

  Walpurgis Night: 30 April, or May Day Eve. In German folklore, it is traditionally a festival for witches.

  welkin: Sky.

  Welsh rarebit: Traditional Welsh dish of melted cheese on toast.

  the whip: Official of a political party responsible for seeing that its members turn out for Parliamentary votes.

  Whitsun week: The week beginning with Whit Sunday or Pentecost, the seventh Sunday after Easter.

  whurryballoo: Clamour or uproar (a variant of ‘hullabaloo’).

  Widdy, Widdy Way: Children’s street game in which the person who is ‘on’ chases the others.

  zodiacal light: Glow (caused by reflected light from interplanetary dust) seen in the sky after dusk.

  Notes

  Quotations from the Bible are from the Authorized Version.

  THE LORD OF THE DYNAMOS

  1. Camberwell: District of London south of the Thames, now part of the London Borough of Southwark. The City & South London Railway, London’s first deep underground electric railway, was opened in 1890 although the generators that powered it were not actually in Camberwell, but nearby Stockwell.

  2. Carnot’s cycle: Principle formulated by the French physicistNicholas Leonard Sadi Carnot (1796–1832), describing the cycles of expansion and contraction in an ideal ‘heat-engine’(engine powered by heat).

  3. Azuma-zi: Azuma is a Japanese name (meaning ‘east’), but there is no particular significance here other than to evoke the ‘mysterious East’.