The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other Wr - Washington Irving [252]
The captain of a slave-vessel, on his first landing on the coast of Guinea, observed under a palm-tree a negro chief, sitting most majestically on a stump; while two women, with wooden spoons, were administering his favorite pottage of boiled rice; which, as his imperial majesty was a little greedy, would part of it escape the place of destination and run down his chin. The watchful attendants were particularly careful to intercept these scape-grace particles, and return them to their proper port of entry. As the captain approached, in order to admire this curious exhibition of royalty, the great chief clapped his hands to his sides, and saluted his visitor with the following pompous question—“Well, sir! what do they say of me in England?” [Irving’s note].
al
Pun on “intestate” (having no legal will).
am
Newsmongers, gossips.
an
In Greek mythology, the Titan who was condemned to hold the sky on his shoulders.
ao
Or Ramadan, ninth month of the Islamic year, in which Muslims fast from dawn to dusk to commemorate the revelation of the Qur’an to Muhammad.
ap
Celebration that occurs on the pilgrim route to Mecca.
aq
Aesop’s fable “The Frog and the Ox.”
ar
Small-minded and self-important; from English author Jonathan Swift’s satire Gulliver’s Travels (1726), in which Lemuel Gulliver is captured by the Lilliputians, a race of people who are only six inches tall.
as
Veteran soldiers who fought for the Continental army during the American Revolution.
at
Argument to the man (Latin); attacking the person giving an argument rather than attacking the argument itself.
au
Irving was named after George Washington (1732-1799), first president of the United States and commander-in-chief of the Continental army during the American Revolution.
av
Alexander III (356-323 B.C.), king of Macedon; he conquered much of Asia.
aw
The Greek painter Zeuxis (fifth century B.C.) is said to have died from laughter caused by his viewing of the picture he had completed during a competition with Parrhasius to see who could paint a more realistic picture.
ax
Quotation from Euphues and His England (1580), one book of a two-part work (with The Anatomy of Wit, 1578) by English writer John Lyly; the term “euphuism” (referring to an elaborate and artificial writing style) is derived from Lyly’s style.
ay
Profit from employment.
az
Parts unknown.
ba
List of sites in Italy commonly visited by those making a “grand tour” of Europe.
bb
From the anonymous poem “Halloo My Fancie,” found in English Minstrelsy (vol. 2, 1810), edited by Sir Walter Scott.
bc
Quotation from “The Traveler; or, A Prospect of Society” (1764), by English poet Oliver Goldsmith (line 10).
bd
Whale.
be
See the Bible, Psalms 42:7.
bf
Quotation from the 1730 tragedy Sophonisba (act 2, scene 1), by Scottish poet and dramatist James Thomson.
bg
Building that keeps books, periodicals, and such.
bh
See endnote 6 to The Sketch-Book.
bi
Diligent attention to detail.
bj
From Shakespeare’s Othello, the Moor of Venice (act 5, scene 1).
bk
Italian merchant prince (1449-1492) who ruled in the city of Florence at the height of the Renaissance.
bl
Address on the opening of the Liverpool Institution [Irving’s note].
bm
See the Bible, Exodus 16.
bn
Column erected in honor of the Roman emperor Diocletian to commemorate the conquest of Alexandria in A.D. 296.
bo
This poem was first published in Gentleman’s Magazine, vol. 86 (1816).
bp
From the 1625 tragedy Women Beware Women, by English dramatist Thomas Middleton (act 3, scene 2, lines 3-8).
bq
Charles Robert Leslie (1794-1859), biographer and painter, who illustrated scenes from Irving’s A History of New York. This sketch, however, is based on events in the life of Washington Allston (see endnote 4 to The Sketch-Book).
br
Fictional narrator of Irving’s A History of New York.
bs
Quotation from The Ordinary (1635), by English dramatist William Cartwright; Irving may have taken it from Sir Walter Scott’s 1816 novel The Antiquary (chapter 16).
bt
Heavy, ornamental printing