Notes: Critical and Explanatory:
The Unhappy Mistake.
p. 477 the Jack. The small bowl placed as a mark for the players to aim at. cf. Cymbeline ii, I: ‘Was there ever man had such luck! when I kissed the jack upon an up-cast to be hit away!’
p. 477 the Block. cf. Florio (1598). ‘Buttino, a maister or mistres of boules or coites whereat the plaiers cast or playe; some call it the blocke.’
p. 495 vor Mainly be our Country Word, zure. Wright, English Dialect Dictionary, gives apposite quotations for ‘mainly’ from Gloucester, Wilts and Devon. He also has two quotations, Somerset and West Somerset for ‘main’ used adverbially. But ‘mainly’ is also quite common in that county.
p. 495 the Gun. A well-known house of call. 2 June, 1668, Pepys ‘stopped and drank at the Gun’.
p. 496 a Broad piece. This very common name was ‘applied after the introduction of the guinea in 1663 to the “Unite” or 20 shilling pieces (Jacobus and Carolus) of the preceeding reigns, which were much broader and thinner than the new milled coinage.’
APPENDIX.
The Epistle Dedicatory to Oroonoko was printed as an Appendix. In keeping with the editor’s intention (see second paragraph of Note), it has been placed immediately before the novel.
NOTES.
The Notes come immediately after their respective stories; see detailed Table of Contents, below. The heading has been retained for completeness.