blacks: formal suit worn by high-class male servants
bloodbane: one of the highly toxic magic poisons used in snuffballs
blower: a chamber that uses air leeched from the city’s tubes to dry wet items
blue ruin: gin
blues: people of aristocratic birth
bookmaker: printer
braves: warrior class of native Torian people
BrewsMaid: an automatic tea maker
bronze, bronzen: a theatrical cosmetic that temporarily darkens the skin
brown: Talian currency
bruiser: a large or physically intimidating man; thug
bucks: clothing made of buckskin
bum: ass
calendula: an herbal tincture used as a topical disinfectant
care kit: first-aid kit
carri: steam-driven carriage
carriwright: maker of steam-driven carriages
cartlass: a girl or woman who sells food and/or beverages from a portable cart on the street
cashsafe: a hidden, locking recess in a private home where money and other valuables are kept
catchall: an extending/grasping device with a pinchers at one end
Church: the Torianglican Church, the only religion recognized and approved by the Crown; the Church of England
clearstone: quartz
clopboard: building siding made of planks recovered from abandoned horse barns
coal burner: engine that runs on coal
coddles: cod cut into chunks
collar: vicar
commoner: an ordinary, untitled individual; someone of low birth
conciliator: mediator
cosh: bludgeon
coin: money
crispie: potato chip
croke: croquet
Crown, the: the English monarchy as well as its authority over Toriana
crowswalk: a viewing deck that encircles the upper portion of a building
dear: costly
deathmage: magical practitioner licensed to kill
deb: debutante
detector: a magic practitioner (generally employed by the court) who uses touch to discern truthfulness
digger: miner
dink: a small or short man
dipper: strip of treated paper that changes color when exposed to poison or drugs
drawers: underwear
drips: syphilis
Druuds: mortal magic practitioners who captured and imprisoned the Aramanthans to end the mage wars
ducklings: children
echo: device used to detect hidden objects
elshy: hellchild
entitlement: inheritance of title and property
exormage: exorcist who nullifies curses and rids people and places of demon infestation
faeriestale: fantasy stories told to children
fete teller: the humblest of fortune-tellers who set up tents at village fetes to do many readings for very little money
fichu: a shoulder wrap, usually made of lace
firebrigader: fire fighter
fishncrisp: a shop that sells fish fillets fried together with potatoes cut in various shapes
flat: apartment
flathouse: a building that has been divided up into flats
Fleers: remnant members of the American rebel forces who fled west after losing the war to England
flystick: a clear glass rod containing live lightning bugs, used like a flashlight or lantern
foundling: abandoned orphan
freeclaiming: a social practice caused by the shortage of women among the original colonies, which allowed men to kidnap and hold captive unprotected or abandoned women
freedman: ex-convict
fry bread: bread fried in bacon drippings
furrin, furriners: slang for foreign, foreigners
garms: garments
gaslamp: exterior lighting powered by natural gas
gel: girl (common, casual; generally used to refer to females of the merchant class)
get the sack: be fired
gildstone: marble
ginger: woman with red hair
glass: common term for ambrotype glass plate negative
glassed: photographed
glasshield: windshield
glassies, glassines: protective, preservative glass coatings applied to documents
glasslung: terminal respiratory disease caused by inhaling sparkglass; suffered by painters and construction workers
gogs: protective eyewear
goldstone: building made of blocks of pyrite-flecked granite
gone off: suffered a mental breakdown
gowners: dressmakers who specialize in creating gowns for wealthy society women
gravecart: hearse
Great Uprising, the: Toriana’s name for the failed revolutionary war against England
Great War, the: Toriana’s version of WWI
hatch drop: manhole access to underground tunnels
hellchild: a child believed to be demon-possessed and therefore impervious to magic
Herself: slang term for the queen of England
hidey-holes: small, concealed places in houses for people to hide in or use to spy on someone
Hill, the: an area of Rumsen where most of the wealthy and titled reside
H.M.: abbreviation for Her Majesty
hothead: woman with red hair
illuminator: a device that works like a primitive film projector
Independence: freedom from English rule
johnnies: men who hire prostitutes
keroseel: a combination of seal, whale, or fish oil and kerosene
keyfob: a chain-and-loop key ring, carried by men
keylace: a ribbon key ring, worn around a woman’s wrist
kipbag: mesh tote
kneecappers: criminal enforcers who use clubs to shatter the knees of their victims
knickers: underwear
lampflies: fireflies
lass: girl (affectionate, proper)
lav: lavatory
loo: toilet
loomgel: a girl or woman who works in a menial position at a textile factory
loomworks: textile factory
loon: a mentally disturbed person
loon herder: an orderly at an asylum
loonhouse: asylum for the mentally disturbed
Lost Timers: brigades of English and Italian soldiers who became lost in the Bréchéliant forest and were there possessed by Aramanthan spirits
lungfever: slang for influenza
mage: magic practitioner
magis, magistrate: judge
maiden night: the first time a virginal woman has sex with her husband; term often used for betting purposes by men who want to break an engagement
mariners: sailors
matchit: a disposable, one-use lighter
mate: friend
mech: a mechanic; anything mechanical
mechworks: mechanical rooms
mercantile: a shop selling some variety of merchandise
mixpot: mixing bowl
mole: city underground worker
nappy: diaper, women’s panties
navyman: a current or former member of H.M.’s naval forces
necktwister: assassin
negli: negligee
netherside: the spirit world, invisible to ordinary mortals; the source of magic power
new industry: the beginning of the industrial age in Toriana
New Parliament: governing body of Torian officials who petition the Crown and enforce the Queen’s legislation; the Torian version of Congress
nightstone: a semiprecious mineral used to contain the spirits of long-dead mages and Aramanthan wizards
Nihon: Japan, Japanese
nits: head lice
nobber: private security guard hired by Hill residents to patrol their streets and keep out any undesirables
Norders: people from the North of England
nozzer: nose; a face mask used with a portable oxygen tank
nudie: a flesh-colored garment worn to give the illusion of nudity under a semitransparent gown or overgarment
Occupancy, the: a period of thirty years after the Rebellion failed during which Toriana was occupied by English troops and governed by martial law
on the stroll: working on the streets (said of prostitutes)
pain powder: a mild opiate or analgesic
partymage: a magic practitioner who uses his power to entertain
pasturelands: farm lands
penders: suspenders
physick: doctor
piesafe: kitchen cabinet where food is stored
piper: plumber
pong: stink
portents: predictions or signs of future events
portints: portraits made from ambrotype photographs that are hand-painted to colorize
posh, posher: wealthy aristocrat
poxbox: diseased prostitute
prayerhouses: the Fleers’ religious gathering places
privy: restroom
prodder: iron fireplace poker
prommy: the promenade in the city’s central park used by horseback riders and carris
pyre: crematorium
queensland, the: England
Queen’s Voice, The: the Crown’s official newspaper
questioning: police interrogation at New Scotland Yard
rasher: strip of bacon
red joy, ruddy joy: opium
redcoats: English militia
redstone: brick
reticule: purse
rondella: an automated carousel-type apparatus
rounder: a rubber carri tire
rub: massage
Rumsen: major city on the west coast of Toriana, roughly equivalent to San Francisco in the United States
satchel: tote bag carried by women
scrabbler: a person who makes a living by scavenging
scram: salvage
seeing: an act by a fortune-teller of predicting a client’s future
seeking: an act by a fortune-teller of finding someone or something
Settle: Seattle
shaman: a native Torian holy man
shopkeep: shop proprietor
short sheet: a hastily printed, illegal daily list of horse races and other events for the purpose of placing bets
silverblack: chemicals used to etch photographed images on ambrotype plates
Skirmish, the: a recent, brief naval conflict between England and Spain
slaterow: a row house with slate shingles
snuff: kill
snuffballs: hollow glass spheres filled with magically enhanced poisons like bloodbane that kill on contact, used like grenades
snuffmages: mage assassins who generally work in teams of two
Son, the: Jesus Christ
soother: chamomile herbal infusion, usually added to tea, to relax, relieve stress, and help with insomnia
Southern Church: a Baptist version of Church of England, begun in the southern provinces of Toriana, tolerated by traditionalists
sparkglass: a substance made of various minerals such as mica, galena, and silica that have been ground to a fine dust and mixed with exterior paint in order to create sparkle
spellcraft: the methods and materials used by magic practitioners to cast spells
squawks: slur for native Torian females
stones: testicles
streaky: a carri with copper sideboards from which the black paint is wearing off or has been stripped off to simulate wear
strumpet: prostitute
sweet Mary: Mary, mother of Jesus
sweets: candy
switch: wig
Talia, Talian: The Torian universe’s version of Italy, Italians
tealass: a girl or woman who sells hot tea and cakes in a café or from a street cart
teller: fortune-teller
tenner: ten-pound note
Tillers: a secret society comprising important political, business, and social figures
timepiece: watch
tinnery: a factory where fresh fish and other perishables are processed and canned in tin containers
tint: a paper-copy image printed from an ambrotype glass plate; makeup used to redden cheeks and lips
tinter: device used to imprint images on ambrotype glass plates
tintest: a professional ambrotype plate developer and tint maker
to let: available for rent; empty
tonners: members of high society
Toriana: short name for Provincial Union of Victoriana, the alternate-history name for the United States
tosser: a drunk
trade: business
trolling: looking for work
trunch: a wooden baton carried by beaters
tubes: a system of pneumatic pipes that deliver goods and food across the city
tunneler: an underground city worker who polices the subsurface tunnels and keeps the city’s tubes in operation
understair: belowground level of building; cellar or basement
unjammer: a mechanical snakelike device used to unblock tubes
uptoppers: above street level
vicar: priest of the Torianglican Church
waders: thigh-high protective rubber boots
waister: a wide cummerbund-type belt made of fabric that females wear around their waists to cover the joining of skirts and bodices
warders: magic practitioners who create protective charms and spells to protect people, possessions, and property
wardling: an object used as a protective charm
warren: a tunneler’s assigned work area
watershed: raincoat
Welshires: people from Wales
whitecart: horse-drawn conveyance used to transport the wounded to hospital or the mentally disturbed to asylum
wichcart: a street cart that sells sandwiches
willowbark: herbal remedy for headaches and hangovers (equivalent to aspirin)
winge: slang for an older, grouchy person
Yard, the: short name for New Scotland Yard
zoopraxiscope: a device that uses images on glass disks as the first form of stop-motion projection