Brown of Moukden: A Story of the Russo-Japanese War

by Herbert Strang

  *Glossary*

  C=Chinese, P=Pidgin-English, R=Russian. The Chinese substitute _l_ for_r_, and add the terminations _-ee_, _-um_, and _-lo_ to many words.

  _ach_ (R), oh, ah.

  _allo_ (P), all, every.

  _artel_ (R), a society of workers formed on co-operative principles.

  _barin_ (R), lord, gentleman.

  _batiushki_ (R) = By Jove!

  _belongey_ (P), often equivalent simply to the verb to be.

  _bimeby_ (P), by and by, afterwards.

  _bobbely_ (P), noise, uproar.

  _bottom-side_ (P), down, below.

  _bozhe moi_ (R), good heavens!

  _cash_ (C), small copper coins carried on strings.

  _catchee_ (P), to get, have.

  _ch'hoy_ (P), an exclamation.

  _chop-chop_ (P), quickly.

  _chow-chow_ (P), food.

  _Chunchuse_ (more strictly _Hunhutze_: C), literally red-beard: the namegiven to the organized bandits of Manchuria.

  _compradore_ (Portuguese), superintendent of a European's native staff.

  _da_ (R), an exclamation; literally "yes!"

  _droshky_ (R), single-horse carriage.

  _dushenka_ (R), little soul: a term of endearment.

  _-ee_, a pidgin-English termination.

  _eka_ (R), an exclamation: "there now!"

  _Fa-lan-sai_ (P), French.

  _fangtse_ (C), cottage.

  _fan-kwei_ (C), foreign devil.

  _fan-tan_ (C), a game: the players stake on the remainder when anunknown number of cash is divided by 4.

  _fan-yun_ (C), foreigner.

  _feng-shui_ (C), the geomantic influences of the earth, determining theluckiness or unluckiness of places.

  _first-chop_ (P), best, excellently.

  _flend_ (P), friend.

  _fo'_ (P), four, for.

  _folin_ (P), foreign.

  _galaw_ (P), a common exclamation.

  _gorodovoi_ (R), policeman.

  _gospodin_ (R), sir.

  _graf_ (R), count

  _he_ (P), he, she, it, they, him, her.

  _Ingoua_ (C), English.

  _kopeck_ (R), silver or copper coin: 100 kopecks make 1 rouble.

  _kow-tow_ (P), to bow humbly.

  _li_ (C), a Chinese mile: about one-third of an English mile.

  _ling-ch'ih_ (C), capital punishment by slicing.

  _littee_ (P), little.

  _look-see_ (P), look, examine.

  _lowdah_ (P), captain of a junk.

  _Lusski_ (P), Russian.

  _mafoo_ (C), groom.

  _makee_ (P), make, do.

  _Melican_ (P), American.

  _moujik_ (R), peasant.

  _muchee_ (P), very.

  _my_ (P), I, me, my, mine.

  _nichalnik_ (R), station-master.

  _no can do_ (P), cannot.

  _nu_ (R), well!

  _numpa_ (P), number: numpa one, first-rate.

  _och_ (R), oh!

  _one-tim'_ (P), once.

  _ph'ho_ (C), an exclamation.

  _pidgin_ (P), business: pidgin-English, English as spoken by Chinese atthe ports.

  _piecee_ (P), used with numerals: _one piecee man_=a or one man.

  _ping-ch'wahn_ (C), gunboat.

  _plopa_ (P), proper: allo plopa, all right.

  _rouble_ (R), the standard money (paper) of Russia: ten roubles=aBritish sovereign.

  _samovar_ (R), tea-urn.

  _sampan_ (C), a Chinese punt.

  _savvy_ (P), know, understand.

  _side_ (P), place, direction: this-side, here; that-side, there;what-side, where.

  _so-fashion_ (P), in that way.

  _suttingly_ (P), certainly.

  _tael_ (C), a coin (rarely seen) worth 6s. 6d.

  _that-side_ (P), there.

  _that-tim'_ (P), then.

  _this-side_ (P), here, hither.

  _tim'_ (P), time.

  _tinkee_ (P), think.

  _Toitsche_ (P), _i.e._ Deutsche, German.

  _too_ (P), very.

  _topside_ (P), above, superior; in the head.

  _troika_ (R), three-horsed vehicle.

  _verst_ (R), two-thirds of English mile.

  _vodka_ (R), brandy made of barley.

  _wailo_ (P), away, to go away, run away.

  _wantchee_ (P), to want.

  _what-for_ (P), why.

  _what-side_ (P), where.

  _what-tim'_ (P), when.

  _yamen_ (C), mandarin's residence and office: yamen-runners, equivalentto English bailiffs, but a very inferior class.

  _yinkelis_ (P), English.

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