May 1887
We may not use the Oxford English Dictionary much in these quarters, but then again we do not really need to. It has been a long tradition within the inner city of London to speak our own dialect, or perhaps even a language. Something those learned men in Oxford could use as an example of colorful and useful language. I see you are already curious about our ways, well then you might as well learn our language. Here is a small list of commonly used London expressions. Be warned though, if these words and expressions slip into your vocabulary you will not be allowed into London's higher circles anymore. Well, not unless you plan to shine their shoes and mend their dresses. If you happen to find yourself in Ms. Miggs' public house, then perhaps you can entertain us with your interpretation of our slang.
May 1887
You have heard me speak of London in previous articles and I must assume that this city might still be quite a mystery to you. Rumor has it that most of the casual passers by of these pages live very far away from the capitol city of Great Brittain. Fear not, we will soon rectify this gap with some small articles of both historical and entertaining value. We will guide you through the streets of London through the experienced eyes of Don Manoel Gonzales, a traveler from Lisbon. Don Manoel Gonzales is the assumed name of the writer of a "Voyage to Great Britain, containing an Account of England and Scotland," which was first printed in the first of the two folio volumes of "A Collection of Voyages and Travels, compiled from the Library of the Earl of Oxford" (Robert Harley, who died in 1724, but whose industry in collection was continued by his son Edward, the second Earl), "interspersed and illustrated with Notes." These volumes, known as the "Harleian Collection," were published in 1745 and 1746. The narrative was reproduced early in the present century in the second of the seventeen quartos of John Pinkerton's "General Collection of the best and the most interesting Voyages and Travels of the World" (1808-1814), from which this account of London is taken. The writer does here, no doubt, keep up his character of Portuguese by a light allusion to "our extensive city of Lisbon," but he forgets to show his nationality when speaking of Portugal among the countries with which London has trade, and he writes of London altogether like one to the City born, when he describes its inner life together with its institutions and its buildings.
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December 1886
After this elaborate and might I say tiring night with my benefactor I started the day as a shop-clerk in Mr. Hubbard's store. It was his intention to have me work behind the counter selling watches and taking in broken ones before being allowed to touch the internals of the delicate time-pieces. It is his opinion that I need more experience feeling my way through polite subtle human interaction before I can learn the subtleties of machines. For the life of me I can't figure out why I have to learn about people before I can learn about machines but at this point in time it seems better to play along. Early the next day I woke up in the room that would mine from then on.
