A.M.D.G. Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam (To the Greater Glory of God), the motto of the Jesuit order; Stephen and his fellow students were instructed to place the initials A.M.D.G. at the tops of all their school exercises and essays.
ablative singular the case that contains the ending of the object of the preposition.
Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam To the Greater Glory of God. This is the motto of the Jesuit order; students are usually instructed to place the initials A.M.D.G. at the tops of all their papers.
the anatomy theatre the room where anatomy was taught; usually a large room with seats in tiers.
an answer to the canon an answer to the clergy's condemnation of Parnell.
Ay bedad! Irish for "by God!"
beggars who importuned him for a lob beggars asking for only a small coin.
Billy with the lip William J. Walsh, archbishop of Dublin; he worked in league with Parnell for land reform but refused to give Parnell vocal or political support when the O'Shea scandal broke.
black twist coarse, black tobacco leaves twisted together.
the Blessed Sacrament the consecrated bread, or wafer.
boatbearer he who carries the container with the dry incense during mass.
Bonum est in quod tendit appetitus. The good is that toward which the appetite tends.
a bowl of beeftea a bowl of rich bouillon, or beef broth.
the boy who could sing a come-all-you The boy could sing popular pub songs.
The Bride of Lammermoor one of Sir Walter Scott's most popular historical romances.
The Calico Belly a satiric play on words. Julius Caesar wrote De Bello Gallico (The Gallic War), a work that is often taught in Latin classes.
camaun a piece of hurling equipment resembling a field hockey stick.
the catafalque a raised structure on which a corpse is laid out for viewing.
catechism a series of questions and answers containing the summing up and the key principles of Catholicism.
censer the vessel in which the incense is burned.
chasuble a sleeveless, outer garment worn by the priest who celebrates the mass.
the christian brothers The reference is to Dublin's Christian Brothers' School, an inexpensive day school for boys.
the ciborium the container for the consecrated wafers.
the clumsy scullion the clumsy kitchen servant.
condemned to death as a whiteboy Whiteboys were somewhat like eighteenth-century KKK members; they wore white garbs at night and threatened Protestant landlords who were raising rents inordinately.
the Confiteor I confess; a formalized prayer said at the beginning of the Roman Catholic Mass.
Contrahit orator, variant in carmine vates. A speaker concludes; poets vary in their rhymings.
Corpus Domini nostri the Body of our Lord; the words spoken before serving the Host, or wafer, during communion.
The Count of Monte Cristo a nineteenth-century novel about a handsome hero, Edmond Dantes, who is about to be married to his beautiful and beloved Mercedes when he is falsely accused of treason and imprisoned for fourteen years. He arranges a highly unlikely but melodramatically thrilling escape; then he unearths a treasure which finances several ingenious schemes of revenge on the men responsible for his imprisonment. The multiple allusions to Mercedes, Marseilles, sunny trellises, and moonlit gardens all refer to this novel.
Credo ut vos sanguinarius mendax estis . . . quia facies vostra monstrat ut vos in damno malo humore estis. I believe that you are a bloody liar . . . because your face looks as though you're in a damned bad mood.
the crimped surplices stiffly folded, white linen gowns worn over priests' cassocks.
