sweep—a long oar
Fontainbleau—a town in northern France, near Paris; the site of a palace of former kings of France.
Montereau—town in northern France, on the Seine southeast of Paris.
Mencken—H.L. (1880–1956); U.S. writer, editor, and critic.
He had a pile of saucers in front of him—As each saucer represents one drink brought by the waiter, Stone has been drinking for a long time.
porto—port, a sweet fortified wine usually served after a meal.
Lenglen—Suzanne Lenglen (1899–1938); Wimbledon singles champion 1919–1923.
the Lilas—Closerie des Lilas, a café.
the Ritz—a Parisian hotel founded by Cesar Ritz (1850–1918), Swiss hotel owner.
little chickens—young girlfriends.
we that live by the sword shall perish by the sword—paraphrase of Matthew 26:52.
Hardy—Thomas (1840–1928); English novelist and poet.
Anatole France—pseudonym of Jacques Anatole Francois Thibault (1844–1924); French novelist and literary critic.
Lourdes—a town in southwestern France to which Roman Catholics travel so as to be healed of injuries, illnesses, and so on.
