The Two Georges Richard Dreyfuss Harry Turtledove 0-312-85969-4 1996 The combination of British history, American history, and classical references in THE TWO GEORGES cries out for annotation.  I am happy to oblige. Abbreviations:  IOW (in our world), AR (American Revolution), 2G (THE TWO GEORGES) Page 13              [Victoria] IOW Washington, DC, here named after Queen Victoria rather than George Washington.                                 [King-Emperor Edward VIII] IOW, Edward VIII reigned shortly in 1936, but abdicated in order to marry Mrs. Wallis Simpson. 14              [Archbishop of Canterbury] Head of the Church of England.  See also 19 below.                                 [ Nueva Espana] IOW, Mexico                                 [seven and sixpence] 7 shillings and 6 pence.  Bushell gave 10 shillings (half a pound)  got back half a crown (5 shillings).  Who knows how much this is supposed to be. In the 1970's, the UK switched from their system of pounds, sovereigns, shillings, etc. to the decimal system with just pounds and pence, just like the U.S.  Today, a pound is roughly $1.50.  10 shillings would be $0.75 (a drink on a plane costs $4 or $5 today).                                 [privy council]  A group of advisors to the King. 15              [Upper California Limited]  The name of airship they are on.  IOW, in the days when train travel was the fastest method, many trains had names.   Upper California refers to California as we know it IOW.   Lower California in 2G is today's Baja California, part of Mexico.                                 [Fred Harvey] In the late 1870's, railroad businessman Fred Harvey struck a deal with the Santa Fe Railroad to provide quality food in a quality setting to railroad passengers.  His lunchrooms ( Harvey Houses ) and dining cars were so popular that within a decade there was a was a Harvey business every one hundred miles along the Santa Fe route from Kansas to California.  A Fred Harvey meal meant fresh, good food served on linen and with silver and china. (See the 1940 film, THE HARVEY GIRLS)                                 [Claridge's] One of the finest hotels in London.                                 [sommolier] Wine steward. 16              [lucifer]  British slang for match stick , due to the sulfur and fire associated with the devil. 17              [coronium]  IOW, helium.  When first discovered by studying solar radiation, it was though this was a new element found only in the sun's corona; hence, coronium.                                 [I can feel it in the air]  Even in the relatively agricultural Los Angeles of 2G, there is still smog.  It's due to the valley trapping the air.                                 [macadam] A pavement made from broken stone and tar. 18              [the jakes] British slang term for !toilet.!  This use is at least as old as Shakespeare.                                   [boot] British for automobile trunk. 19              [Anglican]  Anglicanism is the official state religion of England. The !Church of England! was spun off from Catholicism (!the Church of Rome!) in the 1530's by King Henry VIII so that he could divorce Catherine of Aragon and marry Anne Boleyn (see the 1966 film A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS).  IOW, Anglicanism in the U.S. is !Episcopalianism.! Around the time of the AR, British terms fell out of favor, and Ang. became E. In the world of the 2G, the term remained. 20              [rate payers]  In Britain, taxes are called !rates, hence !tax payers.! 21              [Oxonian] A graduate of Oxford University. 22              [scrambled eggs]  The design on military clothing that is yellow and looks like laurel leaves