"The Coming Race", Chapter XVII, by Edward Bulwer-Lytton

Regarding the matter of time described in the first paragraph, the author gives us the following footnote: "For the sake of convenience, I adopt the word hours, days, years, &c., in any general reference to subdivisions of time among the Vril-ya; those terms but loosely corresponding, however, with such subdivisions."

equable: not varying or fluctuating greatly

complaisance: disposition to please or comply; affability

Shakespeare was writing in the late 16th and very early 17th century. Louis XV was King of France from 1715 to 1774. Charles II was King of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 1660 until 1685.

On the matter of water-based instruments, we get this footnote from the author: "This may remind the student of Nero's invention of a musical machine, by which water was made to perform the part of an orchestra, and on which he was employed when the conspiracy against him broke out."

temerarious: marked by temerity; reckless; rash

The picture used is a scene from a Beijing Opera based on the Generals of the Yang Family legends. Photo by smartneddy, used here under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en).

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