All the King’s Men, Chapter Nine (part one), Pages 534-550, William Batty

This is the part in the book where two big events occur. First this is when Jack tells Willie that the Judge had killed himself and that the information was basically useless. The last big event in this section is when Jack is told that Gummy Larson will be building the hospital and thus tainting Willie’s vision of what it ought to have been. Then Willie’s Son, Tom, is paralyzed in a football game. While waiting in the waiting room at the Hospital, Willie decides that he is going to name the new hospital after Tom.

After that, Adam does the operation on Tom with no success.

There is the Thanksgiving holiday, which after Willie returns and breaks off his affairs with Lucy and Anne and also tells Tiny that the contract with Larson needs to be broken. This is when somebody tells Adam about the affair between Willie and Anne, and that was the only reason he was going to be Director of the new hospital. Adam is distraught and shoots Willie at the Capitol. Sugar-Boy then shoots and kills Adam. Willie dies a few days later.

1. 534.12 nine innings

A reference to the game of baseball in which there are nine innings consisting of two parts where each team gets a chance to bat or play defense.

2. 537.28 teetotaling Scot

Of or pertaining to total abstinence from alcoholic drinks; pledged to, or devoted to the furtherance of, total abstinence.

3. 538.8 black dog

It is a state of melancholy, depression of spirits; ill-humour; (in some country places, when a child is sulky, it is said ‘the black dog is on his back’).

4. 540.20 sinker

It is slang that originated in the United States in 1870 in Utah and means a doughy cake, a doughnut; a dumpling.

5. 541.14 Emperor Vespasian

An Emperor in Rome who was so by taking it with his military power. He rose to power in 69 A.D.

6. 541.16 Pecunia non olet

Literally this means money does not smell, but the context is that the Emperor Vespasian reintroduced a urine tax for public restrooms in Rome. His son Titus commented on it and he pointed out that a coin did not smell even though it came from the tax.

7. 544.20 Judas Iscariot

Taken directly from the Catholic Encyclopedia: The Apostle who betrayed his Divine Master. The name Judas (Ioudas) is the Greek form of Judah (Hebrew "praised"), a proper name frequently found both in the Old and the New Testament. Even among the Twelve there were two that bore the name, and for this reason it is usually associated with the surname Iscariot [Hebrew "a man of Kerioth" or Carioth, which is a city of Judah (cf. Joshua 15:25)]. There can be no doubt that this is the right interpretation of the name, though the true origin is obscured in the Greek spelling, and, as might be expected, other derivations have been suggested (e.g. from Issachar).

8. 549.22 patties sterile

Possibly in reference to surgical cloths that were used to absorb blood during surgery.

9. 549.27 sardonic pleasure

Taking joy in being bitter, scornful, or mocking.

10. 550.6 bees in Samson’s parable

Judges 14.

11. 550.24 blue serge suit

See annotation 67.