Wondrous Words Wednesday: Old is new

From one of those several bookstore-browsings I did recently, I found Short Stories from the 19th Century by David Stuart Davies. I have heard of or read most of them already in school or at home; the authors much more so. But I bought the book as I was after what Davies had to say in his introduction of each story.

Today I join Wondrous Words Wednesday, a meme hosted by Bermuda Onion's Weblog, and share words that are new to me. The story is very old, so are the words (again to me), but that's where I find the appeal of the read. Davies conveniently provided notes to the text, making comprehension a lot faster:

1. posset - "If you'll take my advice Mr. Higgins, you'll have your bed warmed, and drink a treacle posset just the last thing."

~ posset is a hot-drink remedy for a cold made with curdled milk and spices

* When I saw treacle preceding posset, I thought of Harry Potter's treacle tart, but that was eaten, not drunk.

2. Griselda - "Mr Dudgeon compelled himself to smile assent with the grace of a masculine Griselda."

~ Griselda is a model of enduring patience

* I didn't find this word/name that old. I have a cousin named Griselda, but its usage in the story is what's new to me :-)

3. Church-and-king-and-down-with-the-Rump - "...I conjecture, though the name is singular enough: Church-and-king-and-down-with-the-Rump."

~ it's a reference to the causes of the English Civil War. The horse was named after a cry given by the supporters of King Charles I and the loyal members of his Parliament

These words are from Elizabeth Gaskell's The Squire's Story.