The 'Maceron' which was inserted in _1635_ is not a misprint, but a
pseudo-correction by some one who did not recognize 'mucheron' and
knew that Donne had elsewhere used 'maceron' for a fop or puppy (see
p.
pseudo-correction by some one who did not recognize 'mucheron' and
knew that Donne had elsewhere used 'maceron' for a fop or puppy (see
p.
John Donne
The word fungus is cognate with or
derived from the Greek [Greek: spongos].
As for the form 'mucheron' (n. b. 'mushrome' in _G_) the O. E. D.
gives it among different spellings but cites no example of this exact
spelling. From the _Promptorium Parvulorum_ it quotes, 'Muscheron,
toodys hatte, _boletus_, _fungus_. ' Captain Harris has supplied me
with the following delightful instance of the word in use as late as
1808. It is from a catalogue of Maggs Bros. (No. 263, 1910):
'THE DISAPPOINTED KING OF SPAIN, or the downfall of the Mucheron King
Joe Bonaparte, late Pettifogging Attorney's Clerk. Between two stools
the Breech comes to the Ground. '
The caricature is etched by G. Cruikshank and is dated 1808.
The 'Maceron' which was inserted in _1635_ is not a misprint, but a
pseudo-correction by some one who did not recognize 'mucheron' and
knew that Donne had elsewhere used 'maceron' for a fop or puppy (see
p. 163, l. 117).
'Mushrome', the spelling of the word in _G_, is found also in the
_Sermons_ (80. 73. 748).
l. 22. _which Eve eate_: 'eate' is of course the past tense, and
should be 'ate' in modernized editions, not 'eat' as in Chambers's and
the Grolier Club editions.
THE PROGRESSE OF THE SOULE.
The strange poem _The Progresse of the Soule_, or _Metempsychosis_, is
dated by Donne himself, 16 Augusti 1601. The different use of the
same title which Donne made later to describe the progress of the
soul heavenward, after its release from the body, shows that he had no
intention of publishing the poem. How widely it circulated in MS. we
do not know, but I know of three copies only which are extant, viz.
_G_, _O'F_, and that given in the group _A18_, _N_, _TCC_, _TCD_.
It was from the last that the text of _1633_ was printed, the editor
supplying the punctuation, which in the MS.
derived from the Greek [Greek: spongos].
As for the form 'mucheron' (n. b. 'mushrome' in _G_) the O. E. D.
gives it among different spellings but cites no example of this exact
spelling. From the _Promptorium Parvulorum_ it quotes, 'Muscheron,
toodys hatte, _boletus_, _fungus_. ' Captain Harris has supplied me
with the following delightful instance of the word in use as late as
1808. It is from a catalogue of Maggs Bros. (No. 263, 1910):
'THE DISAPPOINTED KING OF SPAIN, or the downfall of the Mucheron King
Joe Bonaparte, late Pettifogging Attorney's Clerk. Between two stools
the Breech comes to the Ground. '
The caricature is etched by G. Cruikshank and is dated 1808.
The 'Maceron' which was inserted in _1635_ is not a misprint, but a
pseudo-correction by some one who did not recognize 'mucheron' and
knew that Donne had elsewhere used 'maceron' for a fop or puppy (see
p. 163, l. 117).
'Mushrome', the spelling of the word in _G_, is found also in the
_Sermons_ (80. 73. 748).
l. 22. _which Eve eate_: 'eate' is of course the past tense, and
should be 'ate' in modernized editions, not 'eat' as in Chambers's and
the Grolier Club editions.
THE PROGRESSE OF THE SOULE.
The strange poem _The Progresse of the Soule_, or _Metempsychosis_, is
dated by Donne himself, 16 Augusti 1601. The different use of the
same title which Donne made later to describe the progress of the
soul heavenward, after its release from the body, shows that he had no
intention of publishing the poem. How widely it circulated in MS. we
do not know, but I know of three copies only which are extant, viz.
_G_, _O'F_, and that given in the group _A18_, _N_, _TCC_, _TCD_.
It was from the last that the text of _1633_ was printed, the editor
supplying the punctuation, which in the MS.
