Well, here's one example of how the phrase is currently understood: "Who has not known the fear of trust betrayed, when a cuckoo is uncovered in the nest, a viper in the bosom, a snake in the grass?" (Louise Guinness, reviewing Sophia Watson's novel The Perfect Treasure in Literary Review, May 1998, p. 38).
Learned disquisitions on the cuckoo in the nest and the viper in the bosom, anyone? (Like Nancy Charlton, I much enjoyed Peter Bryant's recent piece. I was beginning to wonder if Mantovanists had forgotten what the English word "context" means.) >From Simon Cauchi, Freelance Editor and Indexer 13 Riverview Terrace, Hamilton, New Zealand Telephone and facsimile +64 7 854 9229, e-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- To leave the Mantovano mailing list at any time, do NOT hit reply. You will just prove to everyone that you can't read directions. Instead, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message "unsubscribe mantovano" in the body.
