MDMD(1)--Some Obs

[RICHARD ROMEO]

ch2 letters
just noticed Mason signs yr obdt Svt., Dixon Yr. obdt s'v't, Dixon 
emphasizing his position as Mason's foil, Mason emphasizing that won't be 
the case?

p. 8--medical student, reincarnation, hanging papragraph..."eventless 
corriders Syncope"--Pynch through Cherrycoke referring to Television and 
himself in some way, the rev seeing himself in a future without religion 
or obsessions of his present time---i.e. to quote the Sabbath song 
"Looking For Today"

p. 10--why is RC Cola so obseqious to those who send him to sea..."I owe 
you everything" and people who threaten him with a pleasant stay in 
Bedlam?

p. 14--"The City contract and oneself"--quite a nice allusion to not only 
London but Neuva York

p. 15--Note medical student referenced again at the Bridport Dagger in 
Portsmouth

p. 16--Dixon's Joke:  Mason says "Are You Crazy...people are staring".  
Is this somehow the answer to the riddle--one of those koans we have to 
figure out that LED mentions later, "holy Insanity"?

p. 17--Note Dixon's description of receiving mercilessly intensive 
instruction during last fortnight by Mr Bird who acc to Dix was acting a 
bit deranged--see "I didn't know if we were still freinds"--hmm, 
indicating?

p. 19--LED is asked if he's married--said by Mason or if not, surely a 
question that would seem to Mason of utmost interest.

p. 22--LED says he's preternatural not supernatural?  acc to my 
dictionary pre. is "beyond natural", sup. implies "unnatural".  Is LED 
implying his basic undefinibility, a definition which though hard to 
swallow is, in effect, not against the hidden laws such as they are?

p. 24--Visto is mentioned for the first time and also note the 
reinforcement of sexual metaphor over the next 13 pgs or so, images which 
do not imply life but death:   started p. 21 speaking of LED abduction:  
"Island Snatch"--refer to later song about the girls of Sumatra, Cock_pit 
p. 24--fighting birds, blood, p. 26 Hepsie saying to Dixon about her 
charges:  "under Intelligence, Naval"--we will know later about M&D's 
near miss aboard the Seahorse--the first time they tried to set sail.  
later, battles between Frigates (implying Frig?) and p. 37 the L'Grand 
out of Brest--a different "Suck Hour", not giving milk but bloodied 
waters and death at sea.  Also notice the description of the French and 
British frigate commanders--anarchists of the 18C, but sponsored by 
someone, i.e.--British and French fleets?

p. 25--Rebekah mentioned for the first time by name--this was the name of 
the ship that Jenkins piloted against the Spanish before losing that ear. 
 In a sense Mason has lost his ear for life also after her death, a 
parallel b/w J and M.

same page--why is Hepsie masked as an old crone, the LED is obviously 
fooled.  Hespie implies the name Hepseris, wife of Atlas.

p. 29--date of Jan 9 that M&D set sail:  talk about bad karma--that's 
Nixon's birthday, man.


Richard Romeo
Coordinator of Cooperating Collections
The Foundation Center-NYC
212-807-2417
rromeo at fdncenter.org