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King of Shreds and Patches

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In the old mysteries Vice used to be dressed as a mimic king in a parti-coloured suit. (Shakespeare: Hamlet, iii. 4.) The phrase is metaphorically applied to certain literary operatives who compile books for publishers, but supply no originality of thought or matter.

 

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Entry taken from Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, edited by the Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D. and revised in 1895.

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King of Bark
King of Bath
King of Beasts
King of Dalkey
King of Khorassan
King of Metals
King of Misrule
King of Painters
King of Preachers
King of Rome
King of Shreds and Patches
King of Spain’s Trampeter (The)
King of Terrors
King of Waters
King of Yvetot (pron. Ev-to)
King of the Bean (roi de la fève)
King of the Beggars
King of the Forest
King of the Herrings (The)
King of the Jungle (The)
King of the Peak (The)