That’s why I didn’t use a link with a different text label. I made sure the true url name showed. I posted it so the ambitious could use the books referenced in it.
I recently read Winchester’s Professor and the Madman. In that book, the history of the OED includes dates of 1858 for the official beginning of the dictionary project, 1884 for the publication of the OED’s first volume, and 1927 for the completion of the last. Did you mean a different dictionary, or did you mean, vampire appears in the OED with an “earliest printed citation date” of 1734?
I meant that the earliest citation in the OED was for 1734. Sorry about the phrasing, but I would’ve thought the meaning clear from context.
Priceguy, I think the situation says more about Cassidy than it does about the general public knowledge of vampire lore.
I’ll try to avoid spoilers here. But, I quite agree.
Cassidy is an idiotic drunk. It’s not clear when exactly he learned to read, or became interested in reading for pleasure.
Re Vampire Bats
They exist only in Central America. The bat, being associated with night and darkness, was viewed as evil throughout Europe. But people had no reason to assume it drank blood. Indeed, certain folklore held that bats were fond of bacon.