...

... _.. �,.,;-

---- -

�·---� --� -� -·

AN A?lATEUR MAGAZINE OF FANTASY AND TfiE SUPERNATURAL

(,An Oyteider Publi-G.ation)

Co-editea and published by

F�anois T. L an ey Samuel D. Russell
1104 South Georgia St.· 1810 North H arvard Ave .
L o a Angel es 15, C al if. Holl y\111o ed ,z7 • Cal if.
·

-oOo-
Art Director : R. A. Hoffman
Contributing E ditors: Duane w. Rimel , F. Lee Baldwin, Harold Wakefield
******************•*****************�*********************************
Vol. II, No. 3 Summer - 1944 ,Whole No. 7
* *********************************************************************
THIS ISSUE OF THE ACOLYTE IS DED IC A T.ED
TO THE MEMORY OF PAUL FREEHAFER

Cov e r : Mali ano

Stories:
MORTE JAMBE T. B;ru c e Y:erke 3
SUMMER'S CLOUD Anthony Boucher 8
·THE HARP Alan P. Roberta 11
THE SMALL, DARK T HING Duane W. Rimel 20

Poems:
THE\LITTLE ONES Duane W. R im el 7
LIGHT FANTASTIC � Arthur Kennedy 10
REGNAR LODBRUG'S EPICEPIUM H. P. Lovecraft 14
DARK GARDEN . Richard Ely Morse 19
SATAJ.'q t S HOLE Rita Barr 24

A rt iole s and F eatur es :

·

·EDITORIALLY SPEAKING Tpe Edito rs 2

CHECKLIST OF: M. G. LEWIS w. Paul C o o k & R. H. Barlow 7
THE FAMILY TREE OF THE GODS Clark Aehton Smith 9
HOFFMAN IA R. A. Hoffman
4. Th e Gods of Bal-Arkoth ( facing) 10
5. Unwanted Desire ( ;f'acing) 24
LITTLE KNOWN FANTAISISTES Harold Wakefield 13
SHOP TALK E. Hoffman Price 16
FANTASY FORUM The R e ader s 25
BACK COVER J o hn G iunta
********************•********'****************************************
T he Acolyte is pubi i'S he d quart·erly; appearing on th� 15th of March ,
·

June-;-s-eptember, and December. Subs dir iption rates: 15¢ per copy, or
f o ur issues for 50¢. T his �s an amateur and non-prof.it publication ,
and no payment is made for a c cep te� material. Aoce pted material ia
·subject to editorial revision when necessary. The editore are n o t
responsible for disputes arising fro m advertieing contained in these
p ages, nor are the y responsible for statements ap�earing in this mag­
azine unless signed by them.
fRANdrs T. tANEY
SAMUEL i>. RUSSELL
l ... _
 EDlTORIA.LLY SPEAK'ING. c -
ttTHERE'LL BE SOME CHANGES MADE -. tt
• .Thia iaaue of The Acolyte marks
. at ill a.n other rever aa.l Of editor-
ial policy; the la.a t , I hope, for some time. Samuel D .. Russell, whom
I consider to be one of the six or eight outstanding fantasy fans of
all time, ha.a joined The Acolyte as co- edi t or , In other w�rds, this
.
The llll med:i.ate re­
magazine ia no longe:t' mine--half o f it 1a no.w Sam.' a.
sult of this is that The Acolyte can go back on its old quarterly eohe­
dule, with an eventual poesibility,of becoming a bi-monthly if condit­
ions warrant. Over a period of time, we hope to develope this mag�
zine into the literate psriodioal I have previously tried to create.
---- 000 0 0
---- .

SUBSCRIPTION POLICY. In the previous iaeue, I mentioned a possible

curtailment of circulation, and requested let­
ters from the more interested aubsoribers. With the new co-editor to
help on the mechanics of the magazine, this curtailment will not be
necessary at present; however> thoae who wrote in are no'liv being oa.rr­
i e·d on a ne11 tt preferred list", and w i l l be the last to be dropped in
the event of any f u tur e retrenchment • • . • • One policy change, h owever -­
in the t u t ure, starting w�th this issue, only one copy of this maga�
zine "ivill go to any one person. It has been brough t to o ur a ttention
tha t ao-call.ed ·''fan dealers11 have been making more of a. profit off a1n­
cere amateur efforts than we feel warranted; from now on, we shall han­
dle our o wn back ieauea. To protect Acolyte contributors who may wish
extra copies for certain of their friends, we shall be very happy to
mail such copies for them if they request ua to do so'and furnish the
necessary addressee. There will be no ch�ge for this ·ser�ice. �
----00000----
ACKERMANN IS A PLAGIARIST. Henry Andrew Ackerm ann, a well-known fan
author over a period of years and credit­
ed with several ta.lea in pulp fantasy magazines, ha.a been definitely
p roveQ. a plagiarist in at least ti'Vo of his published stories. Inter-
e sted persona may wish te ma$e, the following_ cozapm.r1sona: · � ;: .

Sara Gabrielson Go es To Paradise by H e nr y Andrew Ackermann, p u b-

.

1 is hed In1fo1arisr Vol.S-No.2," June 19411 is aotually.: Kari Aas en In

Heaven by Johan Bojer, published in The Wotld's One Hundred -- Beet Short
Stories, Vol. 9--Ghoste, Funk & Wagna l l e , New Yor�i9a7. ,
Keeper of the Gate by Henry Andrev1'· Ackermann� publiahecl :in Th e
Acolyte, Vol. I=No. 3, Spr ing 1943, is actually: The Time Watcher by Oli­
ver La.Farge, published in Coronet, Aug ust 1938.
In both of th ese cases, we find a word-for-word copying, except
for ch anges in proper names and titles. The disgust of The Acolyte'�
editors is too ·profound to be capable of express ion in decent language.
This magazine is published solely as a hobby, and we conside r ite high­
est pur�ose the publication of wort hwhile amateur writing. When suoh
a akun� a.a Mr. Ackermann comes along, he not only puts us in a moat em­
ba.rraasing situation, but actually robs 60?46 ain.cere, beginning wr i te r r

of the pages upon which he might have achieved p ublication. We sugge�t

that all fans boycot t Ackermann completely--and, in addition, if any
of you should be sharp enough to find a definite plagiarism in one of
his professionally published stories,� we should be most grateful to
y ou for detailed infcr.rmation of a type capable of standing up in court.
Personally, we s hould be very happy to help this chap get what he so
richly deserves.
----00000----
IN COMING ISSUES: The Acolyte is very badly in need of aerio.ua, eru­
dite ar ticles and essays on varioua phases o f
weird and fantastic fiction. These items may be either bibliographical
( cont1ntied on p. 24)
--- a --
 MO RTE JAM BE '

T� ·BRUCE YEPlKE
Monsieur Fouohet.aux was exc.eedingly careless one a fternoon. ·The
Rue de Ma.roaesant is known as a moat.unpleasant crossing at the very,
lea.at; le adin g in from the. river, it opene into the Pl ace de la C rea ua ,
a narrow aqua.re, a blind bo� of rambling, eroded flats.
The Plaoe de la Or esu.s lies at the top of a narrow, inclined
curve, the continuation of a bridge oroas1ing the· river from the modern
c 1 ty.. The bridge is old and l ime-enorusted;; the road, a cob bl esto n e d
atrooii 1 y. •
M. Fouche:aux paused in front of the apotheoa.rie a.nd exchanged
a word ot two with the loiterers outside. Then the pinched o ld bach­
el or oaet a oarelesa glance across the square, pulled nervously at the
lapel of hie black frock-coat, and, gra,aping his waJ.kin,g stick in hand,
forged o ut a.cross the cob blestone s . . .
, He seemed Q.uite oblivious to the roar of the. omnibus which wa.a
at that moment clattering up the road from the bridge. The coachman
was undoubtedly a reckless fellow, or ope unfamiliar with the route,
for he burst into the Place de la Creaua with four horses blowing
froth and whip flaying furiously. .
Too late he aaw the blind crossing. He shrieked an unitt•ll•
igble oath a.nd threw the brake, dra.win.g r e in desperately. The omnibus ,
lurched and oscillated on ita ak:lrdding, heavy wheels� Trunks a:nd 'box­
es on the roof teetered and bounded . off, scattering intimate contents.
M. Foucheraux seemed only grsdually to become aware of this
oataatrophe bear�g down. upon him. The four horse a 'bUoked and were
thrown in their Whipple-trees. The coachman stood on hie atepboard
and threw hie weight on the b rake .
·

The shriek!ng, r.umbling cauldron of· confusion staggered onto

M. Fouchera.ux 'l'he blaqk figure wa.a loet in the swirling dust and .
• .

f'.l.y:tng hoofs. The left front wheel passed over his thigh. Then the
omnibus tott�red in a· cloud of dust and crashed to its s i de . The
horses came down en maeae and the coachman arched throuidl the air and
landed, moat fortunately, in a beie of cotton goods by �a.dam Moullin-
cou.rt' a factory. ·

"What a mese ! What a meee !" mumbled and exclaimed the orowd
that poured. out ot thil formerly blank v1hite-washed buildings • .
"DiQ. you see that :eool coachman?" the �o'thecarie attendant de­
manded a.a he stood ·Qn his counter tQ see over the milling throng,out­
sid,e.. "He charged through the court like a. corps of caaaions running
the Marne • " .
·

,
.
I
I
In the midst of this confusion, u: Foucher�ux lay prostrate,
writhing in a.gopy with hi� right leg turned almost upon itself. He
·ahook his wal ki'b.g stick in. the air and hia sharply pointed face was
contorted tn anger and shock. .
"Pi,g ! Pig! Pig!" he kept ahrie�ing. "Ignorant pig l Dunder­
hea.ded pig: Bloated, d�nken lout of a p ig! Because of the stupid
.
pig I shall probably lose my: leg� /

"Damme ! Sa.oa:.e Dieu: Wh�.re is a doctor? Am I to bleed in the

streets l ike an igl'}om in ioua slut? tt He· o oughed and l'a.:p sed into a de-
lirium, mut tering "Pig! Pig! Pig l" r ,
The doctor fought his way to the felleQ. figure in its pool of
blood and 001n>menoed to .attend to him. ·11. Foucheraux was i:emoved to
h i a apartment as soon a.a the doctor .had tied the major arteries. An
amputation was performed. The severed memb�r was sent to the ore�ato-
·

rie.
__ 3 __
 The gQod inhab i tants were re ady in a.e e is t ing to e xtr a ct the
tan gled passengers from the interior of the coach and to soothe the
badly scared driver, who was, of co ur s e, summ arily discharg e d . T11m of
t he horses had been shot, ae the ir legs were broken. The trundling om­
nibus needed a new side.
Such a ma j or spe ctacle in a dreary part of t own like �he Place
'
de la Cre sua is. in itself enough to k eep tongues 1i1agging for some time.
But then Marie', ·a. nurse delegated to attend the recuperation of M. F ou­
oheraux, of whom nob o d y ea.red muoh if ne reoo v e�e d or not, burst · forth
with the wildest story.
"Do you know what the otazy old man dema n ded ? n ehe told the girl.a
who worked f or Ma.dame Mo�lincourt. "That old man d� man ded that Doctor
Fort ineacu bring back his.leg! .
l"Tha.t is ml. l eg ! ' he raved. tinsufferable stupidity of it all!
People aren't going to t ake aW'ay my leg beo au a e of t hat ·ignorant pig!
Now listen, Doctor, you simply must let me have my leg, whe t her or not
it is attached to my stump. Do you understand, you drooling · guillo-
tiner? I must have my leg!'�
·

The story sp read about. Mari� told with horror how Dr. Fortin­
eacu drove down to the cre'mato rie a.ncl rescued the severed limb.. The
J.
attendan t at the apothecarie verilied the woman'a tale .
"Mon Diei;i !" he b r eathe d to a c rowd of �apt listeners who .hung
over the chemically stained and ea.ten counte; b oard . "In comes D r .
Fortinescu w ith . th is gruesome p acka ge .
"'Say there, Rob in, • h e "bellona at me, all red and furious to
h imself , 'I want about five gallons of alcohol and the biggest bell­
tube in the shop!'
"So I aay to him: tAnd what can you want with th$t, Doctor? An
orgy maybe?' You know how Fortinescu drinks.
,, 1Bah !$ he aaya, 'mind your wit. Just come in back with me and
I '11 t e a.ch you mo re about your business in .five minutes than you learn
in f i v e years talking to tho s e oafs a.'t the count e r. ' .
uso we go to the back room, and I find a th ree- fo ot bell-tube
wh ic h he makes me clean out. Anc then, nom de Jesus • • • he unw raps
that bloody l)a.ok age : Oh!- The s t ink • • • and t here is th at filthy leg!
ur d on't eat for two days. He sews up the top and p ut s it in
the jar, a ll t he time swearing to himself. , He even takes a drink tpen.
11 So we tap a barrel of alco hol and even empty six or seven
bot­
tles to fill up that 'Ullholy tube. Then he puts on a oap and seals it
with pa rap hine. : . .
11'Alors !' he �aye to me, wiping his forenead. and look i ng sick
and disgusted, 'Not a word of this tupidity, Robin1 and h e re is a. sov-
.
ereign to seal yo u r mouth. t
"Me looks at th e leg , and awears aome more. 'Now, you obscene
·

old man,' he ea.ya to himself, •you can have your leg all the ti ' m e.
Hah ! ·Take a b ath in it • . • . . . . . . '" · ·

II.
When M. FoUcheraux recuperated sufficiently to make use of a.
c ru t c h , h e t estily d ism issed the � ura e Marie� who was quite glad to be
relieve d of her:poat. D r . Fortineaou oa.lled and pr e sented a. bill.
Foucheraux, who lived hie solitary life on funds coming from s e v eral
minor properties in Alaace, .went to his desk, a hid eo us survival o f
the "period of bad taste n, and withdrew a. worn mon ey bag.
tt I ' mus t thank you a.gain and a ga in , monsieur le dooteur,u h$
ea.id, counting ,out the gold coins, "for what you hav e done to my leg.
A thousand----"· . :
"Oh God! I do n t t want to hear any more, a.bout it,11 Fortin:eacu
e�loded. 11Here is your bill and. you are paying me, whioh i,s mo re
than lots of my cl ients d6 and Ilm glad of it� • . . • Hector, you will
make an o b se s s io n out of that filthy thing.n·
...... 4 ....�
 M. touohe raux bowed politely and nodded his head, grinning
b roadly. "'My leg, " he m uttered. And lo u d.e r � 11You may call it my, er ,
oompanion," he emiled, hie na�row b;i:own eyes looking intently a.t the
do o to r . A li tt l e wildly, the ot her. t hought�
The do c to r took his coinc� and hu:i:·iied out of the dark a.pa'..,.:tment
and down the na;row, flimsy e tair a . He barged across to the apo1thecar-•
ie. "Robin, 1' he bellowed., p u shing ilis way through the o�runter lear.-ers.
"I will have e ome alQohol • • � bu t not fox our client.n ,

M. Fouchera.ux'e ap artment c onsisted of one room, and a eort of

al c o ve where he ·would ea. t his solitary meal. The two w-1nd.mva on the
west wall were cloudy with dust and the cheap curtains entirely neglec-.
ted. Most often the shutters w ere drawn. A s ide from a couch alor.g the
north wall by the door, and sundry dry�l o ok ing bookshelves, p i c tures ,
and ooniuion furnish i n gs ; the primary pie c e of f urnit ur e was a.n Al�acian
t a.bere tt e placed · beside the heart�-an heirloom, inc ongruously out o.f
,
place in the ahab'Qy surround ings.
Standing upon this piece was the bell-tube, and in it, suspend­
ed in al l its stark grotesqueness, wa s M. F ouchera�x ' e leg. It was in
alm ost a. standing po si t ion, though o c c asion al ly ,it 11vould rotate slowly
--say on¢e a week--owing to r ea s ons unknown and uncared abo ut.
It wasn't much of a leg, but it belo n ge d to M. Foucheraux. The
t o es were c r amped, and had not be en cleaned before the sad parting. The
oalf was ha.rd aind white, the muscles t aut as th ey had been when the
·

l a st message from the 'brain had reached them. The thigh was rather
lean and the fJ. e eh slightly flab by. M. Fouoheraux note � with disappoi­
ntment 1 th at the: short Slack hairs had ceased to grow, contrary to the ·

popular belief. -
Ah, Monsieur Foudhera.ux ! The hou:-s he sit s and contemplates
that crude at an o mio a.1 exhibition l At night he draws the shutt ers , and
af t er he fini she s his few dishes he pulls up hie c hai r and l ights the
fireplace.
And t hen wha,�does he do? A rational per s on woUld light hie
pipe and r e ad , follow La Peti'fsJournal, or catc h up on that lovably
overdone old cynic La Rouchefouoauld, or scan a novel. But he ? Rt
jamaia ! Like a hypnotic be s i ts and c o ntemplate s his le g . That ugly
old unwholesome limb that p�ob&bly stank with sweat and dirt b efore
the omnibus did its work. .
But the world oen.tera a bou t it, for it is hie ld.m.'b] That sets
it apart from all the otheP limbs in the world,
M. Fo u ch e raux thought precisely that. As time went on, it did
beoome the oent er o f hie world. Religiously every night he ea t dovm
with his pipe, and contemplated hie leg in tbe bell - t u b e .
His leg : That inanimate mas a of protein and c alcium a nd proto­
plasm-he used to walk on it. It used t o fit right thete on the end
of hie atumt'.
His aha%p, po in ted face grew sharper and furrowed. Hie n a xrow
eyes would focus on the leg as he probed the depths of his mem o ry .
Once, when ;tie had been very yo\lng, he had been in a fight , and kicked
a bully with t ha t very �ame thing. .

And he uaed to th ro w it over the branch of the ch e rry tree on

that estate in Alsace and ho ist bim ae lf Up with it.
·

And now here he could eit, q.ui t e removed from it, a.nd look at
it abstrap te d l y over his p ip e , and realise that it w�s hi� leg there .
!!.!.§. le g, the leg that used to fit r i ght on hia stump and that was oon­
oealed there by his t rousers. And now the stupid thing wa.a up there
in a jar like a rare -Mediterranean fish ¢r fossil.. :

The �orriblenese of the conception grew up o n M. Fo uoh e raux one

night as he sat contemplat i n g hie leg over a oup of �offee. He bad an
...... 5 ......
irreeiat4,ble urge to flex the n ow missing ten4ona. He looked at the·
spaoe on the s tool where the limb should be re st in g . · Onoe, for about
three feet beyond hie stump there had been attached that leg, and the
blood that now oouraed th rough hie veseels pumped through there, and
t here were numerous muscles which he could control at the slightest
whim ..
And now they were gone.
His nerves en4ed in a vaa�·aching void.
Frustration!
He a ent a noil-!orgotten impulse down to hie stump. Once_ it
would have made that leg in the jar stir slightly, or flex, or---
M. Foucheraux sudd e nly grew rigid . Hie brown eyes were danger­
ously wide and intent. Bucking in his breath carefully, he sent that
impulse again.
Sa.ere diable ! He would swear that the large toe on the sealed
·
limb had quivered a.nd twitched slightly.
Clutching the arms of the chair tightly, he leaned forward, and
strained all his will and nerves in a •ighty command.
The limb in the bell-tube-�an eerie thing half�lighted from the
fli o k ering fi�eplace--elowly, slowly began to flex.
M, iFoucheraux'a m<:>uth dropped open. Hie eyes stared at the
fearsome sight. Blood r uehing to hie temples, he continued to wdll
himself, half hypnotised, half fro z en with fear .
·

What outre manifestation waa this7 What loathsome, incredible

thing was· he ·do 1ng7
"My i.eg, my le�, u he panted. His mo'11th slowly c�led into a
contorted smile. "It Ts still m·ine: !t lives!"
He stood up, hie heart beating wi ldly. The leg in the bell­
tube waa flexing itself� and the toes were twitching , just as fouoher-
aux was w illing them to ·do.
· ·

He forgot he had but one leg. His balance tottered . Then,

with an agony of .cramp in his stump, his feverish blood, driven by an
overtaxed heart, ruptured the stitchings. . .
The helpless figure tell onto the alcohol-filled bell-tube, the
livid blood spurting out in great throbs fro m the open artery.. The
gl ass cylinder, reflecting starkly t he red lights from the hearth,
tottered under the impact and crashed to the floor .
The torrent of alcohol within burst out acroaa the writhing
figure, The cadaverous leg, now suddenly bloated from its con ta o t
with air, caught the par aly sed man in the ne ok .
11Ma.rie': Fortinescu �" he screamed. 11God of heaven • • . someone
save me !11
•

The blood ei.nd the alcohol flowed together and into the fire­
place. With a burst o f flame, the fiery tongues blossomed out and
caught first· on the curtains- .
1
"Marie ! Fortine so u !" Foucheraux a oreamed and sobbed.
H e turned and twisted> his throbbing , pumping stump vomiting
a spurting wash of blood into the holocaust . A moment, and .the en­
t ire room was an inferno. Foucheraux buried his face in the crook of
his leg� He was' shrieking, but he had ceased to ehr�ek words.

The Place de la Creaua was full of f i re- fig ht ing apparatus,

and it was broad noon before the final sparks of the d.evastate4 flat
had been que.nched. People crowded the square anO. chattered e ndle ss ly
'
to each other.
''.Poor M. Foucheraux ! Caugh:t helpless in that horrib le trap,
and with only one legJtt
. Dr. Fortineacu leaned across the counter-board � the apothe�
oarie, al'ld stared into the
'
blackened remain$, ttYou know,
' l\o bin, ''
 -r J-JE
Beyond the hill in twiligh t groves they d w ell;
· rhe •Little Onea w ho flit on bush and tree,
Wh irling in the nigh t like eerie fireflies,
Still sear ching for a pathway none can see.

I cannot tell their shape o r purpose here:

It is a secret older than the yea�cs -
Sometimes at dusk when winds a�e whispering,
· Their pulsing music falls µpon my ears.

It is a haunted vale the Indians shunned,

And white men amiled when natives cursed the place.
But now and then some you th who ven t u res there
Returns with fear and horr or on his face�

Some say that when the m o on is full an d b right

The Little Ones oreep upw ar d in the sky,
As if to seek those dista nt s ha dow realm s
From whence th e y came, an d where th ey want to_die.
<

One night I sl ipped away into the hills

And·wa tohed the L it tle Onea who flit about.
Now people say that I have changed, but God�
I canno t let their dre adful se c re t out .
�--Duane W. Rimel
**********************************************************************
: MO RTE JAMEE. (Concluded.)
he eaid to the a tte n d an t , ur believe that I am an arsonist."
"Fah !n Robin. g run te d . " La o r Elm a torie doeen' t l ike to get ohe at­
ed from her due. Have some alcohol? 11
************************************************************* . ********•
A CHECK-LIST O F MlTTHEW GREGORY LEWIS, (1775-1818)
-
(Lewis ,-first and most famous novel, The Monk, is ref e r r e d to
·

by H.P.Loveoraft as "a.. masterpiece of active n i glit mar e whose general

Gothic oast is epioed with added stores of ghoulishness". Many ot the
other items here l is t.ed may be o l a e e ed as we ir d- Go thic . FTL-SDR.}
.AMBROSIO, or THE MONK. 1796.
·

�HE CASTLE SPECTRE. (Play ) 1798.

TALES OF TERROR. 1799.
THE EAST INDIAN. ( Play ) 1799.
TALES OF WONDER. (Collab. with sir Walter Soot t) 1801.
ADELMORN, or THE OUTLAW. · { Play ) 1801.
ALFONSO, KING OF CA.STILE. (Play ) isoa.
THE BRAVO OF VENICE. (Novel) 1804.
�UGANl'INO. ( Play ) 1805.
ADELGITHA. ( Play ) 1807. .
a
FEUDAL TYRANTS. (Tran . from the Ge rm an ) 1806.
VENONI. ( Pl ay ) 1808.
BLANCHE AND OSBRIGHT. 1808
ROMANTIC TALES.. 1808. ,
TIMOUR THE TARTER. ( Play ) 18ll.
•
RICH AND POOR. (Opera ) 181 3 .
KOENIGSMARK, or TERROR OF BOHEMIA • . 1818.
jQUFlNAL OF A WEST INDIAN PROPRIETOR. 1834•
LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE. Colburn, 1839.
--W. Paul Cook and R.. H. Ba.rlow.
·

--- 7 -·
 SUMNtER, 'S .CLOUD ANT1HC)l\fY b()L_JCHEH
Ctµi such th ings be,
And overcome us l i ke a summer 1 a o'i ou cl,
Without our epeo i al wonder?

Walter Hancock w as not s uper st it iou s � He aai4 ao to hie wife

when they walked on eithe r side of a p o et on their way from the little
Italian pension to the. l"ailway sta ti on. And he said eo t o his table
companion at dinner that evening, when he .had drunk a glaas more tha n
usual to p ro ve that he was a bachelor for the ni gh t . This o f course
was why he had spilled the salt, or perhaps it was beoause his t abl e
companion spoke with a strange acdent and wore a low-nec.ked gown. He
c ou ld not· decide which i ntr i gued him the more, and took ano ther glass
of wine to find out. He deo 3,.d e d upon the gomi, or at least...
·
Well,
yea - t he gown . ·

Giuseppe, p ro p rie to r of the pension, l oo k e d surprised, and not­

al to gether pleased when Mr. Han c o ck danced with.his t abl e companion
after din ne r . He was tal k i n g excitedly �ith hi s wife Maria when the
two came' off t he balc.ony out of the Italian moonlight. Maria p a s s ed
near to them an d looke d at Mr . Hancock very closely. Eapeciall'y at
his throat .
·

.
. .

. Giuseppe was sti ll displeased when Mr. H an cock ordered brandy.

But Mr. Hancock was very well pleased indeed when the brandy came.
The growth of his f am ili a ri ty vvith his companion's aocent kept even
pace with the alcoholic du lli ng of hie perc ep tio n s , ,so .that he r speech
still remained vague but fascinating. The movements of ,the dan oe· h a d
made her other f aaci n a.t t o n much more clear to him.
It was in the dar k hall tha·t she told him she would l e a ve her
do or open. He was not quite sure of what she said, but the welcome
whioh his lips and hands received reassured him. No r was bis assur�
a.nee shaken when he met Maria at the head of th � stairs. But he was
puzzled. Even hie slight knowledge of Italian auff iced to make alear
that ahe was d elivering a physical w arning, no t a moral reprimand- The
morale of he r lodgers were none of he r affair, she ke pt · aaying; or·
were the repetitions with in his brain? That was nonsense, but it wa.$
wha t she said. At le ast he thought so; ±A · mo rta was Death, w asn ' t it?
He was still puzzled when she went away, and look e curiously at tP,e
little gold c roee which she ha4 pressed into hie hand with such ur­
gent instructions.

Giuseppe and Maria were not puzzled when Mr. Hancock's compan� -
ion was not in �er room the next morning. She was, in fact, nowhere
in th e pension; and Gi usepp e advanced the theory, with which Maria
agreed, that she was now�e.re in Italy. They were only slightly puzz­
led when they found Mr. Hancock's body on her bed. T he r e were no
ol ot hea outside'his flesh, and no blood :inside. N or was there a trace
of blood anywhere :in the room. .
Although they jointly resolved that even her libera.l payments
c ould not in duce them to accept Mr. Hanco.ck' s c o m p an ion as a gueat
again, Ma.ria1s conscience felt clear when she found the s mall goid
c ross in t h e hall whe re Mr. Hancock h,d. obviously tossed it i n aoorn.
Yo u se e , . he was not superstitious.

* ******************************************************�******•••*****
IF YOUR SUBSCRIPTION HAS EXPIRED, YOU W!LL NOTICE A CRYPTICALLY CAB­
ALISTIC RUBBER STAMP TO THE RIGHT OF THIS SENTENCE.
-- 8 --
' ·,;,r
�f rJ E 1F r\1'1\ J LY �r R E E 0 F -r I-J E G 0 D S
CLARK, ASHTON SMITH
{ The geriealogioal information and cha.rt of desoendents contained
in thia sketch are taken from a letter wr�tten some years ago to R. H.
Barlow by Kla.rkaeh Ton, and are published here by permiaaion. FTL-SDR)1
' -ooo- I

••• I have fill�d out the "style-sheet" with such annotations and
details concerning Tsathoggua as I' am at prQsSnt able to furnish. Some
of these have :required considerabl_e delving into the Parchments of Pnom
{ who was the chief Hyperborean genealogist as well ag a noted proph �
and I a.m well a.ware that certain of my phonetic renderinge from the El­
der Scripi are debatable. You r aise some interesting points with your
Q.u eationa. Azathoth, the primal nuclear ohaoa, reproduced of cou rse
only by fieeion; but its 'progeny, entering various outer planets, often
took on attributes of androgyniam or bisexuality.· The androgynes, cu­
riously, requ ired no coa djutancy in the production of offspring; but
their children were commonly u:hiaexual, male or f emale. Hz"ioUJ.quiag­
mnzhah, uncle of Taathoggua, and Ghizghuth, Tsathoggua•s father, were
the male progeny of Cxaxukluth, the and.Xogynous apavm of Azathoth.
Thus you, will note a trend toward biological complexity. It is worthy
of record, however,, that Knygathin Zhaum, the :Q.alf-breed Voormi, re­
verted to the most primitive Azathothian characteristica following the
stress o;f his numerous decapitations. I have yet to translate the ·te;i:­
rible and abominable
' legend telling how a certain doughty citizen of
: . ( see page 10)
*************�********************************************************

--··-·�-,
(reproduced_
AZATHOTH
by fissio�)· _J •

i
CX.AXUKLUTH
( androgyne)
� '( fissionary
YCNAGNNISSSZ
from the dark
being
------····

-·-:;::··<::::_ star Zoth)

----=-

u ,- ---
l,_T_u_1_� HzroULQuorGMNZHAH
( m al e) I
.
. prour�s-r_1r zsTYLE�!G�.-·
· (m� (femali�J
· _____ ____ , ,_

/ TSATHOG � -
,..._-___
4 sH A THAK !
**************** ** lzvrLPOG G�u�J
GENEALOGICAL CHART
of the i
• -�
11(daughter-who �ted with
SFATLICLLP
ELDER GODS
******************
- �£1�) --

(peopled !2._�ri.l:!@- by fission

KNYGATHIN ZHAW

after the hurcan residents had

· _J .
left,)

-- 9
Commoriom (n�t Atha.mma.u$} retu.I:ned to the city aft er ite p ublic ,evac­
uationJ and found that it was peopled mo·e-t- e-xeeJ:.a.bly and num e rously
by the fiasional spawn of Kny:gathin Zhaum, which poaseseed no veatige
of any thin g human o r even earth l y ..
·

. Ech-Pi-El, I am· su re, can f ur nish much ful l e r dat a con o e:rning
the genesis of Tulu (Cthulfiu) than I am abl e to offer. It would seem,
from the rather oblique references of Phom, that Tulu was a cousin of
Hzioulquoigxnnzhah, but waa eomevvha t ctin·ssr to the Azathothian arche­
·

type than Hzioulquoigmnzhah. Th� latter god , I learn, together with

Ghieghuth, was born of Cxaxukluth in a far syatam. Cxaxukluth came en
famille (famU:.y al re ady included Ghioguth'a wife, Zat ylzhemgni, and
the infant Taathogg ua) t o Yugg o th (wh�ro, I may add, Cxax.ukluth hae
most mercifully continued to sojourn throughout the aeons. Hzioul­
quoigmnzhah , who fo'und his p aren t sligh�oJ.y uncongenial· owi n g to Its
cannibalistic habits, emigrated to Yaksh ( N e p tune) at ah earl y age;
but, wearying of the peculiar religious dev o tio ns of the Yakshiane,
went on to Cykranosh, . in which he preceded by sev eral aeons his neph­
ew Tsathoggua. (Taathoggu.a, with his parents, lingered a long while
in Yug�oth, hav ing p en e t r �ted certain central caverns beyond the de­
predations of C xaxukl uth .) Hzioulquoigmnzhah, a rather reflective
and philoaphic M·ity, was long' wor·shipped by the quaint peoples of
Cykra.nosh but grew ti red of them even ae of the Yak sh iana ; and he had
p e rman e ntly re·tired from ac tiv e life at the time of his enc b unt er with
Eibon as related in The Door to Sat urn. No doubt he still resides in
the columned cavern, andEitil1quenchee hie thirst at the lake of li­
quid metal--a conf�rmed bachelor, and sane o ffsp ring. 1
My account of Tsathoggua's' te,rrene advent can read.ily be recon­
ciled with the .references· in The MoUn.d. T sathoggua, t rav ell in g thr­
ough anothe r dimension than _the familiar three, first entered the
Earth by means '.Of the lightless inner gulf of N iKai; and he lingered
·

there for cycles, during which his ultraterrestrial or igin was not
suspeoted,. Later, he established himself in caverns nearer to the
surface, and his cult thrived; b ut after the c oming of the ice he re...
turned to N 1 Kai . Thereafter, much of his legend was forgotten or mis­
understood by the dwellers in the re d-l itten caverns of Yoth and the
blue-litten caverns of K'n-Ya.n. Througn such mythopoetic va.riationa,
Gll 1·-Ha thaa-Ynn came to tell the Sp a nia:rd Z'amarcona that o nly the
images of T eathoggua, and not Tsathog gua. himself, had emerged from ·

the inner w·o rl d . • . •

*********************************************************************

LIG-HT F /4NT.AS1'1 C
± a tep along the garden path .
(Repatterned by the night wind's wrath)
Into a frenzied filigree
Of mists and moonshine. Spu n for me
To sca t ter with a single s t r oke .
As ef fer ve s c ent as the sfuoke
Of. seared and burning phoenix fl esh
That fades within the tangled mesh
0.f ma d creation. Then I heard
The singing of a phantom bi rd .
And woke and walked again--and found
A se c o nd p hantom on the ground.

Then smiled, as one who sips an acrid wine�

Those flaccid li:ps, those sightless e yes-- wer e mine!
---Arthur Kennedy
-- 10 _;,_
\
"
 t ·J r1 r) (I
f fJ IJ.J � ;-\LL;-\f'I
Slowly and with painful steps the long chain of bou�d captives
filed along the rough stones, and e ver and again the whips o f t he vic­
torious soldiers fli.ckered out to hasten their gait. And ever and
again the King s hifted in his palanquin of samite and go ld, an d turned
to urge on his bearers, so that the priso ne rs stumbled and fell as the
pace increased; and the people howl ed t heir delig ht, for by strength
and blood had t he King won his throne, and by strength and blood would
he keep it.
At d�sk, when the last shudder ing gasp from tongue s wi thout lips,
·

and the last horrible gurgle from l,ips without tongues,- had faded arfay
down the narrow stai rcase leading to that dark, cold room under the
palace--at dusk, t hen, the King summoned his courtiers and proclaimed
a royal feast. Then d id those skilled in such matters repair to the
palace hall, and soon t he �ir was redolent of bergarnot and vervain,
an� the sweetly cloying essence of the suna bush; and from t he glit­
tering walls a�d the crystal chanaeliers suone studded sapphires, and
the pale green peridot, and the tiny cgmophane that seems to burst
with light, and th e strange tyano wnose colour no man is able to name;
and the da ncers donned· their drape�ies of brocade and exquis itely fine
gold plate, a nd thei r tiny slippers of doeskin set with beryls, and
their fans of pe acock's dovm; and the :floor was ctmningly prepared fo r
th e corantos and sarabands th ey would dance that night. Thus in cele­
bration YJould m en honour the conqueror.
So at the ap po inted time that night th e lamps were lit and the
alcove brazi ers fired, and th e multicoloured light flickered and danced
over the pre'cious stones; and first of a ll th e company the King entered
the great hall and mounted his throne o f ebony and scarlet. With'· ·

haughty pride he gazed out over his glor y, an d his hand was re.i sed to
·summon th e first ente rt ainers, when s uddenly the silken hangings in
the outer doorway parted , and a tigure bore i ts way through t he �rowd
of sycopha nts to t he very base of the th rone, carrying a si lver harp.
And before the King could call servants to remove this impuden t fellow .
in sh ab� y velvet, tbe rran plucked at his harp., a nd the King was still.
As t he pliant fing er s caressed sweet music from the silver strings,
t�e King's thoughts turned to other days; f or the chords sang of lost
joys and sweet longings, and of th e fres h fragrance of a green field
in spring and the lone cry of a linnet at dawning. And the King re­
membered d ays when he had not known the wi n e of grandeur, days ere the
savagery of .battle had become. part of. him; and he forgot his dre ams of
conquest and power, and remembered only th e dreams of long ago , dreams
so little and yet so infinitely dear� Thus the King mused., and his
memories were sweet and strangely sad�
The harper· p aused, and wh ile the so ft echoes of the la st mellow
note ere pt sl owly av1ay � and for long morr.e nt s af.ter, the King moved not
and his features were as one· who dreams; and as one who awakens from
a dream t he King suddenly shook himself �md gazed up. Th�n wi th a
firm hand he pointed to the harper and said:
·

"Seize him. and bind him wi tq stro ng cordso By :strength and blood
I gain-ed il:ly t hro ne , and by strength and blood s hall I keep it. Yea,
bind him, a nd that all may see �hat th e strength of the King has not
failed, bring him with me where such tb.ings may best -be pr oven."
But the harper spoke not a \iaorcl, neither did he speak nor groan
during the long hours in that dank, qark room beneath the palace,

"!"- 11L --
 despite 'that the King and his helpers were well versed in modes of
stimulating loquacity, and it was generally agreed that the King had
\

proved what he set . out to prove. So the man died, and the King re­
flected that never again c , ould the harpist's skill serve to unman him;
never again could his ow n youthful innocence return from the graveyard
of th e years to undermine his resolution. ,And at the thought t he King's
satisfaction was tempered by stra'nge regret, and by that he knew that
he had not killed the music's echoes lingering in his heart.
Furiously and with som e th ing of panic the King sough� forgetful­
ness, and by their very nature �is attempts but intensified his pain.
His stallion's hooves dripped scarlet as he rode over dead and dying .
alike on field after f i eld , but the sadi sti c; joy such actions formerly
e¥oked was gone, and he could only remember a sweeter dew he had seen
on primrose and poppy long ago. In war after �ar , conquest after con­
quest,- the K�ng drove his fame abroad and bitter regret deep into his
soul.· Through far f ields of savagery the King ro de madly, filling his
nos tr ils with t�e sickening scent of the ghastly asphodels that bloomed
there ; but ever t here would come drifting over the bloody ground a note
of music, a sweet, trembling note from a silver harp; and the King .
would pause in hia mad gallop and remember the years that were dead and
the flowe rs that had faded, and ever those subtle notes.served to de�
throne the mighty King and to place in his stead a youth with unt,idlf
hair, who had thought with eagerness and dr e amed a l ittle.
Until finally there came the day w hen those· vagrant chords con-
. quered, and he could no longer contravene his thoughts by his actions.
So he rested, and his armies came home from thei r g lory, and his sword
hung useless in its sheath, and in the little room b eneath the palace
the brazen door·was shut and sealed�
And his ru1e became easier and more tolerant, and slow deaths
gradually decreased in number ••• a.nd.vaguely men whispered, arid the
whispers passed with ever-gr·owing volume and slow.uly swelled and crys­
tallized into �ctions, as weeds grow unchecked. And one morning th e �

King awoke to f i nd a sharp blade at his throat and a cord awaiting his
hands, and he realized that he was King no longer. For by strength
and blo od had he gained his throne, and by strenslh and blood must �e
keep it.
· ·

But ehe Ne� King was merciful in his greatness and graciously
c on s ented to spare his life--
though first the brazen door had to be
opened, for the.New King had lost several relatives in that dark, cold
room. So, when bQ had been fully satisfied, and after al lowing the
Old King appropriate time; to re�over, the New King chained the dumb,
handle s s piece of burnt and flayed flesh that now was the 01� King,
and s ta tion ed h�m to serve in th e stables, that his guests migh t glance
over the ba lcon y and be amused by the shuffling monstrosity that once
had been a tyrant and a king.
But at noon did ·the Old King know the limits of degra dat ion and
realize that his former torme nts were as not hing. For at noo n every
day th e Court Musici an came�out onto the balcony to p lay, and the Old
King saw with unbelieving horror that his instrument was a monstrously
familiar silver h.arp, an d remembered too late that though that di s turb.,.
ing harpist of old had indeed died, his harp had been thrown negligently
into a bone-filled pit in the dark, cold room and forgotten. But now
when the fiery gol den chords leap ed out in another tune, the air re ...
sounded wi th glory an d the cl ash of arms and the steady tread of me�
.. - ia ,.._
marching abreast mingled with t he intoxicant shrilling o f the t rumpets
of v;i.cto-ry; and the Old King's sc�rred shoulde rs stiffened, and in his
eyes gleamed the sparks o f the years that we re ; onc e more in his ears
f�ng the frenzied shouts of his p eo ple as he rode in state down
that
jewel-paved road; once more� once more, three times ten thousand men
knelt in homage at his feet, and thric e ten thousand sword-blades
!lashed at his word ·of command; once more he was a conqueror, once
·

i
more he was a K n g ! • • • ti l l the music stopped • • • and ha slowly looke�
down a� the rags on his body a nd t he chains on his foett and tried to
close a fist that he did n ot have, and to speak without a tongue; and
as he sobbed in unthinkable shame and s ank t o his knee s in the muck
and Slime of tb.e stables, amtd_mocking tinkles f'rom the balc ony the
King �ew fullY and completely n
the ve geanc e of the harp.
********* � **************�******i¥*******�****************************'r-*
·

I j -r ·r I �
.;....J _,
I / 'f'II CJ
r-' -1\ \I f'
r \ II ' I r·' r\J
r \ �1 \ J r'::; J
-r r\ . I'
0 -r r-' .-
J _c; ;:J L_

BY HAROLD WAKEFIELD
r
5. �. M. BURRAGE
-ooo-
A, M. Burrage began to write stories while still 'at eohool,
and became a professional author at 17. Ser vin g as a p r ivate in the
Artists' Rifles during the last war, he was invalided hom� in 1918,
and has be�n con tr ibuting stories and ar t icl e s to most of the better
known En gli s h magazines since th at time. Under the pen-name of ftEx­
Private X11, he has publis hed two books, War Is War and Satneone in the
Room, . and then 1a.ter under his own name anotne · r collect ion of oreepy
tales en title.d Some Ghost stories.
. Though OOVIoµsly a dis cip l e of M. R. Jamee, he will never
achieve the sta tur e of his master, but o n oo cta s ion· he 1-conveys a pptent
thrill to his read ers .
In one of the be st of Burrag e'a stories, Sme e, a game of hide­
and-eeek is played by a gJtoup of twelve grown up s at a christmas p arty .
Into this g am e a thir teenth player intrudes, and it ia not until one
of the players seeking ref ug e in an al re.ady occupied alcove -: . -: actual­
ly talks to and touches his oompan-ion that the true nature of tne g.ria-
1 Y occupant is revealed. The reader will re ad i ly discern the influence
here of M. _R. James .
� other powerful pieoe·o � wr i� in g is � Who Saw. It tells of
at night l.Il a garden with her face always
·

a mysterious woman who sits .

averted, death or madn e s s awaiting any man with the ha�dihood to gaze
on h@r fea tures . .
·

In Nobody'!!. Hoµse� a. f ine example Of mounting s usp en s e � a. man

.
reopnatructe a murder of twenty years a.go, an experiment which ends in
d eath fo r him s elf .
·

The Wa.pvork is a. payohologioa.l horro r story in which the vio­

t im is killed by his own ima.ginat'ion. Laid :in the ohamber of h o r ro rs
at a. waxworks museum, th is story builds up a. po werf ul atmosphere.
The very trite theme of the ghost o� an un j u s tl y executed man
re turning to prove his innocence is saved by fine han dl ing in Browdea.n
Farm. Though very similar in theme, l cons i der thia story to be far
superior in t reatment to E. F. Benson's The H Q11�
ing of Alfred Wadham.
. . An upusuaJ.. and p athet i c story is The Sa.p q
nge, in which
.
_

the spirits of two murdered young lovers haunt a pair of saplings. The
-- 13 �- ( oorioluded on page 15)
 REGJ'J ;-\� \ C)DBR U G-'S EP J CED J U}1\ I
....

(An 8th Century Funeral Song• • • •

Translated from Claus Wormiua)

by H. P •.
,
LoV'ec raft .

(Editors' n ote; Thia inte�esting item presents to Acolyte readers

what waa to us, at leaat, an enti rel y new facet of HPL'a writings.
Wr itten about 1920, The �icedium is probably one of the very earli­
est attempta by Lovecraft to "translate" a mythical manuscript. and
is also notable for the f irat reference to the redoubtable Claus Wor­
miua, who later became renowned as a translator and publisher of the
diabolio writings of the mad Ar�b, Abdul Alhazred. The various gaps
in the poem are, we assume, deliberate; and probably are meant to con­
vey the id.ea that only portions of ·so ancient and batt�red a vellum
could be deciphered. So tar aa we know, Re�ar Lodbrug'� Epioedium
ia new to pr i nt
. It appears here through the courteQy of R. H. Barlow
and Auguat Derleth. FTL-SDR.)

With our s words have we contended�

Come but new to Gothland1a shore
For the killing·of the serpent
We ha ve gain'd·from
' ·Thor ( )
( . )
From this deed they call �e man
Because I have transfix' d t he adder:·
Shaggy Breeches from that slaughter.
( )
I have thrust a spear into the serpent
With metal brighter ( / )
I

With our aworde have we contended1

But a you th wae rwheneastward
In the channel of Creon
With our foeman rs gore. in torrents
I , We the ( ) and wolvea delighted;·
·

And the yellow-footec.t-·buzza rd.

There the harden'd eteel resounded
On the high-wrought hostile helmets.
One vaat wound was all the ocean
And the hungry raven waded ..

Searching for ita carrion food )

Deep in dead men's thick'ning blood. )

With ou� swords have we ccnterided !

�two score of yearewe counted
High we bore our gliat'ning lances
.Wide we heard our fame and praises.
In the east before th e harbour
( Barons eight·we overcame;)
We the rav'ning eagle glutted;
Dripping wounds fill' d up the ocean.
We ary of the hopeless fray, )
All the host dissolved away }
-- 14 --
 With our swords have we contended!
When the Viatula�enter'd
With our ships in battle order
We unto the hall of Woden
Sent the bold Helsingian foemen.
, Then the •word-points bit in fury;
All the billows turn'd to life,blood
�arth with streaming gore was orimson'd;
Reeking ewor'd with' ringing note )

!
Shields divided; armour smote.

day
With our swords have we contended!)
None had fallen on that
)

Till on his ship Herauclus fell:

Than him before no braver baron
Cleft the sea with ships of battle;
l
Never after him was c hieftan
Lighter hearted in the fighting.

With our swords have we contended!

�the host. flung-down their buckles;
Flying spears tore hero's bosoms
Swords on Scarfian r ocks were striking.
Gory was his shield i n slau y hter-
Till the royal Rofus perish d.,
Sweat from we ary hands and pale )
Trickled down the suits of mail. )

With our swords have we contended!

Cop:i,ous booty had theravens
Round about the Indirian islands,
In that single day of action
(One in many deaths was little. )
(The rising sun grew bright on spears)
In the forms of prostrate warrior�men.
Arrows from their bows ejected;
(Weapons roared on Lana's plain. )
( Long the virgin mourned that slaugbte�. )
************************************* ******************************** **

LITTLE-KNOWN FANTASISTES. (concluded from page 13).

-.ooo-
trees sometimes appea r to the chance passer-by ae a pair of lovers mur­
muring endearments to each other while clasped in one another's arms.
No re�der will feel sympathy for the girl's murderous old father when
the trees finally exact vengeance.
All the stories men t�oned above deserve reading, though they
perhaps reveal m ore the able craftsman than the master. In this conn­
ection, it is interesting to note that M. R. �amee thought highly of
B urra$e's work,· sa ying: ttQf living writers I have some hesita ti on in
speaking, but on any list that I was forced to compile, the names of
E. F. Benson, Algernon Blackwood, Walter de la Mare, H. R. Wake.field,
and A. M. Burrage would -find a place."
****************�****** ***********************************************
HOWARD PHILLIPS LOVECRAFT, 1890-1937: A TENTATIVE BIBLIOGRAPHY. 12
pages of otherw'ise unavailable information, com:p.iled by the Acolyte
staff and published by Evans and Laney. 10¢ each.
Francis T. Lan ey, 1104 South Georgia St., �oa Angeles 15, California .•

-- 15 -
 r) I D r'l ·r rl l fL A LETrrE R
1:)fJ f ..( IJ .;..J IJ:
by E.
TO THE ACOLYTE
Hoffman P r ice
-oOo -
Wi thout intending any d isrespe ct to H. P. L ove c ra f t or to th e
tastes of his many adrn.ire'rs, I must say tha t I can go for 11unname ab le11
s tuf f just so long • . That I c a n read. it at all is a supreme tr ibute to
HPL as a craftsman. And on top of it all, he did create remarkab ly
faithful a nd sound mundane backgrounds and personalities. I prefer the
weird yarn wh ich is keyed to earth's problems. That is, I am almost
totally Ja e king in that sense of' cosmic terror which is required ei ther
to writ e or to e njoy the type of yarn in wh ich he specialized. I do
n o t for a moment condemn or look down o n those who d o have a taste for
cosmic horror--no more than does my col or " bli n d buddy r idicu�e my taste
f or J;>ersian carpets, of which I have a modest, yet diverse, collection.
HPL once asked me, "But don't you sh udder and ask, can theso thi,ngs
really -be? 11 We'd been d is c ussi n g Ar thur r1.iachon, cosmic horror, etc.,
in Pro v idence, on J u ly 5, 1933. I sa id.: "Frankly, no. I read i1.iachen
With intere st , yes; I road your works with tho keenest intorest-.-because
of the style, the settings, tho personalities, thq fl avor, t he workrnan­
sh ip -- bu t I simply do n o t ge t an yt hing rosembling any sense of horror.
I sincerely and deeply ad m ire 'Pickman's ivlodel ', I have r e - re ad it many
a time-•but w.i. thout a hint of a sh iver, I've re-road 'Cthulhu', enjoyed
it e ach time, but no horror."
He gave up. I wasn't di sparaging him or his ideal of f icti on, and
he never disparaged my a i�s . Nei the r of us could have been quite s o
silly and child ish . He d id disparage-- in a n imper so na l a nd amiable way
- -po rti o ns of one of my yarns, because the yarn was not a good example
.Q.1 J.l.§. �; just as I shook my head sadly at one of his , and on th e
same grounds. Not b e cause it was a story of mood instead of a st or y of
action, bu t because i t .Y@.§. not� do ne� a yarn o f filQ.Q.£--jus t as
mine had been poorly done as a yarn of acti on.. Neither d isp araged the
other's aim. Whatever i n fre q u ent and mild c riti cism-- of the most im.:.
personal s ort--HPL and I ex c ha nge d, uas leveled a t that sto ry in �Jh ich
the auth or had not achieved his aim. To bel:ittlo the au thor's ai'm is
something else. IThe cr i ter io n we had nas, is this . goo d fQ.r.. i ts ki n d ?
Not, is � .§:. good k ind? Did th e author achiave his purpose? Not,
was his :p u rp o se ri ght or wrong?

As a broad gener ality, I say that fans tend to bi go try, to se lf­

ce ntere d ness, t·o se tti ng up a one-man c ri teri on of excellence, and then
fee l ing t hat all ot her readers should accept the, same crit erion. i/V'ny
that pont;if ical attitude which Fort terms nexclusion�sm"?
The Chri stiarn faith has rr.a ny splendid aspects-- bu t its d a mni ng
all other f a it hs and arrogant ly presuming to 11 convert" the 11heatheh11
is Wha t makes it, to me, offens ive. I grea tly admire the l�ioslem faith,
and find but one fault: the same on e I charge to t h e Christi an..
· If
not co nverting infidels, the n the smrp line of deoorcation, the feeling
of supe riority to the infidel. Judaism--more of the same : the e le ct ,
and then_ the g e nti les . All of a piece with Hit ler a nd h is herrenvolk!
The Chinaman is the only civilized :person extant. He doesn't
believe t hat anything as personal as beJ.iof is wor th argui.ng about!
The Chinese are tho only major gro up w ho havo abstained fro m porso.cu­
ti o n s of a relig io us natur e. Hinduism is as pern i cious (far mor o so,
in fact!) as Christian ity, Islam, and Judaism in its excl usionistic
arrogance. The Budd hists. com.o- closest to being free of that arrogance.
We need more Buddhistic inf luence among our fans.
16
 And these ratings whic h fan mags have published--wha t ro t! .A fair,
impersonal display of d iscrimi na ti o n, a detached attitud e in making
comparisons--th at's s ple ndid ! But t he belittling and disparaging,
tha t's something e lse.
I re a d a l ot of stu f f I co nsid er sh eer drivel. OK. But other
readers t;hink it's e nc hanti ng. The editor would be a goddamn fool i f
he ignored those readers and bore do�n o n just uh at I like. Who'am I
to want a rnag made up 100% to my taste? Am I buyin9-up th e entire
edition? If so, then I'd be entitled to demand 10050 my pet yar n-s ty les .
Why don't fa ns strive to become connoisseurs and q_uit being en­
thusia�ts? I use enthusiast in its origi n a l s ense: a person who is
dizzy, hopped up, obsessed v�i th s o me noti on--and with the i m plicat ion
that he's reach ed t he point of incoherence an d' irr ationality . He feels
exalted and prophetic, usua lly vvi th li,t tle j ustifi ca ti on ,
I don't blame fans for being enthusiasts, understand. Any person
of intense �rso na lity i s bound to be an enthusiast, for a w hile. ·
Fi-
nall y he sober s up � nough to bec6me a connoisseur. .

Aft er all, it i s twenty years this coming ueek s ince I wr o te my

first we i rd yarn. N atura lly e n ou g h, I am no longer the ent husiast I
vwas in those da y s,, when I literally could not write/ an y t hing but a
weird ya rn. However, my enthusiasm did not drive me to wr i t i ng be­
littling le tt er s abo ut th e work of rome weird writer whose· approac h
1.1as not to my t aste.

The hodge-podge of so-calle d \!science" in scie nce-fiction i s cer­

tainly pathetic. I mean, taking it seriously is pathetic. Because
there's no science, not a damn trace of real scien ce, in a carload of
s-f. W h y not consider rthe stu f f, honestly, frankly1 as ent ertai ning
whimsy, some of it w o rth while an d wel l done, some of it shee r tripe,
an d let it go at that--enjoy muc h of it, but not make a cult of any of
it? And quit crapping yoursel f about "though t-variants" (a one-time
shibboleth) and the scie nce conten t--there ain't any. Not that I am
a scientist--hell, I am merely a B.0., and t hey have �h.D.'s writing
for s-f m ags. But I h ave a ru dimen tary acquai n tance w ith sc ien ce.
I like a science-fie tion yarn whon ll is .§!.. good yarn; I like it
because it is wel l do ne as a p i ece of story-t0llin g, and not just
beca use it has a dribble of scionce-so-calle,d. After all, if I. want
some s ci ence , vJhy not , get a textbook on some branc h of scien c e a nd then
swea t it out? 8c i en ce - f icti on, I think, is a holl of a lot more fun i f
y o u rega rd it frankl y and honestly as make-bolicvo, lot's-play, just­
suppose--t hc same way in which you read The. Arabian Nigh t s, Alice in
Wonderla nd (a sati re, by the vvay), or Candido. It'd soom silly to mo
to enter into p ond er ou s sciDntific speculat ions about Alice's gambol­
ings about, and t r y to devise so m e "lawH of n at ure which ''lc5gically11
pe rmit te d some of her expori.:mcos.

Atmosphere· unnecessary to a story? Hell, h ow can you do a y ar n

without atmosphere? You ca n do a composition having a plot a n d no
atmo s phere, but is it a s tory? The big fallacy lies in trying to dis­
sect a ya rn. A story i s an entity. Take a lot of anatomical parts
and assemble them; does that give you a human being'? A story is n·ot
simply s o many parts plot, such-and-suqh percentage atmosp here, su ch­
and-such amount of character iza ti on, an d so many peroen t th eme. Any
m or e than a stri p-tease queen is summed up in such-an d-su c h hip meas-
ure, su ch-and-such bust, etc. .
Atmosp here, ch aracterization, mood, plot, theme are ·so inextricably
linked that you can't sepa rate the m as an assayer breaks down an ore
specimen. They are a 11 aspe cts of th e sarre entity. True, some yarns
devote more s pace to atmosphere a nd le ss to plot, and so for th in
-- 17 --
pe·rmutations an d combinations. The predo m inance of one aspe ct and th e
subordi nation of the othet aspects is not a rr.a tter of rule but rather
a matter of what effect d oes th e au th o r desire, ��purpose does
.h52. � !Q_ ach i eve? Whichever aspect-do minance b est achie ves his pur­
pos e is certai nly the best one. But no two stories can or ought to ha ve
a ny arbitrarily ·assigned aspect-dominance.
The only answer t o this matt er of proportioning the 11aspects11 is
this: it dep end s on your narrat i ve purpose. The only ti m e wh en one
can be d efinite in cond emnation is when a writ er has, to the point of
absurdit y, squelched one of tho �sp ects. He can supprqss and emphasiz e
within wide limits. If he know s his business, ho knows jus t how and
what an d how much to su ppress an d to um phasize and. over-emphasize to
get a 11tru811 and valid story-entit y. If he docs not know his bu siness,
that is, if he lacks th e instinct of.dramatic rightness, all his babble
about proportions is like a madman laugh ing into a ·well. He should
stick to mathematics or some t hing precis e, a nd avoid pursuits where
intuition d ominates�
But' please do convince your pals that there is absolutely no such
thing as nov elty of· plot. 1).ll plots are b anal and hackne ye d . The ·
:personality of the characters is w hat carries a stor y; ·th at, and su s­
pense, arising not so much f rom wond ering how it'll turn. out, as from
participating in t he nature of t he viewpoint-character to such an ex­
tent that the reader sha res the hero's emoti ons through his sumpathy
for a fellow-human. · 1

iJly best st ori es--t hat is, those sold for the mo st money, or so ld
to the more esteemed magaz ines, or th ose lon ' gest remembered by readers
and friends--havo been st ories utterly lackin g in plot novelty. What
these sto rios did have was; (a) striking pGrso nalitics, (b) colorful
atmosphere, and (c) a themo whoso truth and offoc ' tivoncs s had considor­
ablo in common w ith th-o .Joe Doakes roador' s daily lifo and p roblems.

I am always interested in glanci ng at a fan magazi no, but it is

only f ai r to c onfess that I do no t koop in touch with the fan ·world ..
I wrota f or Diablerie f or fun and to humo:r Bill Watson, whoso kind
invitation to at tend.a conclave had t o b o declined. I've 1-vritton j'ust
25 weird yarns since 11Spanish Vam pircu. Not many--and only that and
"Apprentice J.vlagician11 and wKhosru' s Garden ii appoa.rcd in Weird Tal os.
Since J.vlay 1932 I h ave done bu t 69 fantasy yarns; si nce my start in
Hl24, just a bi t s hort of 100, including collaborati ons. · Of my total
of 454 yar ns,, about 430 YJere do no pr of os s iona lly, th at is , s inc e May
1932. Of professional stuff: 69 fant asies, 62 westerns, 137 adven­
tu res, and 131 detocti ves; the ro st are miscellaneous. So you see why,
·perforce, I am not in touch wi th t he fan wo r ld. Fantasy is a sort of
hobby with me; I write a fa ntasy yarn only wh en I feel th at fantasy is
the id eal med ium for a th o m o, or to depict some personality or situa­
tion. I don't �vrite a fantasy just to be writing a fantnsy_ (I used to
d o that, in ·1932-.33, un ti l I got morto.lly sick. o f my ow n stuff!).
! am not remotely i nterested in fandom's classifyings, dogrmtic
cries, awards of crowns of dung and wreaths of orchids. To me, fan tasy
is something to enjoy, rather tban to make into a cult . I e njoy w rit ­
ing. Why sh ould I limit my writing to jus t one fiel d? I meet all
kinds of people, I've travelle� co ns iderabl y; I've moved in so many
strata of :Life-, I have so m any \ interests, tha t I simply coul d not
cram p myself to doing just fan tasy OJ;' just any othe r one kind of fi c­
tion. Doing nothin g b ut fant�sy is almost inconaeivable! I can hardly
imagine 1living all these years and seeing th e wor ld only in t erms of
cosmic terror, or as a setti ng for Gothic yarns, Ol'. in terms of scie nco­
f icti o n. As f or th ose who can and do, a 11 :porrnr to th·e m.
O n the othe r hand , I d o not by any m eans dismiss t h e fans with a
-- 18 --
 shrug. They ar e fellows who think along lines which I from time to time
consider intent ly . We share a common taste. They are cus tomers . But
for the ir interest in fantasy--they, th e great group or fans and mere
,. purehasers- .... the,;re 'd have been n early 100 yarns I could never have sold.
I do not contribute fictio n to fan mags, simply beca use wri ting
a st ory is � ' not merely splashing something off. And when I work,
I expec t to get paid. I can do only one grade of work: my best--th at
is, my b a st at that moment, and with,respec ? to that th e me or subjec�.
My b est brings an appreciable sum from a commercial publ isher. Frankly
I couldn't afford to hand a fan mag a MS. fgr whiCA I can get, via
return llliil, �100 or �200 or �300� No fan mag editor wo uld expect me
to hand him e v� n a �50 Mti., th ough these d ays I don't warm up a type ­
writer for less t han $100. As for dishing out a reject--no. If it
, were good, it would have sold for cash. If it's not worth selling,
i t ' s not worth anyone's acceptance as a gift.
Tr ue , I do wr it e essays for fan mags. That is different. No
probl em of drama and,structu�e is involved. It's rela�ation, hobby
writi ng, a bus-man's holidayi I enjoy it--in limited amount s.
A motor-racing fan mag--of all things, but why not?-�once asked
m:t if I had any motor• raci ng reje cts. Od dly, I did have. !'ve fol­
lowed r�cing, I've written articles on motoring, and fi cti on on racin g.
One bounced. But I turned the man down. I-r it wasn't good . enough to
s el l , then it wasn't good enough to give avvay . J:vionths later, a salvage
editor b ought it--eut rate , of course. But it was, after all, worth
payi n g for. Ficti on writing, while fun, i s also work.· Essays--well,
that ess ay on rum in Di�blerie: fun do�ng it, relaxation, do ne aft er
dinner, when I was burned ou t and couldnit �rite fi cti on. I did it
inst ead or spending an hour in the darkroom ti . nkering wi t h cameras.
That very same kind or copy, n ot one bit bett er, not one bit worse,
u sed to bring me �50 on the barrel head, in the days when I fooled
around writing articles. FO'!t! the. t r"at·:h.or, I sold some technica l
photographic art icles last year; lost money on them, bu t did it just
for fun. Bill Watson ki:qdly s ai d my articl e on rum was good enough
for Esquire. While I've never so ld to Esquire, Bill was jus t about
rig.ht. I have sold such copy to mgs which had the Esguire approac h­
bu t-varied and came close to Esouire ra tes.
*�******** '****�*************•**�************************�*************

DARK GARDEN ( For Clark Ashton Smit � )

There was an autumn garden onoel strange flowers
Swooned by the paths, a nd yews arc�aic dreamed
Through endless twilights where no peacock screamed
His agony to mark the f ading hours.
Here wae my home; among these crumbling bowers
I lay by silent pools whose waters seemed
The timeless mirrors of a world that gleamed
In tarnished beauty, swayed by ourioua powers.
No other walked the garden, and no sound
Provoked the echoes of ,that brooding air -
Where fruit hung heavy; knowing grief nor oare
I dreamed until that bitter hour found
Beneath dark-rotting leaves a mouth whioh bled-­
And I a.woke and knew that I was dead.
---Richar d Ely Morse
( Reprinted by permiaaion,from The Californian. F all 1936.)
-- 19 --
 -r f-J .e Eu�1\.r-\LL, D;.\�l< -rJ-JJJ'-IG �===�--
by Duane W. Rimel
-oOo-
"Come d ow n to eart h, man. Corpses don't go about stabbing people
to death, least of all wit h needles."
I coug hed and rustled the sheets of rG9.nuscript. When Russel. San­
ders observed that I was serious, his smile faded. He took out his
pipe and loaded it.
We wGrG seated in my s tudy that cool spring evening. Tho table
botwoon us displayed sovoral s hoo ts of yellow paper covered with long­
hand, and· two newspaper clippings.
nr didn't moan precisely that, Sanders. But I do think Carver
had his rovongo on Bullit, oven thoug h Carver was buried two wcclrn
before
' Bulli t d icd. And I think Carver ua s there himself • • • • "
"I don't boliovo in ghosts, Andy."
11Porhaps you won't havo to when you r:;ad th.is diary. I foun d it
a mong Carver's bolongings (
l7hich 1.-;ent to me according, to his nill in )
his lake-side cabin at Wa h a, YJhere he nas discovered the tYJe ntieth of
May. His body had a large, un healed scar on its righ t side, beloTI the
ribs. The rirst clipping tel ls ab out that.
11Inciden tall·y, th e do ct ors weron' t sure what he died of. The
second clipping gives an account of Bullit's dea t h. Both have curious
aspects, as you Will notico whon you road thom. Doctor.Bullit was
found in his garago about two a. m. , barely a wook ago. Ik had boon
stabbed all over, as i f by a long noodl ·J or ha t-p;Ln.
"Now I want you to read Carvor' s diary and soc if you think the
way r d o. ?crho.ps I'm pre judicod because ho and I VJCIC' suc h fq.st
friends. I wo.nt to got your candid opinion. 11
Sanders gathered up the y�llou s hoc:ts c:nd bo.gan to rend.

iVIo.y 2, 1940---Clnro. ho. s o.nn olmcod

· our ongngomon t, o.nd I c:m o.s
ho.ppy o.s any morto.l ovor vvns, snvo for tho. t one shGdon �h ic h hovers·
botwoGn u s--thn t thing \Vi. th which. I 2J11 ncc.ursod, I cm c,f.rc�id to tell
her about it. Of o.11 my frtonds, Anderso n is th..:; only ono who knous.
My pc.rents did,· of c ourse, _but thcy'r'J gono forever. It is fortunr.. tc
· thoy novor sc:w mo grow up • • • •
I must hnvo nn ope re. ti on boforc ric nro rimrricd--thr: t is vi tc.l.
But I am o.frc.id of th".t, too. The con f lic t is giving me the jitters.
It m ust bo dono. Bullit s::c.ys t ho rcmovnl r:ill bo simple. Tho mochn.nics
of tho oporo.. tion s hould bo ca.sy f or o. surgeon o f h is rornc.rkc. blc ��bili ty,
but ho doosn' t understand tho psychologic��l phc. s o s of t h.: si tuci. tion.
Ho doosn' t roc.lizc hon n. ttr..chcd I� vc become t o · it tho so long yco.rs,
how much a po.rt of my very being it roc.lly is. For '1.ll I knor: thu
,
thing mo..y contr-: i n o. segment of my very soul. I c:•.n not sr. y; I nm no
doctor or mngicinn.
Have an appointment with Bullit tomorrow. I am afraid he will
insist on an operation immedi ately, if I am to be completely well by
'
t he last of June.
May 3---Went to Bulli t' s office, and he gave me the ultimatum.
It has to be done very s oon. Tomorrow it will be over, and with the
grace of God, I'll begin tho first instalment in my book of future
happiness.
It w ill seem strange living without that t hing. And I am afraid
the removal will leave a scar, per haps moro psychic than p hysical.
It is worth tho risk, h owovor. Bullit s ho uld kn on if anyone docs.
HG says it isn't really ali-Vo; moroly an abnormal growth. He says
there is no secret or mys�erious bond between the thing and me. I

-- ao --
 hope and pray that he is r ight • • • •
Out wi ·th Clara all evenin g. Vie sav1 ;;The HunQhback of No tre Dame n ,
an d lat e r we sat in my car t alking and. plan ning unt il the small/ hours.
She's knoc ked me for a l oop, all right! P lan s to keep hGr job fo r a
•'

while, at l e ast. I wa sn ' t nild about th a t, but I su pp ose it's quito

t ho proper arrangomon t those days. i•!iy income .!§. irr e gular , and my
apar t mont isn't lar go enough for two.
·

lvle.y 4---Well, i·t's done! I'm not siclc or giddy, as I expected.

Bullit gave me a local, and bad 1:he job finished VJithin tw en ty minutes"
He's good. I t old him to throw the thing in th e furnac.e, and he pro­
·mised me he wo uld. 'rrue, I lost soil) blood, but les s than I anticipated.
I must be careful· fo r a vwok or so, until th0 wound begins to heal.,
Finished the first draft of my long African novel, and rotouch;.;cl a
short st ory. I'm ver y p l 0 aso d. rvith my friend's surgory • • • pcrhaps I
oxaggora tod the C:i ro consequences of my situation. ·
I shall knon more
a b o ut th at a mo nt h f rom no u .
Heavy dut.:.; r.ri th Clara. a.go.in tomorro·11 nig ht . I t ol e. her I "\"JO.sn't
feeling w el l today. Bullit says I can g o abo ut as usual, pro vi ded I
don't wrench or twist my abdomen. Now, thank God! I shan't have to
tell Clara; she will never knorr there vva'S a thhig urong ni th me. I
feel five years younger! Best frame of mind f or months. When sh e
called t on ight , I ha d to liG about my health, but Doc s a y s I'd bettor
stay home an:l rest . He a dmires C lara, tells mo I'm getting a swell
girl. He doesn't know the half o� it!
May 5---Worked ha rd all mor ning . Hent out with Clara in the even­
ing. I di d n ' t feel well, so rve came home early. Tv.ringcs oi pain in my
right side, H e a li n g reaction, I suppose. First opera ti on I eve r bD.d,
barring t onsils, �nd the reln p so is n ' t p l ousa n t . Tno o'·clock a.. m. a.nd
still no sl e e p •• • •
May 6---Fel t ti:J:"ed and list less . &.11 mo1ming, and in , the a f tern oo n
wen t to see Bullit, a lt hough I uasn 't schedule d to return so soon. He
ch anged tbe bandage, and said the place is healing nicely, and t here's
no occas:4:>n for worr y. He gave me some Nombutal tablots, and I h:::ipc I
can s leep tonight. Called off going ovor to C la ra v s ; she was d isap­
pointed. Can ' t holp it if I don ' t fcol right. . . . Sh�uld got busy on
that short s tory about Jxlosmorism. N.Jtc: lo.:il<: up i n f:::i r rra tio n at th o
li b ra r y ..
Ma:it: 8 --- S t a y o d homo Tuusduy, na pp ing un d roa.d� ng a nd rmlking tho
floor. Vo r y li�t lJ s l v u p the la st ty.;o nights. .And very strc.ngo droa.ms.
I kn o v.; 1t' s silly, but I drorunc d I wns socing thr o ugh the oyos of a. ve r y
smo.ll cr·oa.turc, liko o. ro.t or gopher. kiust for got t hese morbid fan cies
and to.kc c. wo.lk. H<:'.vo shelved the Me sme ric s t ory, whi c h I 'm o.frc..id nc.s
tho causo of the odd vis ions. _

Cln r G. wc.. s ovor n 'i11ilu thi s ovoning r�nd �-mnti..;.d to tf'�ko me for c.
drivc; S2.id the night wir \7 ould do mo good . I refused. He ha.d a.n 8.r­
gumcnt.... It v-ms my fnul t, cur so the luck? I vms in r:.n ugly mood-·
, qui tu out of c .hn ra.ctor rli t h mo. To ld hor a.bout my drc c.ms , r. nd sho so.id
I'd bottcr quit writing those nil d , no.c:-:.br0 st ories. I ::('lr:rcd up c.nd
t old hor I'd writo v1hn. tovcr I dm.m r;oll ploo..scd. Sho flounced out of
the o.partmon t., c..c..lling b�ck thr'.t sh.; did111 t int.;nd to r.i-:'. rr y r. po.lc-
fo.:c od droc.mc r • • • •
How u tt e rly in sc:-. n� on e bo c or;1c s in c.n c.rgunont ! I cr,n't cxplc.i n ny
sudden t ampe r . I' 11 tr y to soc her to norroi;J cm d snooth c out t he. 1nin­
k los , if possib.k. I'n ro:�ll y not nysclf thoso dnys, r.nd often I feel
a.s if t1y ;:.1ind rvoro pnr tly unhinged, Of course, I knor1 bet t er than thn t.
I must soc Bulli t tonorr ow . I h ope those accursed dre1;1ns Y1on 1 t haunt
r:ie ar:;a.in. I can sca.rcely sleep at all.
Mal 9---At noo n I ' phon ed Clara's favorite lunch counter, but she
wasn't there . I headed for Bull it's·hospital, and net Clara coning out
..... 21 .....
 of the same building . She stared at m e queerly a nd kept on wa lking � I
seized her a r m and turned her around. I caused a s � en e , but I was�rt
going to bo put o ff any longer. It was ;.:;ithor one thing or tho othc-r,
I askGd her, in a polite rran ncr, to forgive;, me. She quibbled a;:v:i. ;:::!_do­
stopp od. Bho gave me no direc t answer. Then I_ac cuscd hor of v.'...-<t:.ng
Bulli t. She flar0d bac k so hotly I know I had struck tb.G t:'.:'u.th, She
said she co u ld gci to a doctor any time she p lea sed , and that as far as
she was co nc erned our e ngagemen t was off. I told he r th at was je.k e ui th
me. She sn a tched off' the ring and slammed it on the }a ve rrant .. Tltl.e
d iamond broke fro m its se t ting and ro lled, like a mocking eye of Satan,
ac ro ss the si dewalk. I watched it splash in too gut tor , ahd, turn ing my
back o n Clara and tho c ur ious long-nockud mob, st a g gor G'd int·o th o hos­
·Pital, so enraged I c ould sc arcely so0.
I didn't Visit BuJ.lit. Went to' th e Idle-Hour bar and drank myself
:i:'nto a stupor. Larson brou gh t me home and du.'Uped me in bed . I slept
well--the fi rs t time sinc e that damned operation. I'm beginn ing to
think it was al l a hug e mista1r.:a. I shall sec Bullit tomorr ow • • • •
May 10-- -More wild dreams last nig ht- - they ' re driving me wild.
Bullit says I'm just upset because Cl.!il"a an d I had a li tt le falling out.
The goss ip seems to have floa ted around vary s wiftly . Bullit was quito
sm�g and pleased with himself as ho drossod my wound and tri od t o soothe
my norvcs. I wonder j ust how well Cl ara and Alfrod Bulli t knoi:1 one ,
another • • • . Not that it n:attors any moru. Curse hor ec homing lit tle
soul! I love hor and hate her at t ho same time. Is that possible? I
don't kno\J. Wo ' re through--tha t is final.
Bulli t says tho uound is n't hoaling as it should, but predicts th at
f
another wook ·will soo mo in goo d health and spirits. He re mi n ded me
again about exercise and fresh air. Rings un der my eyes aren't encour-
aging.
- . , . .

Something Bullit said r emind ed.. IID of my story, and I to ld him I

had been unable to f i n d any reliablo rcfcrcnco b ooks on Mosmorism and
telepathy, a nd asked him ·whore I might o b tai n soma. The quo stion rather
startleC. him. Ha saic he. possossod a fow, antl offorocl to lot me use
them. I accepted glad ly. Perhaps I can settle down and write a few
pages tonight.
Duri ng the .c ourse of our c onve rsa t ion I t o ld Bulli t about my dreams .
He laugh ed and said I worried too much , addi ng that th ey were probably
d�e to some obscure psyc hological a tta ckmen t I'd had for the missing ·

protu b er an ce.
Ma�' 12---Moth e r' s Day. Went to church w eari ng my usual, white c ar­
na t ion .: • • I ca n't bear this town life any longer. I'm going up to my
c abih at Lake Waha, where I may got some rost and poaco of mind . Now
I'm dr G aming about Cla ra day a nd night. Can't write a thing. Seem to �

havG lost al l powers of c on c o ntrati on. Mind noods a r ost. Too many
emotional upheavals lately. Must get away for a while. iViakine; a rra.ge­
ments and doing nec essary :i;a c k i nG to.day .
May 16-;---Esta.'blished in my cab.in at last. Told th e postmaster at
the re so rt to hold all mail and communications for a week. I need com­
plete isolati on . ·"1ust batt le this out alone. Wont for a long wa lk
toda y and visited many old picnic spots and swimming holGs. Moro poig-
. nant· momorios Of Clara, who use d to sharo with mJ t hose scenic delight s • .
Very few t ourists a oou t, owing to colC. woa thor . - Early ye t for the main
flock.
Tried a new story, but gave it up. R es t le ss ; cursed with insomnia
and bad d reams . · Last nig ht ( fi rs t evening here ) I had more dist urb i ng
visions and woke se veral t im es in a cold sweat. Wound is h ea lin g slow ­

ly. It throbs and b urns whon G v e r I mowo. Howcvort I th ink another

week hero Will soo mo en tiroly well. Mount a inl:I ar e b e aut iful this· time
of year. More Lilies of the Vallqy tha n I over· saw before so early .in
-- 2i3 _._
 the season. If I c a n believe the s tore-keeper, th e bass fishing is
good. Need a drink. L ucky I br oug ht a case of bourbon.
May 17- ...... Drank my self asleep last n:Lght an d fe lt terrible all day ..
.' Dreams are beco ming more gruesoms., J ri:>ally can't- expla-in th e m ,
· I
h ave n ' t touched t hoso bocks Bul 1.i t ga vc: Di:.. And I 1 vu lof1; t.1. c story
a lo ne . Firs t I d rea me d of flt)atir.g throush the air, far above 4..he
gr ound , a d isembodie d s p iri t.1 But th� 'J21:'... verse w:as not m�ne--· I was
fe t ter e d and trapped; moved utterly by fcrce:s fJ;om without. La-c2r came
that odd s econd s ight: seeing t hrou e;h the '.'} vr.::13 of some ti ny ci�ea t u re c

The re cu rre nce of this pa r ti cu l ar drGam .i..s arc '.lS:i.ng a hi de ous fear a nd
suspicion. Thero must be a d efin it e ��l for thes e dreams,.&nd I
th ink I know what it; is • • • •
My theory is fantastic. J: mus t forget it an d take a walk. Sun­
light is fading, but I have p l enty of tirre. A. b it of 1 fr es h air may
revive me.
I've been think:i,ng abo ut Doctor Bullit. Wh y has he been s o inter...
ested in Me smeris m an� te le p a thy? Among his books I have s een, too, a
few pamp h l ets on hypnotism.
I suppose he and C lara are keep ing company now, Curs e them bo th:.
When I g et we ll, I' 11 g o back and tell th em off•
Ma�, 18---Had a ter r i b le night. Didn't walk fa� ye st er day evening,
because dark came too qui ck ly. A s trange phenomenon--1 was never afraid
or the dar k before, C hild is h nortsonso. 1J:'ho ·c ool mountain air r efre sh e d
me s omewhat , but a few ,h ours later I fel t as bad as ever.
Went to bed about midnight� R oll ed and t o s s ed for ages .
· Took
some sl e ep ing tablets and eve nt ual ly fell into a half-coma. D re a med
aga i n ; and th i s time the vi s io n \Ias shocking indeed. I hes itate to
v1rit e all of it•"•.. My o r ig inal suspicion is s treng then ed , and I am
afr ai d that my aa,ys are numbered-•
I dreamed �gain o f s ee i ng through tho oyos of another; a nd where
be f o re I had s im ply been a-ware of my pred i cam ent , this ti me I actu a lly
beheld ob j e ct s that were horr ib ly farni liar. When I ope ne d my e yes in
t ha t unfamiliar dream-wqrld, \Ji thin that s mall b o dy , r had a gli m ps e
of a s h in y o pera t ing room in Bu ll i t ' s hospital, and I s au hi s round,
fat face leering dovm at mo. T hon I th::mght I sa11 him laugh. An d God
h el p me!--beyond h.im stood C la ra, dark and lovely as eve r. I san him
move tovra.rd her., That i ma g e is seared u pon my br a i n forever.. Cla ra
in Bullit' s arms, returning his fervent kisses and caresses.• • •
' And 1t se e med that I crouched on a lor.: table, 1.u thin a body that
was snnll and dark an d hideous • • • •
I awoke screaming an d cJ_a \Jing tho air. I ha ven ' t slc pt since.
I'm afraid that �hat I dre a med may pos ses s a shador: o:f reali tyl The
�anders or the mind are a s yet unexplored, and time and s pace seem to
mean very l itt l e. . . . If Hhat l f ea r is hap p ening, I may not liVie very
long.
I cannot go: to sleep now; must not. The morning of another d ay
h as come, and I f e el weary and giddy and es tra ng ed from my surroundings:
the snail ro om, camp-cha irs, ai;i.d narrou cot . M ore wh iskey• •• but even
tba t Wi 11 n o t dim the horror or let me far get • .
Must g o o ut and breathe fres h air. I w is h Ander sori uere her e-�he
mig h t be able to r..alp. I h o pe he hasn ' t gone to Seattle. Thoughts a r e
c h ao tic ; mind wanders incessantly.
One th ing is certain··-if ev er I get on my feet ag ai n, I sha l l kill
t hat f ie nd • • • kill h:tn� no matto1'.' 11ihl.at tho pric e . He promised to burn
that thing • • • ho snatn'.1er� r�y dea.rest p0,s .sess ion, and nbu I think he has
yoked me 1-;i t h a singu:.:..a:r anc. h:'..deous cu rs e that I de s pa ir o f es caping.
But I shal l h ave re v-e nge � Damr�. hie b la c k heart • • • : ·

'
S and er s dro pp ed the la. s t sheet of manuscript anq fu.'rllbled in his
jaa�et for his p ipe. A sudd e n thought seemed to strik e 'him• and he
.
23
seized the clipping �hich gfa.Ve the det ail e d acc ount of Bull it's· death.
He r e ad it twice an d dropped it as if tho ontiro e pisod e had an unploa-
san t odor.
·

He c le a r e d his throat,. "You know, And er so n , it ' s vo ry s trang o .

Tho .natispapo:v says that Bullit di dn ' t die imraodiatcly. He was taken to
a hospital, \?here he screamed and raved about some thing coming to life
and cbas ing h im , ha un t i ng his every fQO tstep. Some small, dar k th ing • • ••
"And by t he nay, you say you knen Co.rver well. Did you ever see
t hat -- thin g on h.i s sid e?
·

Wha t did it look like'?"

I didn't a nswe r r ig ht. away. I lit a no th e r cigaret. "Yes, and it
wasn't a nice sigtit. I s aw it one t i me , as he gu e s s ed , nh en he passed
o u t , and I ha d to undress him and put him to bed.. I'd say it r;as a
sort of deformed 'Siamese tv1in' that just ne v e r developed normally. ..
Our eyes met across - the table. We never mention ed the subject
again.
**************************************************�***************** ***
EDITORIALLY SPEAKING. ( Concluded from page 2)
or critical .in nature. While we have several pieces along these lines
promised to us, at 'the moment we have practically nothin� of this nature
.a ctually on hand. C,an YQY. help us ? , • • • Before he went into the army,
Dalvan Coger ata:rt ed a. hard-cover checklist of Frank Owen ; if any of you
are in a position to finish it up� please let us know, and we �ill send
you his notea� • • • We also ne e� good poetry; fiction, how�ver, is desire d
only by arrangement� ... The next issue is rather nebulous at the moment;
h owever, it will be highlighted by another short-short by Anthony Bouch­
er, something or other by 'Lovecraft, and will' probably feature at�ries .

by R. H. Barlov1 and Fritz Leiber, Jr. · The cover will be: by Howard Wan­ '
'

dr ei.
********************************** �************************************

J-JOLE
Evil spawns in the shallows at Satan's Hole
Where man meets the Devil to sell his soul.
B_end the knee quickly, and say a p � ci.y e r • • •
They never return who linger there.

The ohaam is wide, and the pool ia deep.

From under the waters, shadows leap.
Can those be rocks which leer and stare?
They never return who linger there.

Bats dart low in the dim half-light. ·"'

The wail of a banshee is heard, and Fright, ·

VUl ture• like , swoops through the dank, foul air • . •

They ne�er return wbo linger there.

Shrill blows the wind, sobbing and sighing.

Voices lament, moa.ning and crying.
A ·werev1olf howls from his hidden lair • . .

They never return who linger there.

Slow-dripping wat�r--o r is it the sound

Of globule-s of blood from an open ·wound?
Pass the ep ot e:v1iftly--beware, bev1are • . .
They never return who l inge r there.
--Rita Barr
,, -- 24 ·-
 ,

(
Under the new regime of The Acolyte, this popular feature w-ill be re­
sumed. Frankly, there was a difference of opinion on t he matter; Edi­
tor Laney dialikee to use space for readers' letters when t hese pages
could be uaed for actual art ic l e s, Edi·tor R usse ll on the other hand is
a. staunch 'beli$ver in this department, and the reader reaction definite­
ly gives Sa.m"e views preponderance. However, we will not bother to com­
p ile ratinga. :.If you f.ol k a want this department to continue, it is up
to you to give ua letters Qf a nature we can.use. FTL-SDR.
---oOo---
THOMAS o. KABBOT, the well-kno\vn Poe authority, writes from New York:
.�.I do not think that Lovecraft was much of a poe:r;-- �d iffe r­
e� from Poe in that--for EAP was primarily a poet, apd even the tales,
g rand as they a.re, were not, in my o pi n ion , what h is heart primarily
_

desired. And after twent y yeara and mo re of study, th er e is the sub­

jec t I know enough about to have an ppinion. But the only poem of HPL
that really gets me is the song in fhe Tomb' it is the beat imitation
of• t he 18th oentury I have ever read, and the line 11Better under the
t able than under the groundn is magnificent. But Loveoraft I think at
bottom loved his prose work. And I feel with Leonardo da V i n ci that
only what one wishes to do oan e ver be· one's finest work. . ·

I think I was the first aoademic person to review HPL, and I have
no ob j e ct i on to telling you that it is one of. the things I am p r oude st
of. But there is a corollary to it--Loveoraft i n vol ve s my greatest
regret. I taught at Brown (Brown University, Pro vide nce, Rhode Island
--eds.) in 1928-9, and was often no doubt within 50 feet of him. And
I had once had a hint that one might write to him without offenoe. But
I did not know �- and I never saw him with knowledge, and I never wrote
him, lie made one great contribution to Pure scholarship -- for he got
.
th e whol e point of Poe's House of Usher,· which in print waa not done
to my knowledge before he wrote:-- I mention it only in pas s ing -- but
my respect for him includes respect for his cxitioiem.
I have never quite be e n sure how great he was; though I do feel
he '\Vas a great \vr it er . But I know one thing.; hia fiction shares· an
honor with the work s of Poe and Chatterton. They are the only authors
of whom I can honestly aay that I en·joyed every word of their fiction,
a nd I have read all eaeily available of c:ill three. Now my honest phil­
osophy about literatui� is this -- in a world auch as I have from boy�
hood p e r ce ived this one to oe, the literature Qf escape ia t o my mind
of tne greatest va1ue. Aa for morale -- t hat is all right, and I'm
all for it, but one can get all the pure moralising any man needs from
the Enoheridion pf. Epictetu$:' a.nd maybe a bit of Walt Whitman. When
peopl e ask me what to read, I answer if they aeek m oral improvement I
recommend :tho�e two authors. For the rest, what is h armless and makes
this a mo re pleasant world ia what I. value.
----ooOo'o---- .
BURTON CRANE� newap�!!_ �and p�wr ight, considers the last issue
from his office at the New York Times :
�- -�-

-- -r-1ike youra tu:tf a-l et;-and wish I knew more of t he field about
which you write, Hoffman's account of the visits. to Smith was amusing
and good but, it seemed to me, needed just a ahade more exagger�tion
than he gave it. He had an excellent conception, but didn't quite,
carry it through. -- The House At The End of The Road could have been
much more powel'fUlj alrl3an1sternacrfo-aQ waato,bufld up the menace.
The menace, of: c ourse, was the floo a ia n bitoh ·\vho wanted to marry Ward. ·
It wouldn't have been hard t o give her an almost hypnotic p6wer over
him� in her presence he can't w.rench his mind from her physical ,attri-
-- 25 --
o�tea1 even while hie mind keeps telling him that ahe i� a cold little
chiseler who wants only hia money. The growth of this obsession wi.th
the way the Roosian swims inside her clothes, etc., would give the ato�
ry the narl'ative progress it needs and whic h the a uthor has t:tied,.to .
giYe it by repetitious returns to the ga l War d finally recognises as
�eath. it would also give a dra matic build-up. The Rooaian wouldn't
have to get him to propose in an attack of amnes ia. In.fact, the real
edge of the story could be made to out in the present. Now it is smo­
thered in the past. (The editors interrupt: Thia ie all very well, but
had the story been handled as you suggest, we question if it woul d have
come under the heading of fantasy� This of course would have made no
difference, but the thought o ocured to us in pa.a.sing •• • • • Al s o, while
we have the floor, we should like to mention that, while The Acolyte'!.
old taboo aga.in�t "I liked this; I ,didn't like that" wi;l.l remain in
force, we will from now on publish ocoasional co mments on the contents
of previous iaaues--provided they come under the head ing of construct­
ive criticism. FTL-SDR)
·

--00000----
�t. R. A. i!Qfnti\N, Acoly� art editor, reports from " Som ewhe re in Tex­
aslfon his visit· to the home of Lilith Lorraine, no ted poet:
� - ;:-:-r visited San Antonio, which I found to be a primitive, degen­
e ra te town, and: telephoned Lilith Lorraine, mentioning that OAS had in­
eiated I lo ok her up • • • • She and her husband met me in their car, and
drove me out to their Shr ine (Avalon Poetry Shrine. --eds.) As we
• .

entered the grounds, I heard the ba r k in g of what eeemed to be myri�d

doge, though it turned out to be only three--two of them Russian wolf
and the other a crossbreed between Russian wolf and apitz. All were
beaut iful creatures and very friendly. Inside I was st.artled to find
a ver itable menagerie. A large parrot was quietly perched inside its
h uge cage which sat on the floor, and two cats were snarl ing at each
other. They alS.o have a monkey, but it was asleep in bed at the time,
though later she 'brought it out.
Mias Lor raine is a moat amazing person, ,and going out there was
a moat faacinat-ing adveJllture. She and her husband have been married
33 years, but she says she is all the time receiving love letters from
strangers. She prefers her pen•name so much th�t even her husband
calls her Mias Lorraine somet imes! They are botb native Texans, a.nd
she is complete· with drawl and all. She has a charming personal ity
·

and a fine sense of humor. .

I had only ai hours before my bus, and every minute was spent in
incessant oonveraation or in listening to Lilith r ead us acme of her
verse. She read me se l e ctio ns from her then aa yet 1.mpublished book,
�he Day of J'udgement (Banner Presa, l.944), and I was completely caught
in her spell, totally swept away with them. She showeq me the shrine
i taelf, and the sunken g arden, though unfortunately it was late at
night, and the floodlights did not g ive the proper perspective we
would have desired •• • • Miee Lorraine thinks OAS the finest America n
poet since Poe • • • •
----00000----
WIL LIS E. HURD, President of the AMERICAN JULES VERNE SOCIETY, writee
f:om Arlington, Virginia: - -- .
A few years ago-r-had an article in Hobbies Maga z ine (Aug.1936)
entitled, A Collector and His Jules Verne . • • Then I began receiving re­
pl 1ea from o the r Verne-iane • . • I met James C. Iraldi, leading Verne fan,
in a. boo ksh op in B o e t on . • • Meanw hile other coll eotora wtote me, and e­
ventually I had a considerable correapondence1 some of it centering
a.round New York. One day .I broacheu the subject of a Society, just to
oement ua seven or eight collectors into a sol id mass, ·and with no
.other partioular purpose in mind. We set on the date of May 20, 1940
-- as
... there were six of us when we organized, with myself as president,
James c. Iraldi a.a aeoreta.ry•hiato-rian, and Nat Bengis as vioe-presi­
dent a.nd treasurer. The foll owing day, the New York Times gave us a
brief notioe and .as a reault of that we hearCTrO?il"t"loyd V. Jacquet,·
edito; of J\lnnies, InQ., and shortly after added him to our member­
ship as editor. Thar-Ootobe:r: we had a meeting in New York for the
purpose of at��n�hening our ties, and to consider the publication of
a bulletin which we wanted in the exact size and format· of the fine
old Paris editions of verne's work• issued by the Hetzel Oie. The
three New York members put $. lot of timfit into plans, actually prepar­
ing .pla�s and oove:r designs. We furnisht<i eevexal ma.nuacripta, and,
seemed in a fair way to get out a bulletin that would be a pride to
any coll�to;.: But the'oost was going to be pretty eteep for so few
of us to c arry; and although by that time we had raised o�� membership
to 14, thing; dragged, Then oame tlie war. The houee of Funnies, Inc.
wa.e deluged with work. and in a�dition the war oal l e d ouz editor to
Ca.eablanoa,. Morooco, where he is now Amerioa.n vi.oe-Qonaul. Meanwhile
we took in a former member of the Sooiete F•a.noaise di lulee Verni, a
Frenoh Pere living in the Ga.epe country; QuebtOi a.nd-Oontacte d another
member of the Sooiete then living in Ameterdam ••• ,WhUe we sought for
and obtained membere (added tvvo th�e ye�), our la.ok of aotivi�y ·.for­
bade our aol1cit1ns too strenupualy. N•verthtl•es, we: have a f•e for
joining--$a in:adva.noe tor application a.n4 the fir�t yea.i's dues. It
has given us a emall sum in the treaa�y which we hopi rnay some day
be applied to a bulletin as originally planned. (Interested rea�ra
of the AcolYit: �e Ui'ged t9 w;cite M;. Hurd at 3p00 3ind �t., N, Arling-
ton, Vii'glnia. --FT�SDR. ) / - · . · -

· . · --... ooOoo----

AUGUST DERLETH, well-known author, g - - thumb-nail ekstoh -

ives a of hie
-
ourrent aotiviti� --. ·

• • • weird Tale@ took.three new short�: A Gentl�man from Pra�e, �

Inverneee and Paoi!io 421; a.nd Goodliousekeepin ¥ toolfa I'Ong- ·
time favor ftP!.•
e, MoCra.;y1 iia:w e· As a. matter of . fa.ot, . now have juat
one unao ld weird ahort at e m'omen t, and no time to cio any more--not
even the sequel to The T�a.11 � Cthulhu, whioh 1� beini demanded. WT
still hae The Dwelle� In Da:rknese. aa you kn ow . (Thi� novelette is
in the OthUlhu: ,mytbos. -FTL) I am in 'the midst of a len�thy revision
of my iong novel for fall, The Shield, of the Valiant, I wrote it ori·
g1naJ.ly a.a N ew Moon Over, iill"S0,000 words; a.rid I am adding to ·it
another 75,� worde;"'r"think. a� it now looka. It i� ewellin� and
growing literally beyond all b ounds, and it �eems to bi good, �or it
w�itea itself �a�ily� But then, I am just putting mor� meat on the
skeleton, and that ii not too diffioult, Then I must do new pi�oie
�
fQr Redhook, Good Hous�keepin , and Life Story • • • WT now ha.a enough,
Fant§_stio Adventu°res has one Caroueerr;- and all in all my usual mar­
kets seem well enough suppl'ied. JU.et tonight finished r�ading proof
on the new Judge Peck mystery, Miaohief In Thi Lan�, coming out in
Aue;uet or Septem'ber.t. . ,And,,. a.a you no aouet aaw In WT, Arkhai.n House ia
ready to go on the wa.ndrei oolleot ion, The Ey!_ and The Fing§.!_.
00000
'
---- ----

SARA �ORSCHOW, ta.st-rising young T'xaa poet, was one of three co-win­
ners in EMBERS1"""'!943 poetry contest, and as a result will be pu blish­
e d in book form. The anthology, Three P�ophets 2!!.. Pegasus, is ob­
tainable for $1.50 from Veraerviot, Batavia, N ew York, •• In the future,
she wishee to uee the penname Rita. Bari on all her work •• ,we·oulled
the foregoing trom s�veral of i�as!iorsohow•a le tters, a.nd in addi-
t :Lon, quote the following veroa.tiln:
·
· -

n • •• I'm ·giving The Acolyte a.cknowledgem�nt as or1gina1 publisher

in Three �hets �Peg�� Am using one ent1:r:e farttaijy aeotion,
-- 27 --
 a nd DrUllla of-Death1 The Haunted House1 and Sa.tan's Hole will all ap-
peat in It:U
- ·.. -
-

----00000---- .
�· HOFFM.AN PRI'tm,· laa�g_aagaejne a.u:bh�B;'. dll}op� - � peeta.11
. .

. See Walter �uranty'a autobiographical novel, Search For A Ke b

( S imon & Schuster, 1943), p. 80 "Nodens, the God of Chaos, and the well­
er on the 'l'hreahold". Query: ia this entity ( or theee . entities, the
context does not make clear whether No dens is God of Chaos and alao
Dweller on the Threshold, o r whether the i;i.Uthor means: Nodens, and the
D"v1ellet. on the Threshold. )--eo, is this entity an HPL creation which
Walter Duranty picked a.a a bit of color for an ( auto)biographical remi•
nisoence, or did WD and HPL draw on a common source? That is, are we
right in the assumption that Nodena_originated with HPL? Also, on p.
148, Duranty ea.ye: ."Nodena and the Chaos, the po\1er of the Abyss. 1t
HPL aays Lord of the Great Abyss, and implies that It is benevolent.
WD, on the other hand, states that It is mali gnan t • . I1ve r e ad nothing
else of D uranty's. His first book, 1935; 2nd, 19371 3rd, 1938. Maybe
you1d care to trace this Nodena bUainesa?
·

.
-·--00000----
BAS IL DAVENPORT; well-knovm l itera ry critio and authority on W'eird !!£,­
ti oh, airmails from 1•0/0 POatmaster, New YorK"'":
�

In connection with Lo v e c raft , 'f'llave just come aoross a refer­

ence which may int erest you. It is in Far-Off Things, by Arthur Machen
·�a book <:f reminiscences, not ficti on. -zn- writ'ing o? the landscape of
his childhood, he says (p. 19 of the· English edition) ncaerwent, also
a Roman city, �a.a buried in the earth, and ave up now and again
w.
strange relios--fragments of the temple of Nodens> �od of the depths'P
Ma.oh e n aefU'!S to make Noden a a genuine deity of ancient Rome,
t h o ugh in fairly wide Latin readfng I do�•t remember to have met him.
f
...

If I were within the reach of a library, I should look up the word in

Harper' a :Dictionary of Classical Anti9,uities. It is poaaibl� that you
may have this reference alrea�y; naturally, I hav e not your glossary
with ·me-- if not, you may find thia worth exploring, even if it leaQ.s
no farther than· to Machen himself.
·

--.--o oOoo----
( Search in several Q.ictionaries of olasaioal anticiuit i�1;1 and
enoyolopedia.s of Roman mythology has failed to reveal any mention of
Nodens, so w� must appeal to our r eaders for further clues to the ori�
gin of thia mysterious deity. SDR-FTL.) '
.

----00000----
·MitTON RAOUL MILLS, a critical reade� aa et untainted� fandom, g �
l
with
-
criticism from Tof all places� ) Hami ton, Montana:
, .. I was diaappoirrt�d with Lovecraft 1s Shado w; you labeled it a
"version", but when I read it1 it turned out to be only a mgment.
How can you be so deceitful? Now I shall never know who made those
exotic jeweled ornaments • • • CA Smith1s Amor se e ms by far the best poem
in this n'Wilmer; the'other verse lamentably lacks teohnique • • • M imeo­
graphing does not lend itself to the fine arts v ery well, so one can­
not s ay much for the pictures reproduced in that medium; the cover
litho was very attta.ctive,· and the WSrnith insert woUld undoubtedly be
firat-.:ola.aa anyvvhere and at any time . , .I don't know why Nanek1s 5th
Column was worth printing; but I thought the uritioal review of John
Metcalfe was well done, and perha.pa .the most intelle ctual bit in the
issue. I was su;ppriaed to learn that Metcalfe ia the husband of Eve­
lyn Scott, ae she is one of my fa.vori te novelists; indeed, I just fi­
nished reading her Background !!l Ten n esaee • . . • • Al l in all, it1s an .
interesting magazine� with values that are probably beyond the ken of
a p rao ti o al ·person like myself.
·

-- aa
 ANTHONY BOUCHER, prominent author and reviewer, pute in h is bit from
Be r kel ey , Gal ifo rnia :
• . • Lo ve o ra ft 1 a influence has never worked on me espeoially--my
few atrtemp ts have been abor�ions� In fact, I largely disa g r e e with
him in the ory, no matter how much I l ike what he achie v e d in pra.otioe.
I will ma int ain to the death that the only true horro r is that of un­
der s t atemen t (I am basically an MRJame s man ) ; and it annoya me, a.a a
theoris t , that both Poe and HPL m anaged to attain horro: by explicit
overstatement. For· even HPL' s cryptic, al lus ive manner ia not true
understatement. He s imp l y makes nameless and indesoribable and unmen­
t ion able into very definite connotative naminga and descr ip t ion s and
mentions.
I'm af raid that muc h of the Loveoraf tiana you mention doesn't mar­
kedly stimulate my ea.livary glands. My feelings on HPL are mixed.
The y ' re beat described by comparing them to th�ae of a Baker Street
I r re gul ar . I oan s peak onl y for my s el f 1 but I feel t hat moat of the
BSI would agree with me in c ons i dering Sir Arthur Conan Doyle a s i ngu­
larly d ul l and stuffy gentleman who haJ?pened to tran scr ibe the immor­
tal Canon of Baker Street. From what I know of Do yle , ·par ticularly
from hie au tob iogr aphy , n othing oould tempt me le aa than up.published
letters of hia--unlese th ey hap pened to deal in some manner with the
Holmes saga.. And I t hin k the same goes for HPL. Aa a. man, he ae�ma
to me an o ve rgr own prodigy, a m an of e xt r aor d ina ry IQ and limited
intellect. Th i a is as sup e rf ic ial as it is he re t ical , and my opinion
m ay well change. · But f or my money the fun in e � lo iting Lovecraft
lies in further investigation of the C anon--th e sort of thing that
you did in your glo ssa r y .
The Cthulhu M ytb..oa is one of t he extraordinary imaginative ach­
ievements of our t im es , and I want to know everything'I c an about it.
But I don ' t care much wha t HPL thought a.bo ut life and m ann e rs and
things. I t i� aa the t ranscriber of the Myth that he looms incompar­
a ble,
---- 00000----

AUGUST DERLETH' j ust makes � deadl ine with � excit ipg announcement:
There appears to be a r el a.xa.t ion in paper restrioticma as apply­
ing to small publishers like Ar kham Hous e ; so I h as te n to let you know
that if there is indeed s uch a re la xat io n as the new order L-245 indi­
oatea--aooording to printer interpretation and my own-•then Arkha.m
House will publish by February 1945 fou r books, no leas: The �e and
The Fing�, by Donald Wandre i ; Jumbe..§t and O th er UnoannY T alea, by Hen­
ry s. · Whit ehead; � Wo rl d s , by Cl ark Ashton Smith; and Marginalia1
by H. P. L ov eo raft--at $3.00 each .· Fans are asked to place adv ance
orders �or all four books, plus $2,60 for Sl eep No More ! , just as soon
as possible. Will you - sp rea d the word as q uic k l y as you can , so that
I won ' t be strappe d . fo r dough t o pay the printer.
� Of �oe And Time by Smi th , is now o ut of pr.int, as I wrote
that it soon wOUI"dOe"• • • A Ho dg son and a. Howard col leot lon will be c om­
ing alo ng soon, probably in 1945; and my no vel , The Trail o� Cthulhu,
' - �
in 1946.
·

*********************************************** ** *** ***'*************

A LJ-'\ST-MINUTE tD'Il.,ORIAL by Samuel D, Russell

.. -oOo-
The above letter from Mr. D er l e th is certainly the be s t newa of
th� month for fantasy connoisseurs, and serve.a to rem ind us of what a ,
splendid and unique work Arkham lio use is doing in the aervide o f ou1'
favori te branch of l itera t ure . When Derleth and Wandrei brought out
-- ?9
 · The 0u·ts1q.e'· t ·an-4 Others· flve·:.Yea.rs· ago, they ·had no <Way .of kno�ing
-,heth�r so risky a vent�re a.6 a memorial volume O'f .·th - 13 pulp. stories of
an·. a1mo·at unknown we_±rd.ist migllt tiot mea . n simply �hrowing .niC:mey down
the·.drain.; yet they apare . d ·:no expetis.e 'o. r effort in' pto!iucing. a fine,
;t�ate.ful volume whose ve:ry _jacket-'b�urbs · _ were mod�ls c>:f. di:�cfriminating .
�r�tioism and information.'..· For a .while· .it did. eeem a.a.: if.. most . of. the
.;l.20·0.-oop.iea w:oul.d only gatlier 4uat·.-:i.n· .th . � atg·r , eroC>m;--.. a.� ·�a.a niaAy " . a.
s ;imil:a.r· eQ.�tion•of.... love ·1n· the history of'. .publiahi�g, ·but again its
,. :apq:n.�ots gambled tha.tt�e literary vv:orth·of Lov:ecra.ft's fictioh would
..!3;rea�e by word-of-mouth: a oonsta.n . t thpugh slow�- :d emand for. t he 'book1 and
proceeded With the publication :of other oollect� · one of iteird tales as
fa�t· a.a they oould. afford them • .. . Now at .l�at thei.r :faith is b$'ing jus­
·t·�fie'q._·.by the .steady sale of all.·''t . he·ir v.olumea, and. they' are :1,.n a posi­
tiQn· tQ go �hea-a.· on a ·greatly acce.lerate(i acal:e with a. spate or booka
_such as to make any fan'.e mouth wa.te:t:. When you remember that these
.a·tor · iea frQm Weird-T.alea, which we.-kriovv a.a· olaasioa in their field,
. �O\lJ.d n6Vi,3r bEt e·ve:n CQnSide;r:ed by·: �he. regular publishing houeea be�
· c·aua� of their uni · nhib.ited fantasy,_ and. ..l:o'i"Jly· o·rigin, and realise that
th'3ir publio�tion 'in' book form would· be ;far· too expensive a project
'.for any .'or . dinary fantasy el}thusiaat,, you'l;>�gin to s'ee what a fortuit­
' ··p�s boon .A�kham ·tto.u$'e, i's t_o all o-f; us; . �ig ' ht now, when wartime Wc,'i,gea
give. m:ost of .. u� a J. :Lttle more·.m_o�ey than u�ual,· seems an exoelle;nt:,
_ t·ime to back up Arkham .House's pUblis hing p·rogram to the limit with
. ome hard' oa.sh ·�to assure ourselves . o.f· getting the,ae ,splendid volumea
s
immediately"upon publication.; They . �von•t l;Le: around foreve . r waiting
t.o. be p�cl,te.4 µp, you knqw _ , a
· . s· l')lany "a· dilatory fan ha.a disoovere-d in
th� oase of' .the first,. Loveor�ft and Smith.' books; and the longer· you
put', '��f orde·r.ing' your· ·cop�e,s, the. mo;-e likely y<;>u· are to wait ·to · o long.
'T�el'e ia no 'neea. · ,: e.el'.t'.ainly;·. to ·persuade you of. .the. worth :Of the Ark-
·

. - .hamHouae� Fantasy !iibral'y, ·but· a.n:�oocasional :r:er�indel.' pf ,the t�me ele-

, ztient ;i.nvolve·d·rnay perP,aps be·pardoned·, .. ·. . · • .
:
.
I.t i_a of- .gr�at i;nte.rea_t .to note· that in the oaae of Lovecraft .. the
p�one,er.in,g work, of ·Arkham Houa·e. has fina,lly bo·rne fruit in reoogni . tion
' <by other publiahe·rs.. and antnologis·ts-. Last mo.nth· Rcµi·dom House releaa­
:ed .�he finest anthology· of-·we·frd st.or.;ea that ha.a .ye:t cpme to ·my notice
·

."il;l Gre . :at Tal,ea· of.·.+e.rror :and--the�S.µperna tural,.ed-ited byHe;bert A.

Wise and"PhylliS:Fraser...--aTOSO-page1 -52-story. collecti .
'on· of what :oomee
·
. a.a cl·ose . to bei : ng. tP.e �est et9rie,s by .the b,e·at ,authors a:a c� reason­
ably: be hop ed ·f()r . i,n _Vi�.w Of l�g�t imately divergep:t .-tastes, in· the field.
· rbe tw:o oonol ud.ing ator.iea are Lov:,�oraft' s · T}le Ha.ts ·
._ lh The. -Wa;l:le and
·:� D\lnwioh Horror,-,which ·unquest · iona bly _ rank. among hrs finest _wotk;
· and<a brie_f ·�dlt.o rial intJtO - duotion· giv�s· an adm:i.l'able description of
. the.: �at�re of :aPL 1·s f·iction. . Th_is- book wa.�- fpllowed only � couple of
·w.ee . ke later by .a amal'l', . twenty�fi¥ , e Cent; npoc _ ket-bOOk-" ·OOllection Of
Lov¢craft stories p·ut :out·, ,by· J;3arth9lom�w. House u.nder the· t-1tle of The
Weird Shadow. Over Innsmouth ·and Ot·her Stories of the Supernatural, and
. containing, besides the titie .story: The·· Festival,_ He;--irne Outsider,
: and. The r iaperer. in Darkneaer..: Wit'h the-possible except.ion.of He,
none"OY hese stories ;could possib+Y, be classed as anythin_g but first­
(
. rat�, and the wide o-d;rculation· t.J:J.at. the book should be. given in drug
. ·

�tores and like places throug�out the count�y will do a great deal to
spread recognition and .apprecia:tion foi- Loveol'aft' G work •. - .Thus we
eee that the-- tipp,;l.ea· :f.rom· .the: ,f ir � t stone t ha .t_ Arkham House threw
ll,pOn the wat§lrs of c on temporary, le'�ter . a. five y e� . rs ago have not been
.
without. effec.t� · Who oan �ell- What their ult'imate· results may be1 I
,_don-1·t think ±1i' 1e too ·far•fe�·o.hed to euspeet 't�at w� may be.· a.SE!iat­
ing .a..t ·.the b'ir�h o'f �- a:ma�l ,�ut: �-i�nif_l:cant :�ew b:a;ncp. of m<;)der · , n'. ·'
.
·

l iterat:u;re. , · · .· " .. , .: · ..
. ,
. ,
. .
.
� . . .
--·30 -- .