I struck out along the roads and across the fields toward the lone farmhouse built by Townsend Bishop in 1636, and in 1692 inhabited by the worthy and inoffensive old widow Rebekah Nurse, who was seventy years of age and wished no one harm. Accused by the superstitious West Indian slave woman Tituba (who belonged to the Reverend Samuel Parris and who caused the entire wave of delusion) of bewitching children, and denounced blindly by some of the hysterical children in question, Goodwife Nurse was arrested amd brought to trial. Thirty-nine persons signed a paper attesting to her blameless conduct, and a jury rendered a verdict of "not guilty"; but popular clamour led the judges to reverse the verdict (as was then possible), and on 19 July 1692 the poor grandam was hanged on Gallows Hill in Salem for a mythological crime. Her remains were brought back from Salem and interred in the family burying-ground -- a ghoulish place shadowed by huge pines and at some distance from the house. In 1885 a monument was erected to her memory, bearing an inscription by the poet Whittier.
As I approached the spot to which I had been directed, after passing through the hamlet of Tapleyville, the afternoon sun was very low. Soon the houses thinned out; so that on my right were only the hilly fields of stubble, and occasional crooked trees clawing at the sky. Beyond a low crest a thick group of spectral boughs bespoke some kind of grove or orchard -- and in the midst of this group I suddenly descried the rising outline of a massive and ancient chimney. Presently, as I advanced, I saw the top of a grey, drear, sloping roof -- sinister in its distant setting of bleak hillside and leafless grove, and unmistakably belonging to the haunted edifice I sought. Another turn -- a gradual ascent -- and I beheld in full view the sprawling, tree-shadowed house which had for nearly three hundred years brooded over those hills and held such secrets as men may only guess. Like all old farmhouses of the region, the Nurse cottage faces the warm south and slopes low toward the north. It fronts on an ancient garden, where in their seasons gay blossoms flaunt themselves against the grim, nail-studded door and the vertical sundial above it. That sundial was long, concealed by the overlaid clapboards of Gothic generations, but came to light when the house was restored to original form by the memorial society which owns it. Everything about the place is ancient -- even to the tiny-paned lattice windows which open outwards on hinges. The atmosphere of witchcraft days broods heavily upon that low hilltop.
My rap at the ancient door brought the caretaker's wife, an elderly unimaginative person with no appreciation of the dark glamour of the ancient scene. This family live in a lean-to west of the main structure -- an addition probably one hundred years less ancient than the parent edifice. I was the first visitor of the 1923 season, and took pride in signing my name at the top of the register. Entering, I found myself in a low, dark passage whose massive beams almost touched my head; and passing on, I traversed the two immense rooms on the ground floor -- sombre, barren, panelled apartments with colossal fireplaces in the vast central chimney, and with occasional pieces of the plain, heavy furniture and primitive farm and domestic utensils of the ancient yemanry. In these wide, low-pitched rooms a spectral menace broods -- for to my imagination the seventeenth century is a full of macabre mystery, repression and ghoulish adumbrations as the eighteenth century is full of taste, gaiety, grace and beauty. This was a typical Puritan abode; where amidst the bare, ugly necessities of life, and without learning, beauty, culture, freedom or ornament, terrible stern-faced folk in conical hats or poke-bonnets dwelt 250 and more years ago -- close to the soil and all its hideous whisperings; warped in mentality by isolation and unnatural thoughts, and shivering in fear of the Devil on autumn nights when the wind howled through the twisted orchard trees or rustled the hideous corpse-nourished pines in the graveyard at the foot of the hill. There is eldritch fascination -- horrible buried evil -- in these archaic farmhouses. After seeing them, and smelling the odour of centuries in their walls, one hesitates to read certain passages in Cotton Mather's strange old Magnalia after dark. After exploring the ground floor I crept up the black crooked stairs and examined the bleak chambers above. The furniture was as ugly as that below, and included a small trundle-bed in which infant Puritans were lulled to sleep with meaningless prayers and morbid hints of daemons riding the nightwind outside the small-paned lattice windows. I saw old Rebekah's favourite chair, where she used to sit and spin before the Salem magistrates dragged her to the gallows. And the sunset wind whistled in the colossal chimney, and the ghouls rattled ghastly skeletons from unseen attic rafters overhead. Though it was not supposed to be open to the public, I persuaded the caretaker to let me ascend to that hideous garret of centuried secrets. Thick dust covered everything, and unnatural shapes loomed on everyhand as the evening twilight oozed through the little bleared panes of the ancient windows. I saw something hanging from the wormy ridge-pole -- something that swayed as if in unison with the vesper breeze outside, though that breeze had no access to this funereal and forgotten place -- shadows...shadows...shadows... And I descended from that accursed garret of paleogene arcana, and left that portentous abode of aniquity; left it and went down the hill to the graveyard under the shocking pines, where twilight showed sinister slabs and rusty bits of fallen iron fence, and where something squatted in shadow on a monument -- something that made me climb the hill again, hurry shudderingly past the venerable house and descend the opposite slope to Tapleyville as night came.
{1923 Letter to Alfred Galpin and Frank Belknap Long}
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
T Peter Park's Latest Essay
{By Permission, here is an essay by one of the most notable Fortean Lovecraft scholars}
H.P. LOVECRAFT'S "INNSMOUTH" AND REAL-LIFE MERBEINGS
by T. Peter Park
Did unknown real-life sea creatures resembling the mermen and mermaids of traditional folklore inspire the amphibious monsters of a twentieth century American master of macabre fiction?
Many cryptozoologists believe that the merbeings–mermaids and mermen–of legend may be partly based on actual encounters with unknown marine animals with seemingly human-like heads ad upper torsos and somewhat fish-, seal-, or porpoise-like hindparts. Such creatures have occasionally been sighted by credible European and American witnesses in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. Some Pacific Islanders claim that such merbeings are a common, familiar part of their local marine fauna. Those allegedly common Pacific merbeings include the “ri” of New Ireland and the “fishwoman” supposedly seen by American sailor Rein Mellaart during World War II on Morotai in Indonesia.
Pacific Island traditions of merbeings resembling the New Ireland “ri” and Morotai “fishwoman” may have inspired a 20th century literary echo. The American weird fantasy and horror writer H.P. Lovecraft (1890-1937) depicted monstrous aquatic humanoids in “The Shadow Over Innsmouth,” “Dagon,” and “The Doom That Came to Sarnath.” The Morotai and New Ireland traditions seem especially relevant to Lovecraft’s 1932 novelette the “Shadow Over Innsmouth,” where the “Deep Ones” had an explicitly South Pacific origin.
In Lovecraft’s tale, economically hard pressed mid-nineteenth century sailors from the declining Massachusetts fishing port of “Innsmouth” encountered Polynesian islanders who worshipped and intermarried with evil, immortal merbeings. The sailors made a “devil’s bargain” with the Deep Ones, who gave the Innsmouthers gold and good fishing in return for worship and interbreeding. The sailors and their merbeing allies set up a cultist dictatorship in Innsmouth devoted to worship of the Deep Ones’ master the sea-god Dagon, driving their opponents into flight or frightened submission. By the early 20th century, the town is almost wholly populated by human-merbeing hybrids, with few remaining normal humans except an elderly drunkard and a teen-age boy from a nearby town working as a clerk in a local grocery store. Lovecraft’s narrator, a young Midwesterner of New England extraction doing genealogical and antiquarian research in his ancestral New England in 1927, narrowly escapes being captured and murdered by Innsmouthers who resent his poking around their town and discovering the dark secret of their part-merbeing ancestry. He reports his bizarrely horrifying discoveries to U.S. government officials. As a result, Federal agents raid Innsmouth in the winter of 1927-1928, arresting many hybrids who are shipped off to military and naval prisons. Civil libertarians protesting the seemingly arbitrary arrests acquiesce after being confidentially shown the inhuman-looking hybrids.
Lovecraft’s ocean-dwelling fish-like humanoid Deep Ones, originally worshipped by Pacific islanders, sound like a more sinister version of the Morotai and New Ireland merbeings. I wonder if the erudite, widely-read Lovecraft got his the idea from reading some missionary’s, trader’s, or anthropologist’s report on some Polynesian or Melanesian islanders’ merbeing beliefs. In his prodigious reading, Lovecraft might have seen early reports of Morotai or New Ireland merbeing beliefs long antedating the 20th century American visitors to those islands who claimed to have themselves seen the merbeings—or of similar beliefs among another Pacific Island population. He need not have seriously believed those “native” accounts of merfolk—but could have welcomed them as literary raw material. Lovecraft used his literary license as a horror writer, however, to depict the harmless, edible marine animals of Pacific belief as demonic servants of a sinister sea-god.
In the 20th century, “merbeings” or “merfolk” have been reported from waters near certain South Pacific islands, notably Morotai in Indonesia and New Ireland southeast of Papua New Guinea. The Pacific “merbeings” are described as air-breathing marine animals with human-like heads, arms, and upper torsos and fish-like lower torsos and tails. The Morotaians and New Irelanders regard them as a familiar part of their local fauna, consider them animals and not rational beings, and sometimes eat them. Some American visitors--sailor Rein Mellaart on Morotai during World War II, anthropologist Roy Wagner on New Ireland in the 1970's--claimed to have seen the creatures themselves. [1] Are these real animals, still surviving in the Pacific after becoming extinct in the Atlantic and the Mediterranean in the last century? Or, are they rather what Fortean researcher Jerome Clark has called“experience anomalies”?
Cryptozoologist Loren Coleman and Anomalist editor Patrick Huyghe have seen “merbeings” as true cryptids, unknown animals. They discussed “merbeings” as possible aquatic primates in The Field Guide to Bigfoot and Other Mystery Primates (2006) Their Field Guide includes a chapter on aquatic and semi‑aquatic humanoids, in both oceanic and fresh‑water settings, and describes numerous encounters. They believe that there are two main types of aquatic primates, a peaceful fishy‑tailed marine variety and an aggressive, carnivorous bipedal fresh‑water variety. The former, they believe, are the source of traditional legends of "mermen" and "mermaids." The latter include creatures like the Latin American and southwestern U.S. "chupacabras" and the Japanese "kappa," and may also underlie reports of “lizard-men” and “frog-men.” [2]
Coleman and Huyghe described one particularly interesting "merbeing" sighting in their The Field Guide. As a young man stationed on the small South Pacific island of Morotai in Indonesia during World War II, Rein Mellaart watched native fishermen drag a 7‑foot‑long fishy‑tailed "mermaid" to shore and leave it on the beach to die. The "bottom part" of the fish‑woman was "exactly like a dolphin, with a double fin on the end," Mellaart recalled, but "from the navel up" it looked perfectly human. She was not a beautiful siren as in sailors' folklore, but rather had "coarse" features and a long pointed nose. However, she had a "beautiful" complexion of "lovely pinky red," and thick long hair reaching down to the beginning of her "fishy" part. The islanders told Mellaart that the "merbeings" traveled in schools and were very frightened of contact with humans. Whenever native boats approached, the creatures signaled each other and dived to great depths. The "merbeings" used their hands‑‑each with 4 fingers and 2 thumbs‑‑to drag themselves up on the beaches at night. The Morotaians saw the "merbeings" as part of their natural environment, and killed and ate them as food. [3]
The closest parallel to Mellaart’s Morotai “fishwoman” is the “ri” of New Ireland northeast of Papua New Guinea. Male, female, and juvenile “ri” were often sighted by fishermen, occasionally netted or found dead on beaches, and sometimes eaten by New Irelanders. The “ri” were air-breathing mammals with human-like heads, arms, upper trunks, and genitals, subsisting on fish in the seas around the Bismarck and Solomon archipelagoes. Their legless lower trunks ended in a pair of lateral fins. The New Irelanders claimed that the “ri” reminded them of the mermaids on tunafish cans, though they did not consider them intelligent beings.[4] American anthropologist Roy Wagner, who visited New Ireland in the late 1970's, felt it unlikely that the “ri” were dugongs or porpoises, both familiar to the natives. Wagner himself once saw a “long dark body swimming at the surface horizontally,” which his companions identified as a “ri.” He wrote a sympathetic paper on “The Ri: Unidentified Aquatic Animals of New Ireland, Papua New Guinea” in _Cryptozoology_, (1982). [5] Wagner was convinced that the “ri” were not dugongs, but New Irelanders living further north considered “ri” just another name for dugong. A February 1985 expedition to New Ireland by American cryptozoologists produced underwater photographs of a “ri”--showing an unambiguous dugong--in Jerome Clark’s view solving at least part of the puzzle. Expedition member Thomas R. Williams, however, pondered the remaining mystery, for which he had no answer, of “how myths of merfolk can arise and persist in the face of the obvious reality of the dugong” [6]
REFERENCES CITED:
1. Loren Coleman and Patrick Huyghe, The Field Guide to Bigfoot to Bigfoot and Other Mystery Primates (New York: Paraview, 2006), pp. 152-153, on Mellaart’s Morotai “Fishwoman”; Jerome Clark, Unexplained! Strange Sightings, Incredible Occurrences & Puzzling Physical Phenomena, New Edition (Canton, MI: Visible Ink Press, 1999), pp. 467-468, on New Ireland “ri,”
2. Coleman and Huyghe, The Field Guide to Bigfoot to Bigfoot…, pp. 37-39.
3. Coleman and Huyghe, The Field Guide to Bigfoot..., pp, 152-153, citing Rein Mellaart, "Mermaids" in William Marks, ed., I Saw Ogopogo! (British Columbia. Special Collection of Peachland–Okanagan Review, 1971), pp. 18‑20.
4. Jerome Clark, Unexplained!, pp. 467-468.
5.“The Ri: Unidentified Aquatic Animals of New Ireland, Papua New Guinea” in Cryptozoology, 1 (1982). 33-39 (cited in Clark, Unexplained!, pp. 467-468, 471, and in William R. Corliss, ed., Science Frontiers Online, No. 27, May-June 1983, “Does Ri=Mermaid?”).
6. Thomas R. Williams. “Identification of the Ri: Through Further Fieldwork in New Ireland, Papua New Guinea,” Cryptozoology 4 (1985), 61-68, cited in Clark, Unexplained!. pp. 468. 471.
H.P. LOVECRAFT'S "INNSMOUTH" AND REAL-LIFE MERBEINGS
by T. Peter Park
Did unknown real-life sea creatures resembling the mermen and mermaids of traditional folklore inspire the amphibious monsters of a twentieth century American master of macabre fiction?
Many cryptozoologists believe that the merbeings–mermaids and mermen–of legend may be partly based on actual encounters with unknown marine animals with seemingly human-like heads ad upper torsos and somewhat fish-, seal-, or porpoise-like hindparts. Such creatures have occasionally been sighted by credible European and American witnesses in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. Some Pacific Islanders claim that such merbeings are a common, familiar part of their local marine fauna. Those allegedly common Pacific merbeings include the “ri” of New Ireland and the “fishwoman” supposedly seen by American sailor Rein Mellaart during World War II on Morotai in Indonesia.
Pacific Island traditions of merbeings resembling the New Ireland “ri” and Morotai “fishwoman” may have inspired a 20th century literary echo. The American weird fantasy and horror writer H.P. Lovecraft (1890-1937) depicted monstrous aquatic humanoids in “The Shadow Over Innsmouth,” “Dagon,” and “The Doom That Came to Sarnath.” The Morotai and New Ireland traditions seem especially relevant to Lovecraft’s 1932 novelette the “Shadow Over Innsmouth,” where the “Deep Ones” had an explicitly South Pacific origin.
In Lovecraft’s tale, economically hard pressed mid-nineteenth century sailors from the declining Massachusetts fishing port of “Innsmouth” encountered Polynesian islanders who worshipped and intermarried with evil, immortal merbeings. The sailors made a “devil’s bargain” with the Deep Ones, who gave the Innsmouthers gold and good fishing in return for worship and interbreeding. The sailors and their merbeing allies set up a cultist dictatorship in Innsmouth devoted to worship of the Deep Ones’ master the sea-god Dagon, driving their opponents into flight or frightened submission. By the early 20th century, the town is almost wholly populated by human-merbeing hybrids, with few remaining normal humans except an elderly drunkard and a teen-age boy from a nearby town working as a clerk in a local grocery store. Lovecraft’s narrator, a young Midwesterner of New England extraction doing genealogical and antiquarian research in his ancestral New England in 1927, narrowly escapes being captured and murdered by Innsmouthers who resent his poking around their town and discovering the dark secret of their part-merbeing ancestry. He reports his bizarrely horrifying discoveries to U.S. government officials. As a result, Federal agents raid Innsmouth in the winter of 1927-1928, arresting many hybrids who are shipped off to military and naval prisons. Civil libertarians protesting the seemingly arbitrary arrests acquiesce after being confidentially shown the inhuman-looking hybrids.
Lovecraft’s ocean-dwelling fish-like humanoid Deep Ones, originally worshipped by Pacific islanders, sound like a more sinister version of the Morotai and New Ireland merbeings. I wonder if the erudite, widely-read Lovecraft got his the idea from reading some missionary’s, trader’s, or anthropologist’s report on some Polynesian or Melanesian islanders’ merbeing beliefs. In his prodigious reading, Lovecraft might have seen early reports of Morotai or New Ireland merbeing beliefs long antedating the 20th century American visitors to those islands who claimed to have themselves seen the merbeings—or of similar beliefs among another Pacific Island population. He need not have seriously believed those “native” accounts of merfolk—but could have welcomed them as literary raw material. Lovecraft used his literary license as a horror writer, however, to depict the harmless, edible marine animals of Pacific belief as demonic servants of a sinister sea-god.
In the 20th century, “merbeings” or “merfolk” have been reported from waters near certain South Pacific islands, notably Morotai in Indonesia and New Ireland southeast of Papua New Guinea. The Pacific “merbeings” are described as air-breathing marine animals with human-like heads, arms, and upper torsos and fish-like lower torsos and tails. The Morotaians and New Irelanders regard them as a familiar part of their local fauna, consider them animals and not rational beings, and sometimes eat them. Some American visitors--sailor Rein Mellaart on Morotai during World War II, anthropologist Roy Wagner on New Ireland in the 1970's--claimed to have seen the creatures themselves. [1] Are these real animals, still surviving in the Pacific after becoming extinct in the Atlantic and the Mediterranean in the last century? Or, are they rather what Fortean researcher Jerome Clark has called“experience anomalies”?
Cryptozoologist Loren Coleman and Anomalist editor Patrick Huyghe have seen “merbeings” as true cryptids, unknown animals. They discussed “merbeings” as possible aquatic primates in The Field Guide to Bigfoot and Other Mystery Primates (2006) Their Field Guide includes a chapter on aquatic and semi‑aquatic humanoids, in both oceanic and fresh‑water settings, and describes numerous encounters. They believe that there are two main types of aquatic primates, a peaceful fishy‑tailed marine variety and an aggressive, carnivorous bipedal fresh‑water variety. The former, they believe, are the source of traditional legends of "mermen" and "mermaids." The latter include creatures like the Latin American and southwestern U.S. "chupacabras" and the Japanese "kappa," and may also underlie reports of “lizard-men” and “frog-men.” [2]
Coleman and Huyghe described one particularly interesting "merbeing" sighting in their The Field Guide. As a young man stationed on the small South Pacific island of Morotai in Indonesia during World War II, Rein Mellaart watched native fishermen drag a 7‑foot‑long fishy‑tailed "mermaid" to shore and leave it on the beach to die. The "bottom part" of the fish‑woman was "exactly like a dolphin, with a double fin on the end," Mellaart recalled, but "from the navel up" it looked perfectly human. She was not a beautiful siren as in sailors' folklore, but rather had "coarse" features and a long pointed nose. However, she had a "beautiful" complexion of "lovely pinky red," and thick long hair reaching down to the beginning of her "fishy" part. The islanders told Mellaart that the "merbeings" traveled in schools and were very frightened of contact with humans. Whenever native boats approached, the creatures signaled each other and dived to great depths. The "merbeings" used their hands‑‑each with 4 fingers and 2 thumbs‑‑to drag themselves up on the beaches at night. The Morotaians saw the "merbeings" as part of their natural environment, and killed and ate them as food. [3]
The closest parallel to Mellaart’s Morotai “fishwoman” is the “ri” of New Ireland northeast of Papua New Guinea. Male, female, and juvenile “ri” were often sighted by fishermen, occasionally netted or found dead on beaches, and sometimes eaten by New Irelanders. The “ri” were air-breathing mammals with human-like heads, arms, upper trunks, and genitals, subsisting on fish in the seas around the Bismarck and Solomon archipelagoes. Their legless lower trunks ended in a pair of lateral fins. The New Irelanders claimed that the “ri” reminded them of the mermaids on tunafish cans, though they did not consider them intelligent beings.[4] American anthropologist Roy Wagner, who visited New Ireland in the late 1970's, felt it unlikely that the “ri” were dugongs or porpoises, both familiar to the natives. Wagner himself once saw a “long dark body swimming at the surface horizontally,” which his companions identified as a “ri.” He wrote a sympathetic paper on “The Ri: Unidentified Aquatic Animals of New Ireland, Papua New Guinea” in _Cryptozoology_, (1982). [5] Wagner was convinced that the “ri” were not dugongs, but New Irelanders living further north considered “ri” just another name for dugong. A February 1985 expedition to New Ireland by American cryptozoologists produced underwater photographs of a “ri”--showing an unambiguous dugong--in Jerome Clark’s view solving at least part of the puzzle. Expedition member Thomas R. Williams, however, pondered the remaining mystery, for which he had no answer, of “how myths of merfolk can arise and persist in the face of the obvious reality of the dugong” [6]
REFERENCES CITED:
1. Loren Coleman and Patrick Huyghe, The Field Guide to Bigfoot to Bigfoot and Other Mystery Primates (New York: Paraview, 2006), pp. 152-153, on Mellaart’s Morotai “Fishwoman”; Jerome Clark, Unexplained! Strange Sightings, Incredible Occurrences & Puzzling Physical Phenomena, New Edition (Canton, MI: Visible Ink Press, 1999), pp. 467-468, on New Ireland “ri,”
2. Coleman and Huyghe, The Field Guide to Bigfoot to Bigfoot…, pp. 37-39.
3. Coleman and Huyghe, The Field Guide to Bigfoot..., pp, 152-153, citing Rein Mellaart, "Mermaids" in William Marks, ed., I Saw Ogopogo! (British Columbia. Special Collection of Peachland–Okanagan Review, 1971), pp. 18‑20.
4. Jerome Clark, Unexplained!, pp. 467-468.
5.“The Ri: Unidentified Aquatic Animals of New Ireland, Papua New Guinea” in Cryptozoology, 1 (1982). 33-39 (cited in Clark, Unexplained!, pp. 467-468, 471, and in William R. Corliss, ed., Science Frontiers Online, No. 27, May-June 1983, “Does Ri=Mermaid?”).
6. Thomas R. Williams. “Identification of the Ri: Through Further Fieldwork in New Ireland, Papua New Guinea,” Cryptozoology 4 (1985), 61-68, cited in Clark, Unexplained!. pp. 468. 471.
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Hath The Lair of the Old Ones Been Found?
"The Old Ones were, the Old Ones are, and the Old Ones shall be. Not in the spaces we know, but between them, They walk serene and primal, undimensioned and to us unseen. "*** "Yog-Sothoth knows the gate. Yog-Sothoth is the gate. Yog-Sothoth is the key and guardian of the gate. Past, present, future, all are one in Yog-Sothoth. He knows where the Old Ones broke through of old, and where They shall break through again. He knows where They have trod earth's fields, and where They still tread them, and why no one can behold Them as They tread."
H.P. Lovecraft, Quoting from the Necronomicon in The Dunwich Horror
(Aug. 24) - Astronomers have stumbled upon a tremendous hole in the universe which has no stray stars, no galaxies, no black holes, not even mysterious dark matter. It is 1 billion light years of nothing - a giant expanse of nearly 6 billion trillion miles of emptiness. Holes in the universe probably occur when the gravity from areas with bigger mass pull matter from less dense areas - after 13 billion years.
H.P. Lovecraft, Quoting from the Necronomicon in The Dunwich Horror
(Aug. 24) - Astronomers have stumbled upon a tremendous hole in the universe which has no stray stars, no galaxies, no black holes, not even mysterious dark matter. It is 1 billion light years of nothing - a giant expanse of nearly 6 billion trillion miles of emptiness. Holes in the universe probably occur when the gravity from areas with bigger mass pull matter from less dense areas - after 13 billion years.
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
This Just In From Roger Tudor!
This speculative post was seen and noted by Roger on newsgroups: soc.history.what-if ...
Date: 14 May 2006 10:58:20 -0700
***
Little-known fact: in 1917, soon after the US entered the First World War, H.P. Lovecraft tried to join the Army.
HPL was then 27 years old, bookish, otherworldly, and thin as a rail. But although he had suffered from a variety of illnesses all his life, he managed to pass the Army physical. (It seems likely that some of his problems were psychosomatic. Other hand, he may have had some subtle but real issue not detectable by the medicine of the time. It's really hard to tell.) They accepted him as a private in an artillery regiment.
When Lovecraft's mother found out, she went absolutely nuts, and pulled every string she could to get her son back out. She succeeded. HPL came back home, sat out the war, and didn't even consider leaving Providence until years later.
Of the Army episode, he said "It would either have killed me, or cured me."
Now: it was during these years that Lovecraft began his writing career. His first story was sold later in 1917. Not too likely that he'd have managed this on a troop transport headed for France.
Let's say HPL serves out the war, gets a glimpse of combat, survives. Although he does not like Army life _at all_, he manages. Soldiers have been made from stranger stuff. And the outcome is "cure" rather than "kill". He gets back to Providence in 1919 a very different man -- tough, sinewy, and far more worldly.
We could run with this, and imagine HPL becoming a surprisingly good soldier, taking up a military career, fighting in Europe or the Pacific a generation later... but no. One, I think it really is unlikely; and two, it's been done already, for Edgar Allen Poe. (Walter Jon Williams' excellent novella "No Spot of Ground". If you haven't read it yet, do so.)
No, *Lovecraft is happy to be out of the Army. But what will he do with himself now?
OTL, Lovecraft made his living as a freelance editor and ghost writer. His fiction writing was a hobby, done in his spare time; the bulk of his income came from rewriting other people's work. There are hundreds of thousands of words of journalism and fiction from the 1920s and '30s that are to some extent his work; but since he kept most of his clients confidential, we'll never know for sure.
Anyway. OTL, Lovecraft never made much of a living at his work. He was very competent, but he had no head for business, and refused to negotiate or haggle over price. TTL, a somewhat tougher *Lovecraft may be a little more practical. This might leave him more time for his own work.
Goodness only knows what direction his writing would take in this TL. Certain trends were probably fixed by 1917, and the war would likely do nothing to dent his Anglophilia, nor either his nihilistic conviction of the ultimate meaninglessness of human existence. On the other hand, a couple of years in the Army would probably put a dent in his snobbishness and racism, and might give him a bit of an ear for dialogue -- one thing he utterly lacked OTL.
-- I suppose there are really two AH questions here. One, what becomes of Lovecraft? And two, WI no Cthulhu Mythos? The Mythos was very much the product of Lovecraft's life OTL; the isolation and alienation that pervade the books were drawn from his very unusual circumstances. TTL he may produce works of equivalent interest and value, but I don't think they're going to be very close to the Cthulhu Mythos as we know them.
The Mythos has been hugely influential in fantasy and horror. Not sure if you could say it had much influence on mainstream literature or popular culture, though. In a no-CM TL, fantasy would be unrecognizable, and comic books and mainstream SF would be noticeably different, but I'm not sure the world at large would be changed much at all. Yes? No?
Thoughts?
Doug M.
Date: 14 May 2006 10:58:20 -0700
***
Little-known fact: in 1917, soon after the US entered the First World War, H.P. Lovecraft tried to join the Army.
HPL was then 27 years old, bookish, otherworldly, and thin as a rail. But although he had suffered from a variety of illnesses all his life, he managed to pass the Army physical. (It seems likely that some of his problems were psychosomatic. Other hand, he may have had some subtle but real issue not detectable by the medicine of the time. It's really hard to tell.) They accepted him as a private in an artillery regiment.
When Lovecraft's mother found out, she went absolutely nuts, and pulled every string she could to get her son back out. She succeeded. HPL came back home, sat out the war, and didn't even consider leaving Providence until years later.
Of the Army episode, he said "It would either have killed me, or cured me."
Now: it was during these years that Lovecraft began his writing career. His first story was sold later in 1917. Not too likely that he'd have managed this on a troop transport headed for France.
Let's say HPL serves out the war, gets a glimpse of combat, survives. Although he does not like Army life _at all_, he manages. Soldiers have been made from stranger stuff. And the outcome is "cure" rather than "kill". He gets back to Providence in 1919 a very different man -- tough, sinewy, and far more worldly.
We could run with this, and imagine HPL becoming a surprisingly good soldier, taking up a military career, fighting in Europe or the Pacific a generation later... but no. One, I think it really is unlikely; and two, it's been done already, for Edgar Allen Poe. (Walter Jon Williams' excellent novella "No Spot of Ground". If you haven't read it yet, do so.)
No, *Lovecraft is happy to be out of the Army. But what will he do with himself now?
OTL, Lovecraft made his living as a freelance editor and ghost writer. His fiction writing was a hobby, done in his spare time; the bulk of his income came from rewriting other people's work. There are hundreds of thousands of words of journalism and fiction from the 1920s and '30s that are to some extent his work; but since he kept most of his clients confidential, we'll never know for sure.
Anyway. OTL, Lovecraft never made much of a living at his work. He was very competent, but he had no head for business, and refused to negotiate or haggle over price. TTL, a somewhat tougher *Lovecraft may be a little more practical. This might leave him more time for his own work.
Goodness only knows what direction his writing would take in this TL. Certain trends were probably fixed by 1917, and the war would likely do nothing to dent his Anglophilia, nor either his nihilistic conviction of the ultimate meaninglessness of human existence. On the other hand, a couple of years in the Army would probably put a dent in his snobbishness and racism, and might give him a bit of an ear for dialogue -- one thing he utterly lacked OTL.
-- I suppose there are really two AH questions here. One, what becomes of Lovecraft? And two, WI no Cthulhu Mythos? The Mythos was very much the product of Lovecraft's life OTL; the isolation and alienation that pervade the books were drawn from his very unusual circumstances. TTL he may produce works of equivalent interest and value, but I don't think they're going to be very close to the Cthulhu Mythos as we know them.
The Mythos has been hugely influential in fantasy and horror. Not sure if you could say it had much influence on mainstream literature or popular culture, though. In a no-CM TL, fantasy would be unrecognizable, and comic books and mainstream SF would be noticeably different, but I'm not sure the world at large would be changed much at all. Yes? No?
Thoughts?
Doug M.
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
United Cooperative (DEc 1918 - Apr 1921)
UNITED CO-OPERATIVE, THE. December 1918 - April 1921 (volume 1, numbers 1-3). Edited by Winifred Virginia Jordan, W. Paul Cook, H. P. Lovecraft, and Others. Providence, Rhode Island: H. P. Lovecraft, December 1918 - April 1921 (volume 1, numbers 1-3). Octavo, three issues, self wrappers, stapled. All published. "Another idea Lovecraft put forward to encourage amateur activity was the issuing of cooperative papers -- papers in which a number of individuals would pool their resources, both financial and literary. He attempted to teach by example by participating in such a journal, THE UNITED CO-OPERATIVE, which published three issues: December 1918, June 1919, and April 1921. Lovecraft had contributions in each issue: 'The Simple Spelling Mania' and the poem 'Ambition' [published under his pseudonym "Ward Phillips"] in December 1918; 'The Case for Classicism,' the poem 'John Oldham: A Defence,' and the prose-poem 'Memory' [published under his pen name "Lewis Theobald, Jun."] in June 1919; the collaborative story 'The Crawling Chaos' [with Winifred Virginia Jackson, as by "Elizabeth Berkeley and Lewis Theobald, Jun."] and 'Lucubrations Lovecraftian' in April 1921." - Joshi, H. P. Lovecraft: A Life, pp. 180. Joshi I-D-ii-9; I-B-ii-227, I-B-iii-2, I-B-ii-227, I-B-iii-94, I-B-a-34, I-B-iv-a-25, and I-B-ii-173. The first issue is fine, the second issue, with binding staple roughly removed resulting in small ragged tear to spine, is near fine, and the third issue, with light tanning at edges, and Lovecraft's authorship of "The Crawling Chaos" indicated in ink on front cover, is very good. Rare. (#108497) Price: $1,500.00
The Tryout September 1929
TRYOUT, THE. September 1929 (volume 13, number 2). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, September 1929 (volume 13, number 2). Small octavo, single issue, self wrappers, sewn. H. P. Lovecraft is briefly mentioned in this issue, including a notice that two of his stories would appear in forthcoming anthologies. No Lovecraft contributions to this issue. A fine copy. (#108462) Price: $25.00
The Tryout September 1920
TRYOUT, THE. September 1920 (volume 6, number 9). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, September 1920 (volume 6, number 9). Small octavo, single issue, self wrappers, sewn. Includes first printings of two poems by H. P. Lovecraft, "The Dream" as by "Edward Softly" and "On a Grecian Colonnade in a Park" as by "Henry Paget-Lowe." Joshi I-B-iii-32 and I-B-iii-127. A fine copy. (#108450)
The Tryout October 1920
TRYOUT, THE. October 1920 (volume 6, number 10). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, October 1920 (volume 6, number 10). Small octavo, single issue, self wrappers, sewn. Includes "October," the first printing of a poem by H. P. Lovecraft writing as "Henry Paget-Lowe." Joshi I-B-iii-120. A fine copy. (#108451) Price: $125.00 Cover poem is by Arthur Goodenough.
The Tryout October 1919
TRYOUT, THE. October 1919 (volume 5, number 10). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, October 1919 (volume 5, number 10). Small octavo, single issue, printed wrappers, sewn. Includes "The Pensive Swain" by H. P. Lovecraft writing as "Archibald Maynwaring." The first publication of this poem. Joshi I-B-iii-141. An extra set of the four-page final gathering (which includes Lovecraft's poem) is bound into this copy, a near fine copy. (#108445) Price: $150.00
The Tryour October 1918
TRYOUT, THE. October 1918 (volume 4, number 10). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, October 1918 (volume 4, number 10). Small octavo, single issue, printed wrappers, sewn. Includes "The Eidolon" by H. P. Lovecraft writing as "Ward Phillips." The first appearance of this poem. Joshi I-B-iii-36. Several creases to front cover, a near fine copy. (#108441) Price: $150.00 Front poem by Arthur Goodenough.
The Tryout November 1918
TRYOUT, THE. November 1918 (volume 4, number 11). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, November 1918 (volume 4, number 11). Small octavo, single issue, self wrappers, sewn. Includes "Germania -- 1918" by H. P. Lovecraft. The first printing of this poem. Joshi I-B-iii-82. 17 mm closed tear at top edge of front cover, a near fine copy. (#108442) Price: $100.00 The front poem is by Arthur Goodenough.
Sunday, August 19, 2007
Haverhill, MA: John Greenleaf Whittier
John Greenleaf Whittier (December 17, 1807 – September 7, 1892) was an American Quaker poet and forceful advocate of the abolition of slavery in the United States. Lovecraft mentions him in passing, "{Tryout Smith} is a monarch in his fair domain ... editing, printing, walking, exploring "Whittierland", stamp collecting, and conversing with his grandson-mascot and playful nine-year-old Thomas cat." **p.291, Collected Essays, Vol. 1, Amateur Journalism, ed. S T Joshi.
Whittier's Birthplace about the time Lovecraft visited Haverhill, though it is uncertain if he stopped to see it. In his 1931 "Description of the Town of Quebec...", he writes that he is well aware of Whittier's poem about, "Baron de St. Castin settled {in a fort} with his Indian wife ... forming a theme for the poetick pens of Whittier and Longfellow...". **
** p.130, Collected Essays, Vol. 4, Travel, ed. S T Joshi.
Saturday, August 18, 2007
The Tryout November 1919
TRYOUT, THE. November 1919 (volume 5, number 11). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, November 1919 (volume 5, number 11). Small octavo, single issue, self wrappers, sewn. Includes "To Edward John Moreton Drax Plunkett, Eighteenth Baron Dunsany" by H. P. Lovecraft and "To the Eighth of November" by Lovecraft writing as "Archibald Maynwaring." The first printings of both poems. Joshi I-B-iii-185. Faint vertical crease where once folding for mailing, a fine copy. (#108428) Price: $150.00
Lovecraft's Legacy: Tryout May 1938
TRYOUT, THE. May 1938 (volume 19, number 3). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, May 1938 (volume 19, number 3). Small octavo, single issue, printed self wrappers, sewn. Includes "Intrun Donjuctae [sic]" and "Sunset" by H. P. Lovecraft. Reprints of both poems, the first published as "Interum Conjunctae" in THE TRYOUT, May 1917, the second first published in THE TRYOUT, December 1917. Also a brief biographical note by TRYOUT editor C. W. Smith concerning Lovecraft's contributions to THE TRYOUT and a poem "My Friend -- H. L.: A Poet of the Old School" by Chester Prince Munroe. Joshi I-B-iii-92 and I-B-iii-171. A fine copy. (#108464) Price: $85.00
Lilian M. Pierce was featured on the cover.
Haverhill, MA Part 9 (John Rowlands)
Haverhill, MA is in Essex County. It was established in 1641 and pronounced "HAY-vruhl." The environs was originally called Pentucket which means "land of the winding river," by the local Pentucket Indian tribe. First settled by Europeans in 1640, and then purchased from the tribe in 1641 when the town was incorporated as "Haverhill," after Haverhill, England.
Although it began as a farming community, it would evolve into an important industrial center, beginning with sawmills and gristmills run by water power .
This is why Lovecraft thought he might see a jam packed industrial section of New England upon his visit. In the 18th century, Haverhill developed tanneries, shipping and shipbuilding. The mill town was for 180 years home to a large shoe-making industry, and still vibrant during HPL's visit, but later faded with the Great Depression of the 1930s . It also once manufactured hats. (Perhaps a Sonia Greene connection?) Incorporated as a city in 1870, Haverhill would annex part of Bradford in 1897. (Just a few decades before Lovecraft's visit.)
Haverhill was the site of the original Macy's store, established to sell dry goods in 1851 by Rowland H. Macy. It was also where Hollywood mogul Louis B. Mayer got his start in show business by operating a chain of theatres .
Although it began as a farming community, it would evolve into an important industrial center, beginning with sawmills and gristmills run by water power .
This is why Lovecraft thought he might see a jam packed industrial section of New England upon his visit. In the 18th century, Haverhill developed tanneries, shipping and shipbuilding. The mill town was for 180 years home to a large shoe-making industry, and still vibrant during HPL's visit, but later faded with the Great Depression of the 1930s . It also once manufactured hats. (Perhaps a Sonia Greene connection?) Incorporated as a city in 1870, Haverhill would annex part of Bradford in 1897. (Just a few decades before Lovecraft's visit.)
Haverhill was the site of the original Macy's store, established to sell dry goods in 1851 by Rowland H. Macy. It was also where Hollywood mogul Louis B. Mayer got his start in show business by operating a chain of theatres .
Friday, August 17, 2007
The Tryout August 1919
TRYOUT, THE. August 1919 (volume 5, number 6?). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, May 1919 (volume 5, number 5). Small octavo, single issue, printed wrappers, sewn. Includes "Monody on the Late King Alcohol" by H. P. Lovecraft writing as "Lewis Theobald, Jun." The first publication of this poem. Joshi I-B-iii-107. A near fine copy. (#108444) Price: $150.00
The Tryout May 1919
TRYOUT, THE. May 1919 (volume 5, number 5). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, May 1919 (volume 5, number 5). Small octavo, single issue, printed wrappers, sewn. Includes "Hylas and Myrrha: A Tale" by H. P. Lovecraft writing as "Lawrence Appleton and "North and South Britons" by Lovecraft writing as "Alexander Ferguson Blair." The first publication of both poems. Joshi I-B-iii-88 and I-B-iii-117. Pulp paper quite brittle, heavily chipped at edges, mainly along spine, string tie secures only a few leaves, though all are present and there is no loss of text, a poor copy. (#108443) Price: $25.00
The Tryout March 1926
TRYOUT, THE. March 1926 (volume 10, number 8). Edited by C. W. Smith. Plaistow, N. H.: C. W. Smith, March 1926 (volume 10, number 8). Small octavo, single issue, self wrappers, sewn. Includes "The Rutted Road" by H. P. Lovecraft, the second appearance of this poem, first printed in the January 1917 issue of THE TRYOUT under his pseudonym "Lewis Theobald, Jun." Joshi I-B-iii-162. A fine copy. (#108459) Price: $50.00
The Tryout March 1924
TRYOUT, THE. March 1924 (volume 9, number 3). Edited by C. W. Smith. Plaistow, N. H.: C. W. Smith, March 1924 (volume 9, number 3). Small octavo, single issue, self wrappers, sewn. Includes a one-page anonymous article, "An Amateur Nuptial," which gives an account of wedding of H. P. Lovecraft and Sonia H. Greene. Editor C. W. Smith also comments on Lovecraft activities in his column "Around the Circle." No contributions by Lovecraft to this issue. Pulp paper wrappers lightly chipped at edges, a very good copy. (#108454) Price: $75.00
The Tryout March 1925
TRYOUT, THE. March 1925 (volume 9, number 12). Edited by C. W. Smith. Plaistow, N. H.: C. W. Smith, March 1925 (volume 9, number 12). Small octavo, single issue, self wrappers, sewn. Includes "To Mr. Hoag on his Ninety-fourth Birthday, February 10, 1925" by H. P. Lovecraft, the first magazine appearance of this poem, first published in THE TROY [N.Y.] TIMES, 10 February 1925. Joshi I-B-iii-224. News in this issue that Lovecraft received honors for his poetry compositions from the Blue Pencil Club. Some light chipping along spine, covers chipped at edges, small stain to front cover, a very good copy. (#108430) Price: $100.00
The Tryout June & July 1920
TRYOUT, THE. June 1920 and July 1920(volume 6, numbers 6 and 7). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, June 1920 and July 1920(volume 6, numbers 6 and 7). Small octavo, two issues bound together, self wrappers, sewn. The June issue includes "Looking Backward," by H. P. Lovecraft, the fifth and last part of a five-part history of amateur journalism from 1882 to 1889, first published in THE TRYOUT, February through June 1920 and "Cindy: Scrub-Lady in a State Street Skyscraper," the first printing of a poem by Lovecraft writing as "L. Theobald, Jun." The July issue includes "The Poet's Rash Excuse," the first printing of a poem by Lovecraft writing as "L. Theobald, Jun." Joshi I-B-ii-170, I-B-iii-22 and I-B-iii-147. Light crease at bottom edge of first leaf, else a fine copy. (#108429) Price: $200.00
The Tryout January 1927
TRYOUT, THE. January 1927 (volume 11, number 2). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, January 1927 (volume 11, number 2). Small octavo, single issue, self wrappers, sewn. Includes "The Wood" by H. P. Lovecraft. The first printing of this poem published under Lovecraft's pen name "L. Theobald, Jun." Also present is "The Figure With the Scythe," a early story by August Derleth written in collaboration with Mark Schorer. Joshi I-B-iii-158. Wilson 291. A fine copy. (#108461) Price: $125.00
The Tryout January 1925
Mary Morgan Ware was the featured front page poet.TRYOUT, THE. January 1925 (volume 9, number 11). Edited by C. W. Smith. Plaistow, N. H.: C. W. Smith, January 1925 (volume 9, number 11). Small octavo, single issue, self wrappers, sewn. Includes "Solstice" by H. P. Lovecraft writing as "L. Theobald, Jun." The first printing of this poem. Joshi I-B-iii-166. Faint damp stain at bottom edge of front cover, a very good copy. (#108456) Price: $100.00
The Tryout January 1920
TRYOUT, THE. January 1920 (volume 6, number 1). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, January 1920 (volume 6, number 1). Small octavo, single issue, printed wrappers, sewn. Includes "To Phillis: (With Humblest Possible Apologies to Randolph St. John, Gent.)" and "Tryout's Lament for the Vanished Spider" by H. P. Lovecraft, the first printings of these poems, the first published under his pen name "L. Theobald, Jun.," the second published under his pen name "Edward Softly." Joshi I-B-iii-196 and I-B-iii-206. A fine copy. (#108447) Price: $150.00
Thursday, August 16, 2007
The Tryout January 1926
TRYOUT, THE. January 1926 (volume 10, number 7). Edited by C. W. Smith. Plaistow, N. H.: C. W. Smith, January 1926 (volume 10, number 7). Small octavo, single issue, self wrappers, sewn. Includes "October" by H. P. Lovecraft, the first printing of this poem. Also present is "Alone," a poem by Jonathan E. Hoag revised by Lovecraft. Joshi I-B-iii-121 and I-B-iv-b-2. A fine copy. (#108432) Price: $125.00
The Tryout February 1921
TRYOUT, THE. February 1921 (volume 7, number 1). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, February 1921 (volume 7, number 1). Small octavo, single issue, self wrappers, sewn. Includes "To Mr. Hoag, on his Ninetieth Birthday, Feb. 10,1921" by H. P. Lovecraft writing as "Ward Phillips" and "To a Youth. (Dedicated to Master Alfred Galpin, Jun.)" by Lovecraft writing as "Richard Raleigh. The first printing of both poems. Joshi I-B-i-220 and I-B-ii-176. A fine copy. (#108452) Price: $125.00The Tryout (February 1920, March 1920)
TRYOUT, THE. February 1920 and March 1920 (volume 6, numbers 2 and 3). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, February 1920 and March 1920 (volume 6, numbers 2 and 3). Small octavo, two issues bound together, self wrappers, sewn. Includes "Looking Backward," by H. P. Lovecraft, the first two parts of a five-part history of amateur journalism from 1882 to 1889, first published in THE TRYOUT, February through June 1920, and the first printing of Lovecraft's poem "Ad Scribam: (Joanthan [sic] E. Hoag), Aetat LXXXIX February 10, 1920." Joshi I-B-ii-170 and I-B-iii-219. A fine copy. (#108448) Price: $125.00
The Tryout December 1926
TRYOUT, THE. December 1926 (volume 11, number 1). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, December 1926 (volume 11, number 1). Small octavo, single issue, self wrappers, sewn. Includes "The Return" by H. P. Lovecraft. The first printing of this poem. Joshi I-B-iii-158. Several light creases to covers, a couple of ink spots on rear cover, a very good copy. (#108460) Price: $125.00Arthur Goodenough is featured and you can see William Jennings Bryan eulogized.
The Tryout December 1919
TRYOUT, THE. December 1919 (volume 5, number 12). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, December 1919 (volume 5, number 12). Small octavo, single issue, printed wrappers, sewn. Includes "Bells" by H. P. Lovecraft writing as "Ward Phillips." The first publication of this poem. Also prints the text of a letter received from Lord Dunsany dated 1 December 1919 in response to Lovecraft's verse tribute to Dunsany published in the November 1919 issue of THE TRYOUT. Joshi I-B-iii-15. A fine copy. (#108446) Price: $150.00
The Tryout December 1916
Lovecraft grabbed the front page in this issue.TRYOUT, THE. December 1916 (volume 3, number 1). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, December 1916 (volume 3, number 1). Small octavo, single issue, printed wrappers. Includes "Brotherhood" and "Brumalia" by H. P. Lovecraft. The first printings of these poems, the first contributed under Lovecraft's pen name "Lewis Theobald, Jun ." Includes Lovecraft's short note on his poem, "Brumalia." Joshi I-B-iii-18, I-B-iii-19 and I-B-ii-103. Stab holes along spine edge, some wear along spine, binder's thread removed (removed from a pamphlet bind-up), wrappers detached at spine, faint creases where once folding for mailing, text block darkened and brittle with some chipping at edges, a good copy. (#102259) Price: $35.00
The Tryout April 1918
TRYOUT, THE. August 1918 (volume 4, number 8). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, August 1918 (volume 4, number 8). Small octavo, single issue, self wrappers, sewn. Includes "August" by H. P. Lovecraft. The first printing of this poem. Lovecraft is mentioned in several articles and is the subject of "Lovecraft Ð an Appreciation," a poem by Arthur Goodenough. Joshi I-B-iii-10. A fine copy. (#101342) Price: $150.00
The Tryout April 1924
TRYOUT, THE. April 1924 (volume 9, number 4). Edited by C. W. Smith. Plaistow, N. H.: C. W. Smith, April 1924 (volume 9, number 4). Small octavo, single issue, self wrappers, sewn. H. P. Lovecraft is briefly mentioned in "A Bit of Comment," an article by James F. Morton, Jr. Pulp paper wrappers partially separated along spine fold, a very good copy. (#108455) Price: $25.00
The Tryout April 1916
This is a very early opportunity for HPL, and note his intense interest in prohibition. Only 24 when he wrote the poem, he was already politically focused. "Tryout" Smith must have been smitten from the beginning, since Lovecraft was featured in so many of the irregularly published issues of Tryout. - Chrispy.
The seller states: TRYOUT, THE. April 1916 (volume 2, number 5). Edited by C. W. Smith. Haverhill, Mass.: C. W. Smith, April 1916 (volume 2, number 5). Small octavo, single issue, printed wrappers, sewn. Includes "The Power of Wine: A Satire" by H. P. Lovecraft. The first magazine appearance of this poem first published in the [PROVIDENCE] EVENING NEWS, 13 January 1915. This was Lovecraft's first poem published in THE TRYOUT. Joshi I-B-iii-148. Light wear along spine panel, a near fine copy. (#108440) Price: $150.00
Haverhill, MA Part 8 (John Rowlands)
(c) 2007, John Rowlands: 408 Groveland StreetWhen John called me and told me he was on the road to travel through Haverhill, I looked on google maps and saw that 408 Groveland Street was still standing in some form.
Lovecraft wrote (1) in July 1921: ...408 Groveland Street still remains a terra incognita to most amateurs ... flanked by fertile flower and vegetable gardens, and blessed with a background of mystical faun-peopled woods dear to the editor's heart, stands the pleasant cottage numbered 408 Groveland St. In the rear .. is the Holy of Holies - Tryout office. Here, within walls made colourful by pictures, stamps, buttons, post-cards, and countless other accumulations of delightful nature, rests the faithful Tryout press with its type-cases, piles of paper, files, and other accessories ...
(1) p.289=291, Collected Essays, Vol. 1, Amateur Journalism, ed. S T Joshi.
Lovecraft wrote (1) in July 1921: ...408 Groveland Street still remains a terra incognita to most amateurs ... flanked by fertile flower and vegetable gardens, and blessed with a background of mystical faun-peopled woods dear to the editor's heart, stands the pleasant cottage numbered 408 Groveland St. In the rear .. is the Holy of Holies - Tryout office. Here, within walls made colourful by pictures, stamps, buttons, post-cards, and countless other accumulations of delightful nature, rests the faithful Tryout press with its type-cases, piles of paper, files, and other accessories ...
(1) p.289=291, Collected Essays, Vol. 1, Amateur Journalism, ed. S T Joshi.
Haverhill, MA Part 7 (John Rowlands)
Washington Square circa 1920Note the streetcar and the wide, expansive town square.
Lovecraft expected an industrial place, but was excited to see it was filled with parks, too.
Merrimac Street circa 1920Notice the streetcar - Lovecraft adored streetcars.
While John prepares more on his recent trip to Haverhill, MA and environs, here are more images from CW Smith and Lovecraft's era.
While John prepares more on his recent trip to Haverhill, MA and environs, here are more images from CW Smith and Lovecraft's era.
Poe Mystery: Solved?
I know, it isn't HPL, but HE would have loved this story.
For decades, a mysterious figure dressed in black, his features cloaked by a wide-brimmed hat and scarf, crept into a Baltimore churchyard to lay three roses and a bottle of cognac at the grave of Edgar Allan Poe. Now, a man in his 90s who led the fight to preserve the historic site says the visitor was his creation."We did it, myself and my tour guides," said Sam Porpora. "It was a promotional idea. We made it up, never dreaming it would go worldwide."Mr. Porpora is an energetic, dapper fellow in a newsboy cap and a checked suit with a bolo tie. He's got a twinkle in his eye and a mischievous smile, and he tells his tale in the rhythms of a natural-born storyteller.
However, his story is a bit inconsistent. I'll wager he did perpetuate the myth, but only after it was suggested to him as a young man. He would have been privvy to the many strange happenings that oral tradition carried forth. He would have absorbed these as tour guide.
One suspects that similar stories are whispered around Lovecraft's grave.
Souce.
For decades, a mysterious figure dressed in black, his features cloaked by a wide-brimmed hat and scarf, crept into a Baltimore churchyard to lay three roses and a bottle of cognac at the grave of Edgar Allan Poe. Now, a man in his 90s who led the fight to preserve the historic site says the visitor was his creation."We did it, myself and my tour guides," said Sam Porpora. "It was a promotional idea. We made it up, never dreaming it would go worldwide."Mr. Porpora is an energetic, dapper fellow in a newsboy cap and a checked suit with a bolo tie. He's got a twinkle in his eye and a mischievous smile, and he tells his tale in the rhythms of a natural-born storyteller.
However, his story is a bit inconsistent. I'll wager he did perpetuate the myth, but only after it was suggested to him as a young man. He would have been privvy to the many strange happenings that oral tradition carried forth. He would have absorbed these as tour guide.
One suspects that similar stories are whispered around Lovecraft's grave.
Souce.
Lovecraft's Legacy: 2007
Dead Reckonings, No.1, Spring 2007
Donald R. Burleson reviews Lovecraft’s collected essays. Hippocampus has put out a marvelous set for research in 5 volumes. Even today, many fans have read few of HPL’s letters. The corpus of his letters, essays, and newspaper articles dwarf his fiction. Some estimate he may have written (or scribbled!) 70,000 missives and some of them to more that 40 pages in cramped handwriting.
S.T. Joshi has mastered this corpus and placed them thematically into Amateur Journalism, Literary Criticism, Science, Travel, and Philosophy (autobiography and miscellany).
In total, Burleson lets us know that the full Lovecraft emerges here from recluse to expansive thoughts on the materialist universe and beyond.
Donald R. Burleson reviews Lovecraft’s collected essays. Hippocampus has put out a marvelous set for research in 5 volumes. Even today, many fans have read few of HPL’s letters. The corpus of his letters, essays, and newspaper articles dwarf his fiction. Some estimate he may have written (or scribbled!) 70,000 missives and some of them to more that 40 pages in cramped handwriting.
S.T. Joshi has mastered this corpus and placed them thematically into Amateur Journalism, Literary Criticism, Science, Travel, and Philosophy (autobiography and miscellany).
In total, Burleson lets us know that the full Lovecraft emerges here from recluse to expansive thoughts on the materialist universe and beyond.
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Haverhill, MA Part 6 (John Rowlands)
1918 Historical Society. There is a long story about this that I'll post soon. Lovecraft definitely visited this "on a date" with Myrta Alice Little. :)
Haverhill, MA Part 3 (John Rowlands)
1908 Groveland Bridge.
Chrispy has found a number of ancient images of Haverhill, circa Lovecraft & CW Smith era.
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Larry Roberts on Lovecraft and More !
Lovecraft's Legacy: 1945
Howard, Robert E. THE GARDEN OF FEAR. Crawford, 1945. First Edition. 80 page digest booklet with “The Garden of Fear” by Robert E. Howard, "Celephais" by H. P. Lovecraft, "The Golden Bough" by David H. Keller, “The Man With The Hour Glass” by L. A. Eshbach and “Mars Colonizes” by Miles J. Breuer. This copy is the blue cover variety: A Very Good copy with slight wear along spine, several pulls on back cover. A rather fragile item.
Monday, August 13, 2007
Haverhill, MA Part 2 (John Rowlands)
(c) 2007 John Rowlands
(c) 2007 John Rowlands***
John was able to drive and take photographs in the pouring rain. These are images of the ancient Haverhill Cemetery. In the lower image you will see Peaslee's grave.
Recall the passage from The Shadow Out of Time: I am the son of Jonathan and Hannah (Wingate) Peaslee, both of wholesome old Haverhill stock. I was born and reared in Haverhill - at the old homestead in Boardman Street near Golden Hill - and did not go to Arkham till I entered Miskatonic University as instructor of political economy in 1895.
Recall the passage from The Shadow Out of Time: I am the son of Jonathan and Hannah (Wingate) Peaslee, both of wholesome old Haverhill stock. I was born and reared in Haverhill - at the old homestead in Boardman Street near Golden Hill - and did not go to Arkham till I entered Miskatonic University as instructor of political economy in 1895.
Starting A New Series by John Rowlands: Haverhill, Massachusetts. Part 1
(c) 2007 John RowlandsOn a number of occasions Lovecraft visited Haverhill, generally to visit with his acquaintance, C.W. “Tryout” Smith. Haverhill, MA, a city on the Merrimack River near the New Hampshire border, was established in 1641. This area was originally called Pentucket which means "land of the winding river," by the local Pentucket Indian tribe.
The Pentucket Cemetery is located on Water Street in Haverhill and was established in 1668. It's located adjoining the Linwood Cemetery. This is a very early burying ground with several interesting early carvings. A few stones here date to the 1600's. One of them was Nathaniel Peaslee’s whose tombstone which reads:
Many of the tombstones in Pentucket Cemetery describe a new epidemic disease, known as the throat distemper, or, throat-ail, but we know it today as diphtheria. This was not limited to any one town or any small section of New England, as I have seen it on many tombstones. This epidemic soon became the putrid sore throat disease and was described as “the general description of it was a swelled throat, with white or ash-colored specks, efflorescence on the skin, great debility of the whole system and a strong tendency to putridity.” In 1735 it was an epidemic throughout New England states.
Lovecraft believed that children will always be afraid of the dark, and men with minds sensitive to hereditary impulse will always tremble at the thought of the hidden and fathomless worlds of strange life which may pulsate in the gulfs beyond the stars, or press hideously upon our own globe in unholy dimensions which only the dead and the moonstruck can glimpse. He got some of his best ideas from his visit to local cemeteries.
The Pentucket Cemetery is located on Water Street in Haverhill and was established in 1668. It's located adjoining the Linwood Cemetery. This is a very early burying ground with several interesting early carvings. A few stones here date to the 1600's. One of them was Nathaniel Peaslee’s whose tombstone which reads:
“HERE LIES INTERRED Ye PRECIOUS DUST OF Mr NATHANAEL PEASLEE JUNr Ye ONLY & DESIRABLE SON OF Mr NAthLL PEASLEE WHO WITH COMFORT TOOK HIS YOUTHFUL FLIGHT FROM Ye PROMISING JOYS OF EARTHLY POSSESSIONS IN HOPE OF A FAR MORE EXCEEDING & ETERNAL WEIGHT OF GLORY ON SEPT Ye 9 1730 AGED 23 YEARS.”
Many of the tombstones in Pentucket Cemetery describe a new epidemic disease, known as the throat distemper, or, throat-ail, but we know it today as diphtheria. This was not limited to any one town or any small section of New England, as I have seen it on many tombstones. This epidemic soon became the putrid sore throat disease and was described as “the general description of it was a swelled throat, with white or ash-colored specks, efflorescence on the skin, great debility of the whole system and a strong tendency to putridity.” In 1735 it was an epidemic throughout New England states.
Lovecraft believed that children will always be afraid of the dark, and men with minds sensitive to hereditary impulse will always tremble at the thought of the hidden and fathomless worlds of strange life which may pulsate in the gulfs beyond the stars, or press hideously upon our own globe in unholy dimensions which only the dead and the moonstruck can glimpse. He got some of his best ideas from his visit to local cemeteries.
Lovecraft and Math
Here is an excellent summary of HPL's math skills and his representation of mathematics as fictional art.
ArsMathematica
ArsMathematica
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Lovecraft Letter Mentioning "Frankenstein" (1935)
{Unfortunately, the image is now gone. -CP}
SUPER COOL AND SUPER RARE - This is a handwritten and signed letter from H. P. Lovecraft to Forrest Ackerman (Literary agent for Lovecraft, L. Ron Hubbard, Ray Bradbury and Ed Wood among others) written in 1935 with Lovecraft's return address in Providence, Rhode Island on it.
This is fantastic prose written by a world famous author of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror. Mentions "Frankenstein", "The Ghoul", and "Mad Love", the letter is filled with nomenclature that only Lovecraft could produce. Here is some of the opening text - "surely this pleasant chap looks as if he had but recently wiggled forth from an accursed tomb and were prepared to wreck upon mankind any travesty of evil from mere vampirism to cosmos blasting invocation of the ultimate black powers of horror!"
This letter was written less than two years before Lovecraft's death.
He ends the letter with:
"With the season's best wishes and trusting that your New Year may be replete with startling messages from the trans-galactic ether, I am yours most cordially. H. P. Lovecraft"
The signature is full and clear.
This is an incredible and VERY RARE 1935 collectable for any true Lovecraft fan.
SUPER COOL AND SUPER RARE - This is a handwritten and signed letter from H. P. Lovecraft to Forrest Ackerman (Literary agent for Lovecraft, L. Ron Hubbard, Ray Bradbury and Ed Wood among others) written in 1935 with Lovecraft's return address in Providence, Rhode Island on it.
This is fantastic prose written by a world famous author of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror. Mentions "Frankenstein", "The Ghoul", and "Mad Love", the letter is filled with nomenclature that only Lovecraft could produce. Here is some of the opening text - "surely this pleasant chap looks as if he had but recently wiggled forth from an accursed tomb and were prepared to wreck upon mankind any travesty of evil from mere vampirism to cosmos blasting invocation of the ultimate black powers of horror!"
This letter was written less than two years before Lovecraft's death.
He ends the letter with:
"With the season's best wishes and trusting that your New Year may be replete with startling messages from the trans-galactic ether, I am yours most cordially. H. P. Lovecraft"
The signature is full and clear.
This is an incredible and VERY RARE 1935 collectable for any true Lovecraft fan.
Thursday, August 09, 2007
John Rowlands: World Explorer
I kid you not. My colleague and fellow writer has been to many continents, inside caves, volcanoes, and through jungles. This past weekend he visited Haverhill, MA and has sent to you (through me) some great Lovecraftian pictures.
As soon as he gets settled from yet another trip, I'm going to beg a boon and have him guest blog about his New England mini-adventure.
To start, however, here is a tease.
Cemetery in Haverhill, MA. (c) 2007 John Rowlands, used by permission.
Wednesday, August 08, 2007
Lovecraft's Legacy: Fantastic Novels 1951
Fantastic Novels Magazine, Jan. 1951, Vol. 4, No. 5 was published bi-monthly by New Publications, Inc. Cover by De Soto.
Inside illustrations by Finlay, Bok, and Lawrence. // Book-Length Novel: Drink We Deep by Arthur Leo Zagat. Beneath the timeless rocks of the Heldebergs-slumbering below Lake Wanooka’s unfathomed waters-lies the seed of earth conflict. For there lives the strange and troubled race of other worldings, waiting, always waiting, for the hour of deliverance…And on the earth’s surface, one man feels in his blood an irresistible summons that calls him to their side…
Copyright 1937 by Popular Publications, Inc.
Copyright 1937 by Popular Publications, Inc.
**
Short Story: The Cats Of Ulthar by H. P. Lovecraft. Who was to know the depths of their pride, or guess from their quiet mien that they were bred from ancient Egypt’s fierce godhead-and had not forgotten the taste of sacrificial blood?
Copyright 1926, by Popular Fiction Publishing Company, Copyright 1939, 1947 by August Derleth and Donald Wahdrel. Published by permission of Arkham House.
Short Story: The Cats Of Ulthar by H. P. Lovecraft. Who was to know the depths of their pride, or guess from their quiet mien that they were bred from ancient Egypt’s fierce godhead-and had not forgotten the taste of sacrificial blood?
Copyright 1926, by Popular Fiction Publishing Company, Copyright 1939, 1947 by August Derleth and Donald Wahdrel. Published by permission of Arkham House.
Tuesday, August 07, 2007
Original Story by Mark Kodak!!
I'm proud to exhibit here this great story by Mark.
I'm simultaneously publishing it with +Horror Library+.Due to its length, read the intro, and then click ...more... to read the full, chilling story.
London, 25th of January, 1886
There is a veritable portal to Hell itself locked away in my basement. A nameless perdition held in abeyance, that serves as a reminder that some doors are best left unopened, and certain levels of knowledge are simply not worth the price of their attainment. The constant awareness of this reality haunts and chills me to the core
....MORE...
I'm simultaneously publishing it with +Horror Library+.Due to its length, read the intro, and then click ...more... to read the full, chilling story.
London, 25th of January, 1886
There is a veritable portal to Hell itself locked away in my basement. A nameless perdition held in abeyance, that serves as a reminder that some doors are best left unopened, and certain levels of knowledge are simply not worth the price of their attainment. The constant awareness of this reality haunts and chills me to the core
....MORE...
Thursday, August 02, 2007
Lovecraft's Legacy: Artist Jill Baumann (1993) & The Thing on the Doorstep
On ebay, this art has been offered for auction. The seller states:
My name is Jill Bauman and I am the artist that created the original art for this print.
This image was published as an interior illustration in the short story collection, “The Dunwich Horror” by H.P.Lovecraft for the story, “TheThing on the Doorstep.” Published by Easton Press, 1993.
The image size is 10”x 14 ½” in a 16”x 20” black mat with a mylar protective sleeve. The mat is wider on the print--I cropped it for the photo to allow you to see a larger image.
This image was published as an interior illustration in the short story collection, “The Dunwich Horror” by H.P.Lovecraft for the story, “TheThing on the Doorstep.” Published by Easton Press, 1993.
The image size is 10”x 14 ½” in a 16”x 20” black mat with a mylar protective sleeve. The mat is wider on the print--I cropped it for the photo to allow you to see a larger image.
About Jill Bauman ... I have been a freelance illustrator/designer for 27 years. In that time I have produced hundreds of covers for horror, mystery, fantasy, science fiction, and best selling books and other products for publishers such as: Ace Books, Tor Books, Avon Books, Doubleday Science Fiction Book Club, TSR, White Wolf, Inc., DAW Books, Berkley/Putam Publishing, St. Martin’s Press, Cemetery Dance Publications, Easton Press, Amazing Stories magazine, Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazine, The Horror Express magazine and Weird Tales magazine.
I have illustrated works by such authors: Harlan Ellison, Stephen King, Peter Straub, Lilian Jackson Braun, Charles L. Grant, Robert McCammon, Richard Laymon, Jack Williamson, Hugh B. Cave, Pamela Sargent, Michael Resnick, J. G. Ballard, David Brin, and Fritz Leiber.
I have been nominated for the World Fantasy Award five times and nominated for the Chesley Award several times. My art has been exhibited at the Delaware Art Museum, the Moore College of Art, NY Art Students League, the NY Illustrators Society & and a current show with 3 of my paintings in the Science Fiction Museum of Seattle.
Lovecraft's Legacy: Cthulhu Calls 1975-76
Volume III, Nos. 1, 3 and 4 of the quarterly review Cthulhu Calls from 1975-76
These issues run 45-62 pages each and include book reviews, poetry, fiction, illustrations and more. They were edited by Terry L. Shorb and R. J. Barthell, and published at Northwest Community College in Powell, Wyoming. They include film columns by Edward Bryant and an article by Robert Bloch.
These issues run 45-62 pages each and include book reviews, poetry, fiction, illustrations and more. They were edited by Terry L. Shorb and R. J. Barthell, and published at Northwest Community College in Powell, Wyoming. They include film columns by Edward Bryant and an article by Robert Bloch.
Lovecraft's Legacy: Cthulhu Calls 1974-75
Volume II, Nos. 1 and 3 of the quarterly review Cthulhu Calls from 1974-75
These issues run 39 and 62 pages and include book reviews, poetry, fiction, illustrations and more. They were edited by R. J. Barthell, and published at Northwest Community College in Powell, Wyoming. They include film columns by Edward Bryant and an article by Jack Williamson.
These issues run 39 and 62 pages and include book reviews, poetry, fiction, illustrations and more. They were edited by R. J. Barthell, and published at Northwest Community College in Powell, Wyoming. They include film columns by Edward Bryant and an article by Jack Williamson.
Lovecraft's Legacy: Cthulhu Calls 1976
This issue runs 59 pages, and includes book reviews, poetry, fiction, illustrations and more. It was edited by Terry L. Shorb and published at Northwest Community College in Powell, Wyoming.
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