DIY History | Transcribe | Hevelin Fanzines | En Garde, whole no. 17, April 1946

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En Garde, whole no. 17, April 1946

Page 10

page 10.

But I have pretty definite proof that Merritt not only did it again and again, but, as we all know, he did it so well that he is still the acknowledged master of fantasy.

The proof that I refer to has to do with the story CREEP, SHADOW, and its predecessor, BURN, WITCH, BURN. Most readers will recall that these stories have their roots in the legends of the old Bretons. Great stone cairns. Sacrificial rocks and ceremonies. Most readers will also be aware that this is Druidism, a religion which flourished in great strength as late as the reign of the Roman Emperor Claudius. Claudius, discovering that his Gallic subjects were being seduced from the island of Britain by an evangelical, "pagan" religion, undertook the conquest of Britain, and the extermination of the creed of human sacrifice, that also in some way exacted the patriotic obedience of the worshipper. For a time the cult was so widespread that very strong measures had to be taken. One of the symbols of the religion was a ball-like "egg", possession of which was said to protect the owner from death and other misadventures. The judges of Claudius adopted the principle of sentencing to death every individual found to be secreting a facsimile of the egg upon his person. The cult of all -protecting egg suffered a well-know malady known as unpopularity.

I am not going to go into the details of Druidism. The fact is that when you try to go into the details you quickly discover that a great mist has descended on the scene. For once history is not as clear as it might be. What for instance are the thirty (I think that's the number) steps by which neophytes become inner circle priests? One of the later steps is that the aspirant is "buried" in a sort of a hollow egg, and there between the dark and dawn he must compose a brand new song, which he must sing in the morning. A few determined writers are still trying to read mysterious meanings into poems which, I strongly suspect, were composed under this very special type of duress. My own conviction is that no lengthy song created under such circumstances could possibly contain more than a grain of sense, and certainly should not be regarded as a source of information about Druidism.

From this insubstantial thread, Abraham Merritt nevertheless has spun a golden story of fantastic adventure. Out of the drab and not untypical superstitions of ignorant minds, he built a structure as exciting as life itself.

It is difficult to imagine how he conceived so many wonderful ideas from the dull religions of duller peoples. But the record of his achievements is available on many a fan's bookshelf. Not for the first time a blurred portion of primitive human history has been exhilaratingly "clarified" in a way that would have been almost impossible if the stolid, simple, illogical, thoroughly nonsensical truth had been available as a deterrent on the fine imagination of the author.

Unfortunately, all too few periods of history are so satisfactorily concealed by the mists of time.

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page 10. But I have pretty definite proof that Merritt not only did it again and again, but, as we all know, he did it so well that he is still the acknowledged master of fantasy. The proof that I refer to has to do with the story CREEP, SHADOW, and its predecessor, BURN, WITCH, BURN. Most readers will recall that these stories have their roots in the legends of the old Bretons. Great stone cairns. Sacrificial rocks and ceremonies. Most readers will also be aware that this is Druidism, a religion which flourished in great strength as late as the reign of the Roman Emperor Claudius. Claudius, discovering that his Gallic subjects were being seduced from the island of Britain by an evangelical, "pagan" religion, undertook the conquest of Britain, and the extermination of the creed of human sacrifice, that also in some way exacted the patriotic obedience of the worshipper. For a time the cult was so widespread that very strong measures had to be taken. One of the symbols of the religion was a ball-like "egg", possession of which was said to protect the owner from death and other misadventures. The judges of Claudius adopted the principle of sentencing to death every individual found to be secreting a facsimile of the egg upon his person. The cult of all -protecting egg suffered a well-know malady known as unpopularity. I am not going to go into the details of Druidism. The fact is that when you try to go into the details you quickly discover that a great mist has descended on the scene. For once history is not as clear as it might be. What for instance are the thirty (I think that's the number) steps by which neophytes become inner circle priests? One of the later steps is that the aspirant is "buried" in a sort of a hollow egg, and there between the dark and dawn he must compose a brand new song, which he must sing in the morning. A few determined writers are still trying to read mysterious meanings into poems which, I strongly suspect, were composed under this very special type of duress. My own conviction is that no lengthy song created under such circumstances could possibly contain more than a grain of sense, and certainly should not be regarded as a source of information about Druidism. From this insubstantial thread, Abraham Merritt nevertheless has spun a golden story of fantastic adventure. Out of the drab and not untypical superstitions of ignorant minds, he built a structure as exciting as life itself. It is difficult to imagine how he conceived so many wonderful ideas from the dull religions of duller peoples. But the record of his achievements is available on many a fan's bookshelf. Not for the first time a blurred portion of primitive human history has been exhilaratingly "clarified" in a way that would have been almost impossible if the stolid, simple, illogical, thoroughly nonsensical truth had been available as a deterrent on the fine imagination of the author. Unfortunately, all too few periods of history are so satisfactorily concealed by the mists of time.