The Literary Influences of Robert E. Howard: Robert W. Service by Todd B. Vick

From a very early age Robert E. Howard loved poetry. This was in large part due to his mother and her passion for verse. From the time Robert was born, Hester Howard recited poetry to her son. So naturally, Robert grew to love poetry. And there were a number of poets who influenced him as a reader and a writer. One such poet was Robert W. Service. His work loomed large in its influence of Robert E. Howard.

Robert W. Service

Service was born on January 14, 1874 in a small village named Preston, in Lancashire England just 20 or so miles northeast of the port town Liverpool. Service began writing poetry at an early age, heavily influenced by these Victorian poets: Tennyson, Browning and Keats. Several of these same poets, along with Robert W. Service played an integral part in influencing Howard’s verse. Service eventually moved to Canada, and settled in the Yukon territory. It took Service a bit of time to get his poetry published. Frankly, most poems and/or poets never make a living at their craft. With little success as a writer, to support himself Service took a job as a banker in the Pacific Northeast at the Canadian Bank of Commerce. All the while, he continued to write. Eventually Service managed to secure a publisher in London for his first collection of verse (Songs of Sourdough), published in 1907.

In the United States, Edward Stern and Company of Philadelphia published the same volume under a different title, The Spell of the Yukon and Other Verses. This volume gained a large amount of readers in the early twentieth century. Robert E. Howard owned the United States edition of Service’s first collection, and he particularly enjoyed “The Shooting of Dan McGrew.” In fact, this poem eventually became one of the most memorized in the United States a few years after its publication. A few years later another collection by Service, Ballads of a Cheechako, garnered almost equal success as The Spell of the Yukon and Other Verses, and Service was able to quit his job at the bank, write full-time and travel.

The Spell of the Yukon
and Other Verses
1907 edition

Robert W. Service’s influence can clearly be seen in many of Howard’s own poetry. Their rhyme and meter, heavily influenced by the Victorian poets, was similar. And among Howard's close friends, in particular Tevis Clyde Smith, Service's poetry was highly praised. According to Post Oaks and Sand Roughs, [Tevis Clyde Smith] Clive, considered Robert W. Service the greatest poet of all-time. Steve [Robert E. Howard] declared that Service was second only to Rudyard Kipling. [POSR, 74] Due to its content, Service’s poetry was ripe for the working class. This is likely one of the reasons Howard and Smith liked it. Without much sophistication, Service was able to delineate the common man and their struggles in his verse. Moreover, the content of many of Service’s verse was about frontier life in the Canadian Yukon, gold rushes, and man’s toil to survive. Of course, Howard loved those topics making Service’s verse resonate in his own imagination. Service’s poems were about the simple, ordinary life, and Howard especially liked this. In fact, on one occasion Howard told Lovecraft: “My tastes and habits are simple; I am neither erudite nor sophisticated. I prefer jazz to classical music, musical burlesque to Greek tragedy, A. Conan Doyle to Balzac, and [Robert] Bob Service’s verse to Santayana’s writing, a prize fight to a lecture on art.” [CL 3.66]

After his death, several of Service's books were present in Howard's personal book collection and donated to the Howard Payne College library; titles such as The Pretender, Ballads of a Bohemian, Rhymes of a Red-Cross Man, and The Spell of the Yukon and Others. Some of these books are now displayed in a bookcase at the Howard House and Museum in Cross Plains, Texas.

Works Cited
CL           Collected Letters
POSR      Post Oaks and Sand Roughs (Grant edition)

The Ships of Hy-Brasil Part 3 by Barbara Barrett

[In his poem, the “Isle of Hy-Brasil,” REH brings to life the fabled isle that existed even when the pre-historical islands of Atlantis and Lemuria were still afloat in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. According to Wikipedia, the isle, also known as Brazil, Hy-Brazil, and several other variants, is steeped in Irish myth. It is a legendary phantom island cloaked in mist, except for one day each seven years when it becomes visible but still unreachable. Similar in myth to that of St. Brendan’s Island (var. Brandon) it is shown as being circular, often with a central strait or river running east-west across its diameter. Despite failure in the attempts to find Hy-Brasil/St. Brendan’s Island, it appeared regularly on maps lying southwest of Galway Bay from 1325 until 1865.]

And there’s a sturdy bireme that sailed to the Holy Land.

The Bireme is a galley type ship with two bank of oars that was especially used by the Greeks and Phoenicians. The ship had a hull of wood and was used for both shipping and naval warfare possibly as early as 350 BC. The two banks of oars provided man-powered propulsion in case of calm waters or for better control in battles. The bronze armored ram on the bow of the ship was designed to be driven deep into an enemy ship. In addition to the small number of crew required, they could hold as many as 45 sailors during combat as well as additional fighting men on the main deck who were ready to board enemy vessels that had been rammed. Top speed was approximately seven knots.[1]

Main masts lifting like a forest of the south,

Beaked prows looming and the scarlet courses furled,

Dim decks heel-marked, warped by rain and drouth,

Rift in the cross-trees, drift of the southern seas;

Dim ships, strong ships, from all about the world.

High ships, proud ships, towering at their poops,

Galleons flaunting their pinnacles of pride,

[See image and full description of the Galleon above]

Battleships and merchantmen and long, lean sloops,

 

British Ships: Nelson's Division: HMS Victory (Flagship), Temeraire, Neptune, Conqueror, Leviathan, Ajax, Orion, Agamemnon, Minotaur, Spartiate, Euryalus, Britannia, Africa, Naiad, Phoebe, Entreprenante, Sirius and Pickle. Collingwood's Division: HMS Royal Sovereign (Flagship), Belleisle, Mars, Tonnant, Bellerophon, Colossus, Achilles, Polyphemus, Revenge, Swiftsure, Defiance, Thunderer, Prince of Wales, Dreadnought and Defence.

French Ships: Bucentaure (Flagship), Formidable (Flagship), Scipion, Intrepide, Cornelie, Duguay Truin, Mont Blanc, Heros, Furet, Hortense, Neptune, Redoubtable, Indomitable, Fougueux, Pluton, Aigle, Swiftsure, Argonaute, Berwick, Hermione, Themis, Achille and Argus. (It was a musket shot from French ship Redoubtable that mortally wounded Nelson.)

Spanish Ships: Santa Anna (Flagship), Santissima Trinidad (Flagship), Neptuno, Rayo, Santo Augustino, S. Francisco d’Assisi, S. Leandro, S. Juste, Monarca, Algeciras, Bahama, Montanes, S. Juan Nepomucano, Argonauta and Prince de Asturias.

Sailing warships of the 18th and 19th Century carried their main armaments in broadside batteries along the sides. Ships were classified according to the number of guns carried or the number of decks carrying batteries. Nelson’s main force comprised 8 three decker battleships carrying more than 90 guns each. The enormous Spanish ship Santissima Trinidad carried 120 guns and the Santa Anna 112 guns.

The size of gun on the line of battle ships was up to 24 pounder, firing heavy iron balls or chain and link shot designed to wreck rigging. Trafalgar was a close fleet action. Ships maneuvered up to the enemy and delivered broadsides at a range of a few yards. To take full advantage of the close range guns were “double shotted" with grape shot on top of ball. The ultimate aim in battle was to

lock ships together and capture the enemy by boarding. Savage hand to hand fighting took place at Trafalgar on several ships. The crew of the French Redoubtable, living up to the name of their ship, boarded Nelson’s flagship Victory but were annihilated in the brutal struggle on Victory’s top deck.

Ships’ crews of all nations were a tough bunch. The British with continual blockade service against the French and Spanish were particularly well drilled. British gun crews could fire three broadsides or more to every two fired by the French and Spanish. The British officers were hard bitten and experienced.

A merchantmen ship carried primarily cargo rather than the armaments although some carried guns for defense.

Flagships floating with the schooners on the tide.

The purpose of a flagship is to carry a fleet or squadron commander and it bears the commander's flag. It is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, a designation given on account of being either the largest, fastest, newest, most heavily armed or, for publicity purposes, the best known. In military terms, it is a ship used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships. The term originates from the custom of the commanding officer (usually, but not always, a flag officer) to fly a distinguishing flag. (Wikipedia)

A schooner is a vessel with two or more masts, with fore and aft sails on both masts, normally less than 150 tons but some of the triple masted schooners built on Prince Edward Island in the 1800s exceeded 700 tons. 

In the Caribbean, the USS Enterprise captured eight privateers and freed eleven American ships from captivity. At Malta, with six twelve-pounders she captured the Tripoli with its fourteen six-pounders. Three times, during the action, the Tripolitan crew attempted to board the Enterprise, and was as often repulsed with great slaughter, which was greatly increased by the effective aid afforded by the Marines. Three times, the Tripolitan struck her colors, hoping to disable the crew, and twice it renewed the action when the Enterprise crew came on deck to celebrate. The third treacherous attack, the Enterprise captain gave orders to sink the Tripoli and the enemy cried for mercy. [2] (Wikipedia)

And there’s a Viking Serpent that sailed the northern seas,

The Viking ship was perhaps the greatest technical and artistic achievement of the European dark ages. These fast ships had the strength to survive ocean crossings while having a draft of as little as 50cm (20 inches), allowing navigation in very shallow water. Two different classes of Viking era ships were found: warships called langskip and merchant ships called knörr. Typically, a warship is narrower, longer, and shallower than a knörr, and is powered by oars, supplanted by sail. The warship is completely open and is built for speed and maneuverability. In contrast, a knörr is partially enclosed and powered primarily by sail. Cargo carrying capability is the primary concern. The single square rigged sail allowed sailing close to the wind. This ability, combined with the capability to row during adverse wind conditions, allowed Norse sailors to run in to shore, engage the enemy on land, and escape retribution at will. The shallow draft of Norse war ships had several advantages.[4]

The Norse could raid well inland by sailing far up rivers that were too shallow for typical sea-going vessels of the day. The Frankish kingdoms in present day France were shocked by Norse raids in unthinkable locations hundreds of kilometers (100+ miles) inland on rivers not thought to be navigable. "In general, the Norse raided only those locations to which they could sail. Overland marches were avoided. In addition, the shallow draft made for fast and easy disembarkation during a raid. When the ship was beached, a Viking could be certain that if he jumped out near the stem, the water would scarcely be over his knees. The crew could leave the ship and join the raid quickly and confidently."[5]

That knew the stride of giants, ferocious gods of brawn,

And there’s a lateened rover that billowed to the breeze,

There a ship that sailed from Tyre when the waves were tinged with fire

And the first skies of history were rosying to dawn.

A rover is a pirate ship or vessel. Lateened refers to the type of sails [see definition on p. 7 above.]

The Good St. Brandon knew it when he turned him to the West

When he left the world behind him as he ventured far away,

And his fearless keel went plowing the ocean’s sapphire crest

Till he won unto Hy-Brasil which no other mortal may.

St. Brendan of Clonfert (484-577) aka “the Navigator,” “the Voyager,” “the Bold.” (Wikipedia)

For the island is Hy-Brasil, the paradise of ships,

Where the dim ghost crafts lie anchored and at rest,

Where the sea wind never rages and the sea rain never drips,

There they dream away the days in the mystic, sapphire haze

About the isle of Hy-Brasil, far off amid the West.

Howard wrote of other ships in his poetry but none of those poems list so many. What a spectacle it would have been to see ships from so many different centuries anchored side by side around Hy-Brasil’s beautiful and ancient shores.

Part 1, Part 2

Works Cited:

[1] http://www.thepirateking.com/ships/ship_types.htm
[2] http://www.thepirateking.com/ships/ship_types.htm
[3] http://www.hurstwic.org/history/articles/manufacturing/text/norse_ships.htm
[4] http://www.hurstwic.org/history/articles/manufacturing/text/norse_ships.htm
[5] There are several references for this citation. Each one seems to be using the other in the same reference/information. The origin of this information is unknown. Here are the citations:

http://stormofthegods.boards.net/thread/9/summer-harvest-raids

https://norumbegavinland.wordpress.com/2013/03/26/2/comment-page-1/
http://www.hurstwic.org/history/articles/manufacturing/text/norse_ships.htm

The Ships of Hy-Brasil Part 2 by Barbara Barrett

[In his poem, the “Isle of Hy-Brasil,” REH brings to life the fabled isle that existed even when the pre-historical islands of Atlantis and Lemuria were still afloat in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. According to Wikipedia, the isle, also known as Brazil, Hy-Brazil, and several other variants, is steeped in Irish myth. It is a legendary phantom island cloaked in mist, except for one day each seven years when it becomes visible but still unreachable. Similar in myth to that of St. Brendan’s Island (var. Brandon) it is shown as being circular, often with a central strait or river running east-west across its diameter. Despite failure in the attempts to find Hy-Brasil/St. Brendan’s Island, it appeared regularly on maps lying southwest of Galway Bay from 1325 until 1865.]

And there’s a Roman galley with its seven banks of oars,

Iain Spence’s Historical Dictionary of Ancient Greek Warfare gives this definition of a galley with seven banks of oars:

Seven (hepteres) [septireme]. A large warship, developed from the six, probably by adding extra (standing) oarsmen at the lowest level. It had a clear advantage over smaller craft in heavy weather. Sevens (and larger ships) were probably equipped with towers, carried catapults and considerable numbers of troops and used firepower and boarding rather than ramming. The seven was a large ship and most navies possessed only a few, so they were often used as flagships (Historical Dictionary of Ancient Greek Warfare by Iain Spence.) [NOTE: the six (hexeres) was around 145 feet (45 meters) long. It probably had three rows of oars on each side, like a trireme or a five (penteres) but with the oars on all three of the levels on each side worked by two men.]

And there’s a golden barge-boat that knew the Caesar’s hand,

A barge-boat is any of various boats with roomy, usually flat-bottoms and used chiefly for the transport of goods on inland waterways or as luxurious passenger boats. Caesar’s would have been as well appointed as that of Cleopatra’s.[1]

And there’s a sombre pirate craft with shattered cabin doors,

Pirate Ship

The subject of pirate ships is more complex as there were many different types in use by buccaneers. Among the most popular were the Brigantine, the Caravel, the Carrack and the Galleon. Although the Brigantine, the Caravel and the Carrack do not appear REH’s poetry, they are very much part of the lore of the “somber pirate” craft mentioned by him in “Hy-Brasil.”

While the Brigantine was often the ship of choice for pirates, it was also very popular as both a merchant and naval ship. It could carry 10-16 guns and was rigged for speed, having two masts with both top gallant sails and royals rigged to each mast. World-wide it was often used by navies for scouting and reconnaissance duties. Many brigantines in the late 1800s carried sweeps for maneuvering in still weather. In 1814, the British Navy had 71 of the Brigantine’s in active service. Length: 110 feet; Beam: 28 feet; Depth: 16 feet; Crew: 110-120 men. [NOTE: By the first half of the 18th century the word brigantine had evolved to refer not to a ship type, but to a particular type of rigging: squared rigged on the foremast and fore and aft rigged on the mainmast.] [2]

According to the information on angelfire.com’s “Who Was Christopher Columbus,” for his journey, Columbus obtained three "caravels" or small ships, 50-100 feet long, with no sleeping quarters. They were named the Niña, the Pinta and the Santa Maria. However, Wikipedia states that the Santa Maria was a type of carrack (see below) and was Columbus’ flagship although he preferred the Niña because of its better ocean performance. What these caravels looked like exactly is unknown at this time…but it is thought the above images resembles them.

The caravel was also popular with pirates and was used from the 14th to the 17th centuries primarily as a cargo ship; the Mediterranean version was lateen rigged on two masts, while the Spanish and Portuguese versions were three masted with the first two masts square rigged and the mizzen lateen rigged. [NOTE: both the masts have lateen sails which are triangular in shape.]

The unusual design of the Carrack also made it a favorite of pirates.

Frigate was a name used for a variety of ships from small oared boats to three masted sailing ships. The name was formalized by the English in the late 17th century to mean a vessel smaller than a ship of the line, carrying 24-38 guns on a single deck with three fully rigged masts. Their speed made them better suited to convoy duty and hunting pirates. [3]



Part 1

Works Cited

[1] http://www.reshafim.org.il/ad/egypt/timelines/topics/riverboats.htm
[2] http://www.thepirateking.com/ships/ship_types.htm
[3] http://www.starsofthespiral.com/the-captains-of-pirate-ships

The Ships of Hy-Brasil Part 1 by Barbara Barrett

In his poem, the “Isle of Hy-Brasil,” REH brings to life the fabled isle that existed even when the pre-historical islands of Atlantis and Lemuria were still afloat in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. According to Wikipedia, the isle, also known as Brazil, Hy-Brazil, and several other variants, is steeped in Irish myth. It is a legendary phantom island cloaked in mist, except for one day each seven years when it becomes visible but still unreachable. Similar in myth to that of St. Brendan’s Island (var. Brandon) it is shown as being circular, often with a central strait or river running east-west across its diameter. Despite failure in the attempts to find Hy-Brasil/St. Brendan’s Island, it appeared regularly on maps lying southwest of Galway Bay from 1325 until 1865.

Howard’s “The Isle of Hy-Brasil” is more than a historical description of this island and its myth. It is essentially about the many different types of ships that are anchored along its shores as seen through Howard’s eyes.

To see how awesomely beautiful the shoreline of this ancient island would have appeared when lined with these ships, images of each ship type as well as a description have been added below.

There’s a far, lone island in the dim red West
Where the sea-waves are crimson with the red of burnished gold,
(Sapphire in the billows, gold upon the crest)
An island that is older than the continents are old. 

For when in dim Atlantis a thousand jeweled spires
Burned through the twilight in the ocean’s dusky smile,
And when mystic Lemuria glowed with myriad gemming fires
Strange ships went sailing to seek the wondrous isle. 

And when the land of Britain was a forest for the deer
And the mammoth roamed the mountains and the plains were veiled in snow, When the dawn had swept the ocean and the air was crystal clear
The ape-man looking sea-ward caught the distant topaz glow. 

When Drake went down to Darien and Cortez sailed the Main
And the wide blue Pacific lay like a summer dream,
From the gold-decked bridges of the galleons of Spain
Far upon the skyline they saw the island gleam.

"A galleon was a large, multi-decked sailing ship used primarily by the European nations from the 16th to the 18th centuries." [1] "The galleon was 100-150 feet long, 40-50 feet wide, carrying about 600 tons (although some were bigger)." [2] "Whether used for war or commerce, they were generally armed with a medium sized cannon. A lowering of the forecastle and elongation of the hull gave an unprecedented level of stability in the water, and reduced wind resistance at the front, leading to a faster, more maneuverable vessel. The galleon was powered entirely by sail, carried three to five masts, with a lateen sail on the last (usually third) mast. The Galleon ship was favored by pirates because it was sturdy in battle and able to carry large loads of supplies and loot.[3]

"It flashes in the Baltic, dimly glimpsed through driving snow,
And it lights the Indian Ocean when the waves are lying still,
It dreams along the sea-rim in the twilight’s golden glow,
And mariners have named it The Isle of Hy-Brasil."

"For sailing ships are anchored close, about that ancient isle,
Ships that roamed the oceans in the dim dawn days,
Coracles from Britain, triremes from the Nile,
Anchored round the harbors, mile on countless mile,
Ships and ships and shades of ships, fading in the haze."

A coracle is oval in shape and very similar to half a walnut shell, the structure was made of a framework of split and interwoven willow rods, tied with willow bark. The outer layer was originally an animal skin such as horse or bullock hide, with a thin layer of tar to make it fully water proof. Today, it is made of tarred calico or canvas, or simple fiberglass. The structure has a keel-less, flat bottom to evenly spread the weight of the boat and its load across the structure and to reduce the required depth of water — often to only a few inches, making it ideal for use on rivers.

"In its day, the trireme was a 'state of the art' fighting ship designed to cover long distances quickly under oar and sail and in battle to ram enemy ships with devastating effect."[4] It was a class of warship used by the ancient civilizations of the Mediterranean, especially the Phoenicians, ancient Greeks and Romans. It derives its name from its three rows of oars on each side, manned with one man per oar. As a ship it was fast and agile, and became the dominant warship in the Mediterranean from the seventh to the fourth centuries BC. Triremes played a vital role in the Persian Wars, the creation of the Athenian maritime empire, and its downfall in the Peloponnesian War.(Wikipedia)

Works Cited

[1] http://www.thepirateking.com/ships/ship_types.htm
[2] http://piratehold.com/pirate_ships.html
[3] http://www.thepirateking.com/ships/ship_types.htm
[4] http://www.thepirateking.com/ships/ship_types.htm

An Overview of Robert E. Howard's Poem: "The Ballad of King Geraint" By Barbara Barrett

The Roman Wall

“The Ballad of King Geraint” is an action filled tale of brave knights and feats of derring-do in the battle between King Geraint of Britain and the Saxon hordes who encroached on his kingdom. Many of the participants’ names are familiar to Howard fans.

The poem is twenty-nine pages—too long to reprint. Here are some excerpts as well as a Cast of Characters list:

King Geraint ruled the western land

From the Roman Wall to Channel’s sand;

The Saxons held the eastern coast

By high-beaked galley and spear-tipped host.

They reached their hands from the eastern shore

And flooded the land with fire and gore.

King Geraint marched on the Watling Road,

Along the Ouse his banners showed.

Few his warriors but fierce his lords,

Dipped and reddened their worn swords.

He had scoured the land a-near and far,

He had sold his crown for the thews of war.

Knight and warrior and man-at-arms,

Yeoman drawn from the ravished farms,

Each was armed to suit his need,

Each one rode on a goodly steed.

The hoof-beat thunder sounded far—

So Geraint rode to his last red war.

List of Characters

The poem contains many similar names. In order to follow and understand the battle action, here is a list of which characters fought on what side and in parenthesis who was killed by whom.

On the side of Britain is King Geraint (unknown slayer) with ten knights and 1,000 men.

Angus, a chief of the northern Scot (dies from wounds after the Saxon foot soldiers flee in the third encounter)

Cadallon, the king of Wales (killed by Lodbrog in the third encounter)

Conal, close friend of King Geraint (killed by Oswald in the second encounter)

Conmac flower of knighthood (killed by Eadward in the final battle with King Caewlin) 

Cormac of Cornwall called the Hawk (killed when overwhelmed by the hordes of Saxon foot soldiers in the third encounter)

Donal, the chieftain of Strathclyde (Donal and Hakon the jarl kill each other in the first encounter)

Dulborn, a Pict (Dulborn and Tostig the Raven kill each other in the final battle with King Caewlin)

Nial, brother to Ulster’s king (unknown slayer)

Turlogh of Connacht (sole survivor of Geraint’s men)

Uther, king of Humber, whose kingdom was destroyed by Anlaf (killed by Edric and Athelstane in the third encounter)

Ceawlin, king of the Saxons (survives) with 12,000 warriors. His army was divided into five groups with four commanders and himself. His four commanders are listed in the order they battle King Geraint and his knights.

1. The first encounter, led by Prince Osric, a Jut, ruler from Ouse to Humber, commanding 1000 horsemen. (killed by King Geraint) 

Athelney. berserker (killed by Angus the Scot)

Athelred, cousin to the king, (killed by Donal)

Halfgar, Frisian sea-king (killed by Conal who receives a mortal wound)

Oswick who ravaged London town (killed by King Cadallon of Wales)

Oswy the Jut (killed by Uther)

Otho the thane of the Black Boar’s Tooth (killed by Cormac)

Norseman Rane, (killed by Nial)

Rognor of the golden ring. (killed by Conmac)

Viking Swane. (killed by Turlogh)

Tostig the Ogre, berserker (killed by Dulborn the Pict)

2. The second encounter, led by Oswald, lord of the Sussex plain commanding 1000 horsemen. (killed by King Geraint after Oswald kills Conal)

Aella ruler from Tweed to Tyne (killed by Nial)

Anlaf the Angle who killed Uther’s family and ravaged his kingdom (killed by Uther who cuts off his enemy’s head and displays it)

Athelfrith (killed by Angus)

Godric (killed by Cadallon)

Gulla (killed by Turlogh)

Gurth (killed by Dulborn)

Hakon the jarl (killed by Donal in a charge that kills them both)

Jan the Lith (killed by Angus)

Wulfhere, chieftain of Horsa’s line (killed by Conmac)

Wutholwine (killed by Cormac)

3. The third encounter was led by both Athelstane, a Wessex ealdorman (killed by King Geraint) and Edric of Orkney Isles, a Dane (killed by Nial); they were co-commanders of the 8,000 foot soldiers.

4. The final battle was led by King Ceawlin himself with 2000 horsemen. Under his immediate command were:

Dead Man’s Hate by Robert E. Howard

They hanged John Farrel in the dawn amid the marketplace;
At dusk came Adam Brand to him and spat upon his face.
"Ho neighbors all," spake Adam Brand, "see ye John Farrel's fate! 
"Tis proven here a hempen noose is stronger than man's hate!

For heard ye not John Farrel's vow to be avenged upon me
Come life or death? See how he hangs high on the gallows tree!"
Yet never a word the people spoke, in fear and wild surprise-
For the grisly corpse raised up its head and stared with sightless eyes,

And with strange motions, slow and stiff, pointed at Adam Brand
And clambered down the gibbet tree, the noose within its hand.
With gaping mouth stood Adam Brand like a statue carved of stone,
Till the dead man laid a clammy hand hard on his shoulder bone.

Then Adam shrieked like a soul in hell; the red blood left his face
And he reeled away in a drunken run through the screaming market place;
And close behind, the dead man came with a face like a mummy's mask,
And the dead joints cracked and the stiff legs creaked with their unwonted task.

Men fled before the flying twain or shrank with bated breath,
And they saw on the face of Adam Brand the seal set there by death.
He reeled on buckling legs that failed, yet on and on he fled;
So through the shuddering market-place, the dying fled the dead.

At the riverside fell Adam Brand with a scream that rent the skies;
Across him fell John Farrel's corpse, nor ever the twain did rise.
There was no wound on Adam Brand but his brow was cold and damp,
For the fear of death had blown out his life as a witch blows out a lamp.

His lips were writhed in a horrid grin like a fiend's on Satan's coals,
And the men that looked on his face that day, his stare still haunts their souls.
Such was the fate of Adam Brand, a strange, unearthly fate;
For stronger than death or hempen noose are the fires of a dead man's hate.

[Happy Halloween All]

The Game's Afoot! By Barbara Barrett

The Collected Letters of REH

In a letter to Clyde Smith (The Collected Letters of Robert E Howard, August 28, 1925), Robert E. Howard (REH) included one of his tongue-in-cheek poems,

Roses laughed in her pretty hair,

Shading her eyes from the sun’s rude stare

A little hand was prettily raised,

Nor ever enough might it be praised.

Five little fingers, soft and white,

A dimple, a sheer kiss of delight.

But, miss, a hand that I held in mine,

Some nights ago was e’en more fine.

A hand that I must grant more praise,

Three aces and a pair of treys.

But poker wasn’t the only game in town for REH and his friends.  Tucked away in the last two pages of REH’s semi-autobiographical book, Post Oaks and Sand Roughs (PO&SR) is a poem that pays tribute to another card game:

                                      The Seven-Up Ballad

Carl Macon was a kollege kid of far and wide renown,

Also a champ at seven-up and the wildest sot in town.

And in a way there came a day of high and lofty fame

For title of the eating house was the prize for a game.

Carl gave a yell and dealt the cards unto the other chumps

And they all whooped with joyous glee when diamonds turned up trumps.

“High, jack and game is here, begad!” Pink bellered with a scowl;

“You lie, you sot! You have it not!” Carl answered with a yowl.

Pink led the ace of trumps full soon, and “There,” said he, “is high!”

Carl followed suit, it was a trey, with a tough light in his eye.

Then Pink led out the queen of trumps and gave an ugly frown;

Carl snickered with unholy glee and laid a four spot down.

Pink swore full long and loud and rough and led the deuce of clubs;

Carl caught it with a king and said, “You’re all a lot of dubs.”

He led an ace and caught a king, “Here’s a game for me, egad!”

For many an ace and many a face the wicked scoundrel had.

And then an argument arose and loud was their abuse

And Pink got into lead again with a nine upon a deuce.

Then Pink laid down the diamond king and feinted with his right,

“Egad, that jack of yours will go, if it takes the rest of the night.”

Carl drank four pints of beer or so and at his hand he glanced —

He flung his cards at Stupid’s head and in his rage he danced

Then with a curse that would, egad, clean freeze a camel’s humps,

Beside the king that Pink had led he put the jack of trumps.

“Hold on! Begad!” somebody said, “That king’s been led, by damn!”

“Too late, too late!” the sot replied, “It is, it was, it am!”

Then long and loud the battle raged until the evening meal,

They punched each other in the nose and bit each other’s heel.

The battle lasted all that night; at last the field was clear,

And Pink had high and jack and game and Carl was drunk on beer.

The Mirror of E’ch-Pi-El: Robert E. Howard in the Letters of H. P. Lovecraft (Part 3) by Bobby Derie

HPL

If Lovecraft balanced praise and criticism for Howard’s stories in his letters, and claimed a certain formulaic quality or a preference for adventure over weird atmosphere, he also had considerable praise for Howard’s characters, particularly the King Kull stories which “probably forms a weird peak” (SL5.278); indeed, later on he would claim they constituted “REH’s best weird tales.” (LRBO 360) At times, Lovecraft would discuss Howard’s characters at some length, showing how the knowledge of Howard’s life and interests from his letters influenced Lovecraft’s interpretation of his fiction:

About good old Two-Gun Bob’s characters—odd as it may sound, I doubt whether Conan was, in spirit & intent, a typical pulp hero. He resembled such externally, but actually I fancy he was a type or projection of the sort of lawless rover REH himself longed to be. There was more of sincere & ardent wish-fulfillment than of conventional copying in the mighty Cimmerian—& that is why he always seemed to me more alive than the jointed marionettes of Hamilton & all the other hacks. Solomon Kane reflected another side of Two-Gun—the brooding ethical sense which made him furious over injustices & oppressions. How he used to storm over the maltreatment of prisoners by policemen, the high-handed outrages of absentee oil corporations in Texas, & latterly the absorption of Abyssinia by Italy! But after all, the human characters are the least part of weird fiction. REH had a strange atmospheric power which manifested itself in more subtleties of description than even he himself realized, & which leaves in the reader’s mind a menacing, mist-wreathed image of Cyclopean walls in the jungle, smothered in unwholesome vines, & hiding hellish secrets older than mankind. (LHK 25)

Study This, Not That!: A Suggested Bibliography for REH Studies, Part Two

REH Primary Works Continued . . .

The Boxing Stories . . .

Study This . . .

Back in 2005 Bison Books released a collection of Howard's boxing stories in a volume titled Boxing Stories edited by Chris Gruber. This was part of a series—by the same publishing company, Bison Books—called The Works Robert E. Howard. This series included two western volumes (which we'll look at shortly), an adventure tales volume and a collection of weird/horror stories called The Black Stranger and Other American Tales. I bought this boxing volume a year after it was released. This volume was my introduction to Howard's boxing stories. Until recently this was the only volume I was aware existed that contained a collection of Howard's boxing stories. It was eye-opening for me. In fact, I never knew Howard wrote boxing stories until this volume. The book has a wonderful introduction by REH scholar Chris Gruber. It gives the reader a solid background about Howard's boxing stories and their characters. Unfortunately, this volume is currently out of print. You can still find a copy but they are not cheap. But all is not lost because the Robert E. Howard Foundation is in the process of publishing the definitive collection of Howard's boxing stories. Chris Gruber joined with REH scholars Mark Finn and Patrice Louinet to compile a massive 4 volume set, the first two volumes of which are already in print and for sale at the Foundations website. This new four volume set is aptly titled Fists of Iron and each volume is designated by a nice pun—"Round 1, Round 2," etc.  Just as a boastful aside, I recently won the first volume of Fists of Iron and the 2014 REH Days auction banquet. It contains a customized special drawing on the inside first blank page by the cover artist Thomas Gianni, and is signed on the numbered titled page by Chris Gruber, Mark Finn & Patrice Louinet. This first volume contains an introduction by Chris Gruber, a couple of hundred pages of boxing stories and four appendices. The four appendices contain early tales, variants and fragments, articles, several special "odds and ends," and part one of an essay by Patrice Louinet titled The Lord of The Ring. And keep in mind this is merely volume one. If you really want to research Howard and his works, and I mean be a well rounded reader and researcher of Howard and his works, then you must read his boxing stories. And now is the best time to begin doing that with the advent of this new four volume set.

The Western Stories . . .

Another necessary set of primary works to read for a well balanced REH diet is his western stories. In the same Bison Books series mentioned above (The Works of Robert E. Howard) there are two volumes devoted to Howard's western stories: The Riot of Bucksnort and Other Western Tales edited and with an introduction by David Gentzel and The End of the Trail: Western Stories edited and with an introduction by Rusty Burke. The former title contains REH's humorous westerns, the later his weird/serious westerns. I discovered The End of the Trail: Western Stories first. Although I had run into a smaller European collection of REH's western tales in the early to mid 90s at a second hand bookstore, it was really Rusty Burke's edited Bison Books volume that turned me on to REH's western stories. More importantly was Burke's introduction. That intro is a kind of "play-by-play" commentary about each story and why it was selected for the Bison volume. I was almost more impressed with this introduction than I was the stories themselves. I'm, of course, being a bit hyperbolic, but am also attempting to stress just how well done the intro to this volume actually is. Moreover, this was my first encounter with one of Robert E. Howard's greatest works of fiction—The Vultures of Wahpeton. I can count on both hands stories by REH that without a doubt deserve a home in high school and college textbooks, Vultures of Wahpeton is one of those. In fact, some of my favorite stories by REH are his westerns. But, this is not an article to point out favorites. Additionally, The Riot at Bucksnort and Other Western Tales contains one of Howard's most endearing characters—Breckenridge Elkins (and Cap 'n Kidd, of course). The above two Bison books are no longer in print. Although, the REH House & Museum in Cross Plains, TX still has copies of The Riot at Bucksnort and Other Western Tales at a reasonable price. Along with the two volumes above is a volume published by the REH Foundation titled Robert E. Howard's Western Tales. This volume has an introduction by western writer James Reasoner. His intro is excellent for anyone researching REH's westerns. Additionally, this volume contains regular westerns, weird westerns, essays, miscellanea, juvenilia, and notes about the texts. Reading Howard's westerns is as important as reading his heroic fantasy, his boxing tales, his adventure stories, horror stories, you get the idea. These stories are important and a well rounded researcher should read them.

Robert E. Howard's Letters/Correspondence . . .

One of the easiest ways to get to know someone is simply read their mail. Reading the correspondence of famous people is a great way to research their lives, their thoughts, their ideas, etc. Fortunately for us today, the correspondence of Robert E. Howard is easily accessible. That was not always the case. Just a mere two or three decades ago, you had to track down REH's letters, or contact Glenn Lord who had done a tremendous amount of footwork to collect them. Today there are several volumes you can buy that contain these letters. There is a three volume set (the first volume is no longer in print/sold out) that the Robert E. Howard Foundation sells titled The Collected Letters of Robert E. Howard (Volume One: 1923-1929; Volume Two: 1930-1932; Volume Three: 1933-1936). These volumes are edited by Rob Roehm and have introductions by Rusty Burke. If you are going to do any type of serious research on the life of Robert E. Howard then these letters are an absolute necessity. In fact, most professional literary research that is done outside the realm of textual analysis is often times focused on the available correspondence of the person being researched due to historical and personal insights. The second set of books contain letters between Robert E. Howard and H.P. Love Craft. These volumes are titled A Means to Freedom: The Letters of H.P. Lovecraft and Robert E. Howard (Volume One 1930-1932; Volume two 1933-1936). These volumes are edited by S.T. Joshi, David Schultz and Rusty Burke. Now, while REH's letters to H.P. Lovecraft are in the three volume Collected Letters, H.P. Lovecraft's responses are not. This is what makes the two volume set doubly important—you get both sides of the correspondence. However, what makes the three volume Collected Letters so crucial is the fact that it contains letters to all of REH's friends, other writers, publishers, etc. And this is why I own both sets.


Robert E. Howard's Poetry . . .

The last of the primary material happens to be some of the hardest material to find, especially since the largest volume ever printed, an 800 plus page volume, titled The Collected Poetry of Robert E. Howard, is no longer in print. And, you have a better chance of winning the lottery than finding a copy of it—believe me I've been looking for that single volume on every available internet avenue for about 6 years now. But, here's some good news! At this past REH Days in Cross Plains, Texas, the REH Foundation announced that a new and updated volume of that work will be released in the near future. In the mean time there are several poetry volumes currently available to any reader/researcher to peruse. The first can be obtained at the Robert E. House and Museum. It is titled A Word from the Outer Dark by Robert E. Howard (edited by Paul Herman). It contains a brief introduction about Howard being a poet and his poetry and 100 poems. Another volume that is currently available at the REH Foundation website is titled A Rhyme of Salem Town and Other Poems. This volume also has a brief introduction by Paul Herman and contains a little more than 100 poems. Robert E. Howard scholar Professor Frank Coffman also has an edited version of Howard's poetry titled Robert E. Howard: Selected Poems. This volume is a whopping 567 pages, has just over 700 poems, and three indexes to easily help you hunt down specific poems (by titled and first lines). But the unique thing about this volume over any other is the fact that Frank Coffman provides commentary, chapter introductions, and Coffman happens to be a first rate scholar of Howard's poetry. One of the main reasons I would certainly recommend Howard's poetry in any given research within REH studies is because they are so rich with history, humor, info about Texas, the historical West, love, self-reflective ideas/thoughts, heroism, and even horror and humor. Howard wrote sonnets, ballads, free verse, rhyme scheme, along with other various forms. So his poetry is a must for any serious researcher.

(More to Come . . .)

Robert E. Howard the Poet

Ever since my college education began back in 1984, I've loved poetry. Unfortunately, having been educated in Texas, poetry was not elevated to the same status as football. In fact, poetry was not elevated at all. I loved it nonetheless. I was fortunate to have a high school English teacher who encouraged my love for poetry. I even tried my hand at a few verses and was published in the 1985 American Anthology of Poetry (my sophomore year in college). Even so, I never gained a strong knack for writing poetry, but I spent my undergrad years collecting it, reading it, and researching and writing about various poets and their works.


Back then, I knew that Robert E. Howard had written some poetry. A few poems were included in various volumes of Conan stories I owned, or other collections of Howard's works. However, I never knew that Howard had written so many poems until a few years ago when I stumbled on the volume pictured below.

I attempted to purchase this volume from The Robert E. Howard Foundation blog site, but low and behold, it was sold out! Ugh! I was so upset I nearly cried. Not really, but I did vigorously pace my office trying to figure out how I could obtain a copy. To this day, I've yet to get my hands on one. Here's a HUGE "hint, hint" to the REH Foundation to run more pressings of this work! I did, however, manage to get my hands on this volume:

And, I'm glad I did. While the above volume is not as exhaustive as the Collected Poetry volume, it still contains some great poems. It is a shame that the general public is more familiar with Howard's character Conan than they are with the fact that he penned hundreds upon hundreds of poems. I've read Howard's prose many times and I think it is intense, vivid, and has a high level of charged imagination. Yet, at times his poems have a greater amount of intensity than his prose. Howard, often times, is much more emotive in his poetry than his prose. He can cut to the heart of deep seeded issues in a matter of words rather than lines.


Recently, Howard's poems have grabbed the attention of several Texas Poet Laureates: Larry D. Thomas and Alan Birkelbach. Both men have attended REH Days in Cross Plains, Texas in the past. Alan Birkelbach is serving as the editor of a forthcoming volume titled Dark Inspiration: Selected Poetry of Robert E. Howard. I've have heard rumors that it is slated to be published, hopefully, by TCU Press. 


For many, poetry is an acquired taste. For me it's like a fine wine that lingers on my tongue and makes me giddy in large amounts. I have not run into too many people who have a passion for it, which is a shame because poetry speaks volumes in brief words/sentences, and in a way that is, well, poetic. Having spent the last 28 years reading poets and their works, I think I can safely say that Robert E. Howard is one of the most underrated poets in literary history. This is due to the fact that he is unknown as a poet. That needs to change.


I, for one, am glad to see that scholars are now taking notice of Howard's poetry. I'll be the first in line to purchase Dark Inspiration. Moreover, Howard's poetry needs to be heartily cast into the literary arena for all to see it's true value and worth. There is so much brilliance in it. If you ever have a free afternoon, spend it reading some of Howard's poetry. You'll be glad you did.


Below is a video posted at YouTube by Ben Friberg (warriorphotog36) from the 2009 REH Days of Texas Poet Laureate, Larry D. Thomas, discussing and reading Robert E. Howard's poetry. This is an excellent video, enjoy.