The Ghoulish Dr. Fu-Manchu-Evil Incarnate

"In the high-backed chair sat Dr. Fu-Manchu, wearing a green robe upon which was embroidered a design, the subject of which at first glance was not perceptible, but which presently I made out to be a huge white peacock. He wore a little cap perched upon the dome of his amazing skull, and with one clawish hand resting upon the ebony of the table, he sat slightly turned toward me, his emotionless face a mask of incredible evil. In spite of, or because of, the high intellect written upon it, the face of Dr. Fu-Manchu was more utterly repellent than any I have ever known, and the green eyes, eyes green as those of a cat in the darkness, which sometimes burned like witch lamps, and sometimes were horribly filmed like nothing human or imaginable, might have mirrored not a soul, but an emanation of hell, incarnate in this gaunt, high-shouldered body.

Always underlying the deliberate calm of the speaker, sometimes showing itself in an unusually deep guttural, sometimes in an unusually serpentine sibilance, lurked the frenzy of hatred which in the past had revealed itself occasionally in wild outbursts.

I glanced toward Fu-Manchu. He was watching Nayland Smith, and revealing his irregular yellow teeth—the teeth of an opium smoker—in the awful mirthless smile which I knew.

'God!" whispered Smith—"the Six Gates!'

'The knowledge of my beautiful country serves you well," replied Fu-Manchu gently.'"

Chapter 28, The Return of Dr. FU-Manchu, Sax Rohmer

Descent Journeys in the Dark – Barghest

The miniature stands 30mm tall and is 45mm long and is made of a hard plastic; polyethylene? The Barghest, otherwise known as “yeth-hounds," "black dogs “or” barghests" are monsters found in the Descent: Journeys in the Dark (Second Edition) base game. Barghests are feared throughout Terrinoth; once the barghest has the scent of their prey, they don't stop hunting until it is dead or they are killed.

The Curious Footnotes of Philip Jose Farmer

The Official Philip José Farmer Home Page

Although Philip Jose Farmer used many footnotes in his The Other Log of Philieas Fogg I have decided to ferret a few of these out and see where they end up. Are they fictitious or will they have some landing place? Once I ascertain whether they have some validity the next question: have they been manufactured for this novel as I suspect of some of resource materials or are they genuine articles?

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³¹ A Definitive Biography of Lord Greystake
³² The Mask of Fu-Manchu, Shan Greville
    Pretty Sinister Books
³⁴Wold Cottage Website (broken link)
⁴¹ Myths for the Modern Age, Philip Jose Farmer (out of print)
⁴²A Kick in the Side, Christopher Paul Carey; (out of print)
   Is He in Hell, Win Scott; (podcast)
   Kwasin and the Bear God, Philip Jose Farmer & Paul Carey (still available)
   Interesting rabbit trail; maps of Khokara
   The Worlds of Philip Jose Farmer, volumes 1 & 2 (out of print?);
   Of Dust and Soul, Michael Croteau; Croteau is listed here as what I presumed to be the author however, Croteau is listed as the editor. (this is a foot note for the footnote numbered 42)
⁴⁶“The Conundrums of Kichaha”, Farmerphile: The Magazine of P. J. Farmer, #7
(a couple issues are still available, but not issue #7 )
⁴⁷“The Stars are but Reflections”, The Wold Newton Universe: A Secret History, Denis E. Powers; This is a reference page I was led to: Articles Alphabetical by Author

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It seems, for the most part, these footnotes are to other resources that this story finds itself interwoven into. The exercise spawned more questions than answers; however, the endeavor did reveal additional bits of Famer lore and other interesting Farmer resources. See, for instance: Aliens Among Us!, The Thoan

...

Project Gutenberg offers three of Farmers stories as electronic texts in various formats. The three texts include Farmer’s The Green Odyssey and Rastignac the Devil, both short novels and Farmers They Twinkled Like Jewels a short story.

The Coming Horror and the Wrath of Heaven

"Coming as they did, horror and the wrath of heaven together, suddenly, crashingly, black and angry after the fairness of the day, these happenings and their setting must have terrorized the stoutest heart; but somehow I seemed detached, as I have said, and set apart from the whirl of events; a spectator. Even when a vague yellow light crept across the room from the direction of the door, and flickered unsteadily on the bed, I remained unmoved to a certain degree, although passively alive to the significance of the incident. I realized that the ultimate issue was at hand, but either because I was emotionally exhausted, or from some other cause, the pending climax failed to disturb me."

Chapter 23, The Return of Dr. FU-Manchu, Sax Rohmer

Another Kraken Rule

Image of the Kraken from Wikipedia Commons

This Kraken rule comes from Precis Intermedia’s: S & S Monsters. “An assortment of monsters for pulp-fantasy games.”

“The Kraken has a lamprey-like mouth and 4 tentacles which it uses to handle its prey. These tentacles are 5 yards long apiece, and can be used for a special ‘grapple’ attacks.” Although this takes one combat action each tentacle can attack a separate target. That is four targets for the price of one, if I am interpreting the rule correctly.

	Mind	Reflexes	Move	Resist	Damage	Size
Kraken	14	14	10 yards/sec.	12	17(bite)	Huge

Descent Journeys in The Dark - Zombie

This zombie stands approximately 33mm, is cast in a hard plastic and acts that part of either a master or a minion in the Descent Journeys in The Dark board game. The zombies of this game have three abilities: shambling, grabbing, and spreading disease. (“If this attack deals at least 1 Heart (after the defense roll), the target is diseased.”)

D&D Castle Ravenloft- Undead Zombie

This hard plastic zombie miniature stands approximately 30mm tall and is one of the many miniatures included in Wizards of the Coast, Dungeons & Dragons, Castle Ravenloft, board game.

This is one ghoulish looking character: “If the zombie is within 1 tile of a Hero, it moves adjacent to the closest Hero and attacks that Hero with a rotting fist.”

Alchemy at the Glastonbury Abbey

"Your practical mind naturally seeks a practical explanation," smiled Van Roon, "but I myself have other theories. Then in addition to the charms of Sedgemoor—haunted Sedgemoor—on a fine day it is quite possible to see the ruins of Glastonbury Abbey from here; and Glastonbury Abbey, as you may know, is closely bound up with the history of alchemy. It was in the ruins of Glastonbury Abbey that the adept Kelly, companion of Dr. Dee, discovered, in the reign of Elizabeth, the famous caskets of St. Dunstan, containing the two tinctures..."

So he ran on, enumerating the odd charms of his residence, charms which for my part I did not find appealing.

With my heart thumping furiously in my breast, I bent over him; and for the second time since our coming to Cragmire Tower, my thoughts flew to "The Fenman:"

There are shades in the fen; ghosts of women and men
Who have sinned and have died, but are living again.
O'er the waters they tread, with their lanterns of dread,
And they peer in the pools—in the pools of the dead...

Chapter 22, The Return of Dr. FU-Manchu, Sax Rohmer

Highway Miniatures 1940 Ford Standard Sedan

Here is another Highway Miniatures polystyrene model vehicle in 1/87 scale. There are two sprues with a set of delicate parts that include a clear window insert and a detailed engine. Including an engine indicates that the model can be modeled with the hood up or closed. I will be modeling this model with its hood up and with someone peering in to see what the problem might be. “FORD-fix-or-repair-daily”.

Greg’s Garage’s 1942 Nash in 1/87 Scale

This 1/87 scale model of depicts a Nash 42 Ambassador Eight. Greg’s Garage, at one time, cast a verity 1/87 scale vehicles in a clear dark clear resin. These casts have crisp lines and are full of detail, which will take a fine brush and a very steady hand to paint.

Disembodied Spirits

"This is a ghost hunter's paradise. The tower itself is of unknown origin, though probably Phoenician, and the house traditionally sheltered Dr. Macleod, the necromancer, after his flight from the persecution of James of Scotland. Then, to add to its interest, it borders on Sedgemoor, the scene of the bloody battle during the Monmouth rising, whereat a thousand were slain on the field. It is a local legend that the unhappy Duke and his staff may be seen, on stormy nights, crossing the path which skirts the mire, after which this building is named, with flaming torches held aloft."

Chapter 22, The Return of Dr. FU-Manchu, Sax Rohmer

My 1000th Post-Shadow of the Wolf

“Communiqué authorized by Mr., Duff Cooper, British Minister of Information, and issued from 10 Downing Street on the night of May 12-13, 1941:

‘Rudolf Hess, the Deputy Fuhrer of Germany and Party Leader of the National Socialist Party, has landed in Scotland in the following circumstances.

On the night of Saturday the 10th inst., a Messerschmitt 110 was reported by one of our patrols to have crossed the coast of Scotland and to flying in the direction of Glasgow.

Since a Me. 110 would not have to fuel to return the Germany this report was first disbelieved.

However, later on, and Me. 110 crashed near Glasgow, with its guns removed. Shortly afterward, a German officer who had bailed out was found with his parachute in the neighborhood suffering from a broken ankle.

He was taken to hospital, where he at first gave his name as Horn, but later declared that he was Rudolf Hess.’ ”

Shadow of the Wolf, James Barwick

When Rudolf Hess hit the ground after bailing out of the Me. 110 he broke his ankle and he gave Captain Horn his locked attaché case with orders to deliver the contents to a General Walker, an American army officer.

The contents were never delivered to the general, but instead landed in the lap of Franklin Roosevelt. Its contents, at first, a secret to Captain Horn were to bring an end to the war and revealed Germany’s plan to attack Russian and Japans plans to attack Pearl Harbor.

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I remember making my first post back in February of 2013, who would have thought I would be making my 1000th post almost two and half years later on this day. It is hard for me to imagine that I have actually made that many posts.

I must thank my fellow bloggers for giving me the inspiration to carry on. Special thanks go out to Hugh Walter and his Small Scale World. Hugh is always making posts on his latest extraordinary finds of just about everything plastic. And I mean just about everything that is small, plastic and irresistible.

My Late Summer and Early Fall Reading List

My tablets power cord's cable parted at the adapter end and I haven't been able to read off my pad for a good week or so. Instead I was forced to pick a couple unread books off my book shelf. See the last two titles below for my choices.

• Danger! And other Stories, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
• Works of Edgar Allan Poe, Volume 2
• Sea Stories
• Over the Rocky Mountains to Alaska, Charles Warren Stoddard
• The Green Mouse, Robert W. Chambers
• Bat Wing, Sax Rohmer
• Green Eyes of Bast, Sax Rohmer
• The Riddle of the Sands, Robert Erskine Childers
• The Young Fur Traders, R M Ballantyne
• Shadow of the Wolf, James Barwick (paper back-"hard copy")
  I found this paper back coy at a book sale and it wasn't in very good shape. I typically do not purchase books unless there in very good condition, however, after reading the forward and the first few pages of this WWII alternative history novel, I was sold. It was one of those books that I had a hard time putting down.
• Life on the Mississippi, Mark Twain (hard copy)
• The Green Odyssey, Philip Jose Farmer
• Rastignac the Devil, Philip Jose Farmer
• They Twinkled Like Jewels , Philip Jose Farmer

Post 999

Chapter 21 Cragmire Tower

I hope you are not tiring of my Fu-Manchu quotes for I do have a few more to publish from this volume, The Return of Dr. Fu-Manchu. Welcome to September. This is my 998th post.

"But not a sound broke the stillness save a remote murmuring, until a solitary sea gull rose in the air and circled directly over the tower, uttering its mournful and unmusical cry. Automatically to my mind sprang the lines of the poem:

Far from all brother-men, in the weird of the fen,
With God's creatures I bide, 'mid the birds that I ken;
Where the winds ever dree, where the hymn of the sea
Brings a message of peace from the ocean to me. "

"The Fenman", Sax Rohmer