The New Gods Lead

1932 Wright, S[ydney] Fowler (1874-1965). The New Gods Lead. London: Jarrolds. Enlarged as The Throne of Saturn. Sauk City, IA: Arkham House, 1949, with the addition of two stories, “The Temperature of Gehenna Sue”, originally published in The Witchfinder (London: Books of To-Day, [1946]), 135-48; and rpt. in S. Fowler Wright’s Short Stories (Ludlow, Eng.: FWB, 1996), 170-79; and “Original Sin” [see 1938 Wright], which was written in 1936 and originally published in The Witchfinder (London: Books of To-Day, [1946]), 166-76, rpt. in Avon Fantasy Reader, no. 13 (1950): 68-73; and in S. Fowler Wright’s Short Stories (Ludlow, Eng.: FWB, 1996), 180-87. Parts were originally published as “Justice.” Nash’s Pall Mall Magazine 86.451 (December 1930): 26-29, 102, 104; rpt. in S. Fowler Wright’s Short Stories (Ludlow, Eng.: FWB, 1996), 24-36; “P.N. 40--and Love.” Britannia and Eve 1.4 (August 1929): 45-48, 160-163; rpt. in S. Fowler Wright’s Short Stories (Ludlow, Eng.: FWB, 1996), 96-120 [also pub. as “Love in the Year 93 E.E.” Red Book (1929): 66-69, 116, 119, 122, 124-25; rpt. in Fantasy Book 1.4 (May 1982): 73-80]; “The Rat.” Weird Tales 13.3 (March 1929): 337-50; rpt. as “Where the Rat Bites.” Fantasy: A Magazine of Thrilling Science-Fiction (UK), no. 3 (1939): 33-44; and under the original title in S. Fowler Wright’s Short Stories (Ludlow, Eng.: FWB, 1996), 133-52; and “Automata” Weird Tales 14.3 (September 1929): 337-44; rpt. Avon Fantasy Reader, no. 2 (1947): 97-107; in S. Fowler Wright’s Short Stories (Ludlow, Eng.: FWB, 1996), 121-32; and in Menace of the Machine: The Rise of AI in Classic Science Fiction. Ed. Mike [Michael Raymond Donald] Ashley (London: British Library, 2019), 117-132, with an editor’s note on 115-16. In The New Gods Lead, the Table of Contents is divided into “Where the New Gods Lead” and “Also”. The first group includes “Justice,” “This Night,” “Brain,” “Appeal,” “Proof”; “P.N. 40,” and “Automata.” The second group includes “The Rat,” “Rule,” and “Choice”. There is no such division in The Throne of Saturn. “This Night” is rpt. in S. Fowler Wright’s Short Stories (Ludlow, Eng.: FWB, 1996), 37-49; “Brain” is rpt. in S. Fowler Wright’s Short Stories (Ludlow, Eng.: FWB, 1996), 50-74; “Appeal” is rpt. in S. Fowler Wright’s Short Stories (Ludlow, Eng.: FWB, 1996), 75-85; “Proof” is rpt. in Magazine of Horror 3.2 (14) (Winter 1966/67): 29-39; and in S. Fowler Wright’s Short Stories (Ludlow, Eng.: FWB, 1996), 86-95’ “Rule” is rpt. in S. Fowler Wright’s Short Stories (Ludlow, Eng.: FWB, 1996), 153-64; and “Choice”, which was originally published in Eve 36.473 (1929) is rpt. in S. Fowler Wright’s Short Stories (Ludlow, Eng.: FWB, 1996), 165-69. MoU-St, NLS, O, PSt

A collection of stories, mostly linked by a concern with science, and eugenics in particular, from a dystopian point of view. “Justice” is concerned with a relaxation of penalties for killing old people in automobile accidents. “This Night” and “P.N. 40” are concerned with the manipulation of the laws so that rich, old men could have access to the most beautiful, young women. “Brain” describes a scientists’ government that eliminates democracy. “Proof” is concerned with the elimination of the unfit, and the problems that develop. “Original Sin” is set in a future eutopia where disease has been eliminated and all children are healthy. A decision is made that all children will be born within a five-year period every twenty-five years, which works very well. But a Doctrine of Futility spreads, and it is decided to eliminate the entire human race. The story is told by the last male alive. The author used Fowler Wright as his surname, and some of his descendants use Fowler-Wright, but all libraries use Wright.