Introduction
This untitled synopsis is an early textual state of the story later published as The Grisly Horror. It preserves the core Bristol McGrath plot in a more preliminary form, with differences in character details, motivations and structure from the finished story.
Otis Adelbert Kline received the story on July 23, 1934. The finished story sold for $110; after the Kline Agency’s commission, Howard received $99, and it appeared in Weird Tales in February 1935.
Summary spoilers
Bristol McGrath, a seasoned adventurer, receives a mysterious letter from Richard Bellville, his former friend and bitter rival, pleading for help and cryptically referencing Constance Brand, the woman both men had once loved before her mysterious disappearance three years earlier. McGrath travels to the isolated Bellville estate, deep in the Southern wilderness, only to find Ahmed, Bellville’s Arab servant, brutally tortured and left hanging from a tree. Despite his mutilated state, Ahmed warns McGrath of danger by tracing names in the dirt before succumbing to his injuries.
Sensing an ambush on the main road, McGrath takes an old hidden path through the woods and arrives at the decaying Bellville mansion. There, he witnesses Bellville being tortured by a monstrous, sadistic Negro, before leaping into action and killing the assailant. Bellville, mortally wounded, confesses that he kidnapped Constance three years prior and held her prisoner in his mansion, attempting to force her into marriage. However, his control over the local Black population—descendants of his family’s former slaves—crumbled with the arrival of John DeAlbor, a mysterious Haitian who converted the locals into a fanatical voodoo cult. DeAlbor desires Constance for himself, torturing Bellville for information on her whereabouts. With his dying breath, Bellville reveals that she is hidden in a cavern deep in the forest.
As McGrath prepares to leave, he is joined by an Arab man in a turban named Ali, who claims to be Ahmed’s brother, seeking revenge for his sibling’s murder. Together, they navigate the oppressive heat and tangled wilderness, eventually locating the cavern where Constance is hidden. But just as McGrath opens the secret door, Ali betrays him, striking him down from behind. McGrath, still conscious but paralyzed, listens as Ali removes his disguise, revealing himself as none other than John DeAlbor. The voodoo priest had drugged McGrath’s wine, using a jungle potion that activates upon a blow to the nerves, rendering him helpless.
As DeAlbor attempts to flee with Constance, a horde of voodoo followers emerges from the undergrowth, demanding that she be sacrificed in their ritual. Leaving only one warrior behind to execute McGrath, DeAlbor leads his cult away. However, McGrath recovers from his paralysis just in time to engage in a brutal fight with his would-be executioner, ultimately killing him. Tracking the cult through the swamp, he captures DeAlbor, but the cunning priest bargains for his life, claiming that only he can save Constance.
Reluctantly, McGrath allows DeAlbor to lead him to the site of the impending human sacrifice, where Constance is about to be offered to a massive, enraged ape. At the last moment, DeAlbor, realizing his own life is at stake, tries to sacrifice her to appease the cult. McGrath intervenes, shooting the ape, which, in its death throes, turns on the cultists, spreading chaos and destruction. In the ensuing carnage, McGrath seizes the opportunity to escape with Constance, leaving the voodoo cult in ruins.
This row duplicates the finished-story summary word for word even though it is attached to the Synopsis. It should not be approved as a Synopsis summary unless the scope and source are reconciled.
From the letters:
In a letter (#301) to August Derleth, ca. mid-October 1934, Howard tells him about the sale:
P.S. Wright just bought “Moon of Zambebwei”, a novelet that differs from most of my Weird Tale yarns; a modern story, laid in Mississippi; hope the readers will like it.
And in a letter (#304) to H.P. Lovecraft, ca. December 1934, we learn of the change of the title:
My latest sales to Weird Tales have been a two-part Conan serial: “Beyond the Black River” — a frontier story; and a novelet dealing with Mississippi negroes, etc. “The Moon of Zambebwei”, which I understand will be changed to “The Grisly Horror.”
When Howard hired Kline as his agent, it was with the understanding that he would continue to make submissions directly to Weird Tales, without paying Kline a commission, since he had built up that market himself. However, when Howard’s “The Moon of Zambebwei” was rejected by Terror Tales and Top-Notch, Kline submitted it to Weird Tales, where it was published under the new title. In a letter (#312) to Otis Adelbert Kline, May 13, 1935, Howard says:
I’m writing this to ask for some information in regard to Weird Tales.
As you know, for some time I’ve had a story in almost every issue. One of those yarns you sold Wright, yourself, “The Grisly Horror,” you remember. The others I sold him direct.
Almost a year behind, Howard was paid for the story. In a letter (#333) to Otis Adelbert Kline, January 8, 1936 we learn:
A belated acknowledgment of the check for $99.00 from Weird Tales. A pleasant surprize, as I had not expected a check for “The Grisly Horror” at this time.
Analysis of changes
This synopsis presents an early iteration of The Moon of Zambebwei with a stronger mystery element and a deeper focus on the gothic atmosphere of Bellville’s decayed estate. Key changes in the final story include:
- John DeAlbor’s identity: In this version, he is introduced as "Ali," pretending to be Ahmed’s brother before revealing himself. In the final version, his role as a manipulative voodoo priest is more upfront.
- McGrath’s investigation: The story originally opens with McGrath actively investigating Constance’s disappearance, whereas in the final version, he is caught up in events more suddenly.
- The torture of Bellville: The theme of justice and retribution remains strong, with Bellville suffering a fitting end for his crimes before revealing Constance’s location.
- The role of the ape: The sacrificial beast’s role is more developed in the final version, making its destruction of the cultists a more pivotal climax.
This early draft already contains Howard’s signature blend of action, horror, and adventure, setting the stage for the final, more refined version of The Moon of Zambebwei.
Characters in this exact text
Textual witnesses & editorial mediation
These records describe how this textual state is known or represented. A witness may be authorial, editorially mediated, restored, transcribed or otherwise derived without becoming a new Howard-authored textual state.
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