Amra, Vol 2 No 59. George H. Scithers
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AMRA
v2#59
S&S
© 1973 by the Terminus, Owlswick, & Ft Mudge Electrick Street Railway Gazette: Amra, Volume II Number 59 for February 1973 [we were tempted to hyphenate “1973” to make the line come out even, but . . .]; lithographed in the United States of America; all rights reserved. Published at Box 8243, Philadelphia PA 19101. Subs of 10 ish: $4. Single copies and back ish (##44 thru 58), 50¢ each. Great Britons and Erse may send £1.60 to our Great Britannic and Erse ArchAgent, Archie Mercer, 21 Trenethick Parc, Helston, Cornwall. Amra is published from time to time; sometimes more often, sometimes less. Amra is running low on Street Railway centaurs and Limericks again.
CONTENTS
Sea Tower, Coverillo by Jim Cawthorn
Contents, Street Railway Centaurillos by Tim Powers
Japanese Swords, illos by Tim Kirk; article by Mark Walsted
The Other Cimmerian, illo by Tim Kirk; story by John Boardman
On Naïve Heroes, illo by B B Sams; words by Douglas K Howard
On Tarantia/Tamar, by Ray Capella
On Knitted Armour, illo by Edwin Kuniyoshi; words by Lee Burwasser
On Current Conans, by Albert A Nofi
Procession of a Consul, Nineveh, illo by Roy G Krenkel
Barbarians I Have Known, illos by Roy G Krenkel, article by L Sprague do Camp
LORD DUNSANY: A BIOGRAPHY, illo by Tim Kirk; review by I, Sprague de Camp
NO LONGER ON THE MAP, review by Albert A Nofi
Another Chronology, illos by Roy G Krenkel; speculation by Kevin Miller
Blunders, illo by Tim Powers; Amraëditorial by the Amraëditors
From time to time, folk ask us where they can get S&S books; some assume we publish them. We do publish LET’S DRINK TO THAT, A CALENDAR OF NOTABLE DATES OF INTEREST TO FANS OF SCINECE, FICTION, AND SCIENCE FICTION ($2), and we are promoting an anthology of material form Amra, to wit: THE CONAN GRIMOIRE ($6.95);frankly, we have a financial interest in both. They’re both good, nonetheless. But for books of S&S, we’ve had good luck with the F&SF Book Co, Box 415, Staaten Island NY 10302, who publishes a catalog and gives a discount on quantity orders. Don Grant, West Kingston RI 02892, not only sells other publisher’s books, but also publishes some of his own. Glenn Lord, Box 775, Pasadena TX 77501, publishes The Howard Collector, a fanzine specializing in Robert E Howard and his works. The Magazine Management Co, 625 Madison Av, New York NY 10022, publishes a Conan comic book, Conan the Barbarian, at $2.75 for 12 ish. The Lancer editions of the Conan saga should be too well-known to bear repeating here; at this time, they are the definitive history of Our Hero, all but two with spectacular covers by Frank Frazetta. Phil Seuling, 621 Ave Z, Brooklyn NY 11223, sells poster-size copies of some of these covers as well as an extensive stock of ancient&rare comic books
While the definitive parody of S&S has not yet been written, and while we’re waiting for the Cervantes of Heroic Fantasy to materialize, John Jakes’s MENTION MY NAME IN ATLANTIS (DAW Books, NY, 1972: 95¢) is the best thing along that line yet to appear. Although it includes a science-fictional element and doesn’t manage to puncure all of the S&S clichés, it’s a fun book. (“Conax the Chimerical” indeed!!)
Do we edit Swackles and other material? Yes, but do try to keep it a secret. We excise personal insults, praise of Amra (we like praise; we just don’t publish it), extraneous topics, and most spelling erorrs.
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Japanese Swords
by Mark Walsted
In all discussions of swords in Amra I have seen nothing about the best swords. They are better in design, construction, and material than the almost legendary Toledo and Damascus blades, and are the most sophisticated hand weapons in history. They were to be used against armor, so the smiths had the same problems faced in other parts of the world. A sword must be light to carry. It must not bend, but it must not break either. It should have a uniform cutting efficiency along its whole length. The Japanese solved these interlocking problems in a unique way.
The first step in forging a sword was a prayer to a patron deity, repeated at the beginning of every working day. Then iron of suitable quality was forged into a flat plate. This was heated until malleable, folded, and pounded flat again. This process was repeated many times, sometimes as many as thirty. Two pieces which had been forged and folded separately could be fitted together at the last folding to form a sword of softer steel at the core and harder steel on the skin. The final plate was pounded into the shape of a stick and then shaved and filed into final form. The whole blade was covered with clay, scraped thin at the cutting edge so the temper will be greater along that edge. Then the blade, clay and all, was heated to a specified, exact temperature and plunged into water. The sword was next ground to its final shape with a coarse stone. Then the tang was finished and inscribed with the smith’s name. Final polishing, sharpening, and mounting were done by other specialists.
In looking at a good sword the first impression is that it is extraordinarily bright. The final polishing puts a mirror finish on the blade. As one looks along the cutting edge it appears as straight as the eye can judge. Indeed the whole sword has a remarkable symmetry. The most beautiful part of the sword is the tempering edge. Most of these are irregular, wavy lines, running the length of the sword, showing where the highly tempered steel of the cutting edge changes to the less tempered steel of the body of the sword. The grain of the metal, caused by folding, may show up under special polishing treatment, but in general it is not visible. The advantages of this construction are a highly tempered edge that holds its sharpness and a backing of softer metal that will not break, even when used against armor.
There is a Japanese training film made during World War II which shows a man cutting the barrel of a machine gun in two with such a sword.