25) “For the Blood is the Life” by F. Marion Crawford
Plot:
The unnamed narrator of this story owns a sixteenth-century tower on the west coast of Calabria, built to keep off Barbary pirates. The tower stands at the extremity of a curving, rocky promontory that forms a small but safe natural harbor at the southern end of the Gulf of Policastro, just north of Cape Scalea. According to local legend, Cape Scalea is the birthplace of Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus of Nazareth with a kiss.
When our hero goes to the tower, he takes a couple of sailors with him, one of whom is a decent cook. When he is away, he leaves it in the charge of a “gnome-like little being who was once a miner.”
Visiting our hero is his friend, Scandinavian artist Holger. Because of the heat, they are dining on the roof. At twilight, Holger notices something in the distance.
“It’s strange,” he says. “Do you see that little mound just on this side of the boulder?”
“Yes,” [the narrator] says and guesses what is coming.
“It looks like a grave,” observes Holger.
“Very true. It does look like a grave.”
“Yes,” continues [the narrator’s] friend, his eyes still fixed on the spot. “But the strange thing is that I see the body lying on the top of it.”
Holger isn’t content to observe from afar. He walks down and inspects the mound, no longer seeing the body. He walks onto the mound.
Still on the roof, the narrator sees the Thing wrap its arms around Holger’s legs, as if to pull itself up using his body. Holger appears oblivious.
“Come along!” [the narrator] shouts. “Don’t stay there all night!”
Holger comes back. When the two settle in, the narrator tells him the story.
Thoughts:
The long, sad backstory of the vampire involves a love triangle, theft, murder, ill-gotten gains, two innocent people, and the bravery of a man named Antonio and a priest.
This story is not modern in the sense that the action is more in revelation than accomplishment. The horror is genuine. Stakes (heh…) are high for both the vampire and her victim(s).
The setting is different from the usual vampire haunt, though the story still harkens back to the ancient. The vampire is an object not only of horror, but pity.
I can recommend this story for someone looking for a leisurely read.
This story can be read here:
This story can be listened to here: (57:57)
Bio: F. Marion Crawford (1854-1909) was born in Italy to American parents. His father was the sculptor Thomas Gibson Crawford, who died while the author was a toddler. Crawford’s first novel, Mr. Issacs (1882), depicted Anglo-Indian life with an added touch of Theosophy, perhaps reflecting his time in India studying Sanskrit. It was successful, though today, he is best known for his story “The Upper Berth.
Title: “For the Blood is the Life”
Author: F. Marion Crawford (1854-1909)
First published: Collier’s, December 16, 1905
Length: short story
