W. H. Rhodes (1822–1876)

Caxton's Book - W H Rhodes
Reading books cited as having an influence on early science fiction before the genre was invented can lead to some interesting curiosities and some good writing; it can also lead the reader to wonder just why he bothered to unearth the book in the first place . W H Rhodes collection of short stories, poems sketches and essays published in 1876 does not quite fall into the second category, but his poetry comes mighty close.

W H Rhodes was an American lawyer based in Galveston and wrote stories and essays some of which were published in the newspaper under the name of Caxton. His 'The Case of Summerfield' was his most talked about story and it appears in this posthumous collection. Summerfield had invented a chemical based on potassium which he demonstrated could burn water by separating hydrogen and oxygen. He threatened to set fire to the ocean unless he was paid a huge ransom. It is a rather pedestrian story and far better is 'Phases in the Life of John Pollexfen' which is genuinely macabre. Pollexfen wanted to push the boundaries of science by the invention of a process to make colour photographs. He became convinced that the living eye of his attractive assistant would enable him to discover the secret and he offered her a substantial sum of money to allow him to cut out her eye. The adventure story entitled The Aztec Princess also has it's moments with ideas of overcoming gravity and of creating a language based on musical notes, however the story fizzles out after an interesting beginning. The tenor of these stories is that nothing should stand in the way of science, which may well have been a popular theme when Rhodes was writing in the 1870's

This collection was published by Rhode's admirers after his death and they would have done him more of a service if they had not included his poetry. As for the three or four stories that have attracted the attention of the science fiction community: they are mildly curious at best and tainted with too much of the spirit of onwards and upwards in the cause of science. 2 stars.… (lisätietoja)