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Banshee, whole no. 5, June 1944

Page 11

The Speer Pool * * * 11

Tainer; Rocklynne; Boucher; Cartmill; Asimov; 500 points even. Vaughan; ERBurroughs; Coblentz; Verrill; Starzl; Gallun; Stewart; del Rey; Diffin; Cloukey; Derleth; Sturgeon; DePina; Jacobi; Hall&Flint; Leinster; Epamindondas T Snooks, DTG; total points 243. Unused 22.

Ten seems to be about the right number to ask for on this question. I've listed all the also-rans here because I think the next pollster mite do well to supply a list of possible choices for the voters to pick among. I know that I couldn't pull my ten favorites, in proper order, out of thin air, and it seems likely that others may leave out some that they would have named if they'd thot of them. This seems very probably in the case of Lewis Carroll in the next section.

Book authors: Stapledon 88; Wells 75; Burroughts 40; Taine 39; Thorne Smith 30. Merritt; de Camp; MacArthur; Carroll; S P Wright; totaling 79. Kipling; Thayer; Trevarthen; Machen; Chesterton; Nathan; Lovecraft; MRJames; Cabell; Benet; Brandon; de la Mare; Haggard; Verne; L Frank Baym; 110 points. 59 unused.

So there are the choices of the experts. There's overwhelming agreement on the top men, and a large sprinkling of individual favorites. It will be noted that there are several authors appearing in both pulp and book tabulations, but probably not as many as would be split between a "science-fiction" and "fantasy" division. It's a moot question whether there should be any breakdown by types.

Stories; Slan 111; Last and First Men 77; Odd John 75; Final Blackout 67; Sinister Barrier 60; Ship of Ishtar 55; Dwellers in the Mirage 54; Mimsy Were the Borogoves 48; Spacehounds of IPC 46; Methuselah's Children 45; The Time Machine; Universe-CommonSense; Star Maker; Snake Mother; Time Stream; Dr Arnoldi; Fear; Skylarks; It; None But Lucifer; Legion of Space; Martian Odyssey; 380 points total. After the Afternoon; Lensman stories; Men Like Gods; Exile of the Skies; Colour Out of Space; Moon Fool; The World Below; Cosmic Engineers; World Deluge; The Man Who Was Thursday; To Walk the Night; Black Flame; Dream of Armageddon; Brave New World; Trends; Crea, of the Jest; Lost Legacy; The Bling Spot; Star-Begotten; Solution Unsatisfactory; Man from Tomorrow; The Changeling; Rain in the Doorway; Circle of Zero; Ether Ship of Oltar; Dracula; Nonce; Alas All Thinking; The New Adam; But Without Horns; Tools; Through the Gates of the Silver Key; If This Goes On; Conjure Wife; Unto Us a Child Is Born; Men With Wings; Anton York series; Darker Thank You Think; Pikestaff Case; Revolt of the Pedestrians; Out of the Sub-Universe; Mastermind of Mars; total 794. Unused 231.

In view of the fritefully large number of singleton choices, the next poller may be tempted to limit his pollees to the five best stories. But many of the points for the stories coming out on top in this poll, came from votes between sixth and tenth place. There is simply so much to choose from that the competition for the ten top pegs is greater here than in any other category. There is reason to believe that if the questionees had been allowed to name fifteen or twenty, there would be much solider agreement on the outstanding stef stories of all time. There are some other problems on this question: Shall a series be considered as one or separate stories? As you see, I've considered some series, and the Universe-CommonSense duo, together, but have taken Invaders from the Infinite and One Against the Legion separately from their groups. The easier thing would seem to lump all
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The Speer Pool * * * 11 Tainer; Rocklynne; Boucher; Cartmill; Asimov; 500 points even. Vaughan; ERBurroughs; Coblentz; Verrill; Starzl; Gallun; Stewart; del Rey; Diffin; Cloukey; Derleth; Sturgeon; DePina; Jacobi; Hall&Flint; Leinster; Epamindondas T Snooks, DTG; total points 243. Unused 22. Ten seems to be about the right number to ask for on this question. I've listed all the also-rans here because I think the next pollster mite do well to supply a list of possible choices for the voters to pick among. I know that I couldn't pull my ten favorites, in proper order, out of thin air, and it seems likely that others may leave out some that they would have named if they'd thot of them. This seems very probably in the case of Lewis Carroll in the next section. Book authors: Stapledon 88; Wells 75; Burroughts 40; Taine 39; Thorne Smith 30. Merritt; de Camp; MacArthur; Carroll; S P Wright; totaling 79. Kipling; Thayer; Trevarthen; Machen; Chesterton; Nathan; Lovecraft; MRJames; Cabell; Benet; Brandon; de la Mare; Haggard; Verne; L Frank Baym; 110 points. 59 unused. So there are the choices of the experts. There's overwhelming agreement on the top men, and a large sprinkling of individual favorites. It will be noted that there are several authors appearing in both pulp and book tabulations, but probably not as many as would be split between a "science-fiction" and "fantasy" division. It's a moot question whether there should be any breakdown by types. Stories; Slan 111; Last and First Men 77; Odd John 75; Final Blackout 67; Sinister Barrier 60; Ship of Ishtar 55; Dwellers in the Mirage 54; Mimsy Were the Borogoves 48; Spacehounds of IPC 46; Methuselah's Children 45; The Time Machine; Universe-CommonSense; Star Maker; Snake Mother; Time Stream; Dr Arnoldi; Fear; Skylarks; It; None But Lucifer; Legion of Space; Martian Odyssey; 380 points total. After the Afternoon; Lensman stories; Men Like Gods; Exile of the Skies; Colour Out of Space; Moon Fool; The World Below; Cosmic Engineers; World Deluge; The Man Who Was Thursday; To Walk the Night; Black Flame; Dream of Armageddon; Brave New World; Trends; Crea, of the Jest; Lost Legacy; The Bling Spot; Star-Begotten; Solution Unsatisfactory; Man from Tomorrow; The Changeling; Rain in the Doorway; Circle of Zero; Ether Ship of Oltar; Dracula; Nonce; Alas All Thinking; The New Adam; But Without Horns; Tools; Through the Gates of the Silver Key; If This Goes On; Conjure Wife; Unto Us a Child Is Born; Men With Wings; Anton York series; Darker Thank You Think; Pikestaff Case; Revolt of the Pedestrians; Out of the Sub-Universe; Mastermind of Mars; total 794. Unused 231. In view of the fritefully large number of singleton choices, the next poller may be tempted to limit his pollees to the five best stories. But many of the points for the stories coming out on top in this poll, came from votes between sixth and tenth place. There is simply so much to choose from that the competition for the ten top pegs is greater here than in any other category. There is reason to believe that if the questionees had been allowed to name fifteen or twenty, there would be much solider agreement on the outstanding stef stories of all time. There are some other problems on this question: Shall a series be considered as one or separate stories? As you see, I've considered some series, and the Universe-CommonSense duo, together, but have taken Invaders from the Infinite and One Against the Legion separately from their groups. The easier thing would seem to lump all ((continued on page 18))