Judge Keith Hilary Pursuivant is a fictional character and a supporting character in a series of stories (1938–41) by American author

Manly Wade Wellman Manly Wade Wellman (May 21, 1903 – April 5, 1986) was an American writer. While his science fiction and fantasy stories appeared in such pulps as ''Astounding Stories'', ''Startling Stories'', ''Unknown'' and ''Strange Stories'', Wellman is ...

(1903–1986). Pursuivant is a retired

judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

, and

occult The occult, in the broadest sense, is a category of esoteric supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving otherworldly agency, such as magic and mysticism a ...

scholar A scholar is a person who pursues academic and intellectual activities, particularly academics who apply their intellectualism into expertise in an area of study. A scholar can also be an academic, who works as a professor, teacher, or researche ...

who investigates mysterious

supernatural Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...

events.

Fictional character biography

Pursuivant is more a mentor to and helper of characters who have become embroiled in occult adventures than a hero per se. He first appears in the short story "The Hairy Ones Shall Dance," first published in 1938 in the weird-fiction

pulp magazine Pulp magazines (also referred to as "the pulps") were inexpensive fiction magazines that were published from 1896 to the late 1950s. The term "pulp" derives from the cheap wood pulp paper on which the magazines were printed. In contrast, magazine ...

'' Weird Tales''. Pursuivant is described as a man of great height and girth, with bulbous eyes and nose and a drooping blonde moustache. He lives in a small town five hours from

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, and is sufficiently wealthy to be attended by a manservant. He is intelligent and well-read in

matters. A biography of Pursuivant is presented in the short story "The Black Drama," which presents him as having been born in 1891, retired in 1919, had studied at

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

and

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, and was decorated while serving in U.S. intelligence during World War I. Until he passed it on to Wellman's later character,

John Thunstone John Thunstone is a fictional character and the hero of a series of stories by author Manly Wade Wellman. Thunstone is a scholar and playboy (lifestyle), playboy who investigates mysterious supernatural events. He is physically large and strong, i ...

, Judge Pursuivant possessed a sword-cane with a

silver Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...

blade said to have been forged by

Saint Dunstan Saint Dunstan (c. 909 – 19 May 988) was an English bishop. He was successively Abbot of Glastonbury Abbey, Bishop of Worcester, Bishop of London and Archbishop of Canterbury, later canonised as a saint. His work restored monastic life in E ...

. The blade is inscribed with a text from

Judges A judge is an official who presides over a court. Judge or Judges may also refer to: Roles *Judge, an alternative name for an adjudicator in a competition in theatre, music, sport, etc. *Judge, an alternative name/aviator call sign for a membe ...

chapter 5 in the

Vulgate The Vulgate (; also called (Bible in common tongue), ) is a late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bible. The Vulgate is largely the work of Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels u ...

, "''Sic pereant omnes inimici tui''" – "thus perish all your enemies". The sword-cane, which was especially potent against

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mi ...

werewolves In folklore, a werewolf (), or occasionally lycanthrope (; ; uk, Вовкулака, Vovkulaka), is an individual that can shapeshift into a wolf (or, especially in modern film, a therianthropic hybrid wolf-like creature), either purposely or ...

and other supernatural creatures, was passed on when Pursuivant's advanced age made him too weak to effectively wield it."The Third Cry to Legba," ''Weird Tales'' Although referred to in several stories, Judge Pursuivant only actually appeared in four short stories or

novella A novella is a narrative prose fiction whose length is shorter than most novels, but longer than most short stories. The English word ''novella'' derives from the Italian ''novella'' meaning a short story related to true (or apparently so) facts ...

s by Wellman: "The Hairy Ones Shall Dance" (1938), "The Black Drama" (1938), "The Dreadful Rabbits" (1940), and "The Half Haunted" (1941) – all originally published in ''Weird Tales'' – and as a supporting character in Wellman's 1982

Silver John Silver John is a fictional character from a series of fantasy stories (1963–84) by American author Manly Wade Wellman (1903–1986). Though fans refer to him as ''Silver John'' or as ''John the Balladeer'', the stories simply call him John. He ...

novel ''The Hanging Stones'' and the John Thunstone novel ''The School of Darkness''. All Wellman's Judge Pursuivant short stories have been collected in '' Lonely Vigils'', and later in ''Fearful Rock and Other Precarious Locales'', Night Shade Books (2001). Judge Pursuivant also appears as a supporting character in the story "Chastel", not collected in the above volume but in volume one of that series (''Third Cry to Legba and other Invocations''), originally published in ''The Year's Best Horror Stories VII'' (1979). Judge Pursuivant and his book, "The Unknown that Terrifies" is mentioned in "The Poltergeist of Swan Uppin", a short story of

Jules de Grandin Jules de Grandin is a fictional occult detective that, from 1925-1951, starred in over 90 short stories by Seabury Quinn in the pulp magazine anthology series ''Weird Tales''. In the pages of Weird Tales, Quinn also authored a serialized novel fe ...

by Seabury Quinn.

Bibliography

*"The Hairy Ones Shall Dance," ''Weird Tales'', January, February, and March 1938 *"The Black Drama," ''Weird Tales'', June, July, and August 1938 *"The Dreadful Rabbits", ''Weird Tales'' 1940 *" The Half Haunted", ''Weird Tales'' 1941

References

External links

Voice of the Mountains
- fan site {{DEFAULTSORT:Pursuivant, Keith Literary characters introduced in 1938 Characters in short stories Fictional judges Fictional paranormal investigators Manly Wade Wellman characters