Memory (1919) In this very short story, two beings, ruminate about the history of an ancient valley of Nis, filled with ruins of a civilization long since dead. A Genia that haunts the moonbeams makes an inquiry to the Demon of the Valley about the now-dead dwellers of the ruined cities. To this, the demon tells of the men who used to live there.And that's more or less it. The story itself is very short, with only 5 short paragraphs. It is more like an idea Lovecraft what toying with more than a complete narrative. It has elements found in his other stories, like ancient deities and long lost civilizations, but the atmosphere he was going for was more of a haunting dream than horror.
Old Bugs (1919) Apparently because Lovecraft was a teetotaller, he wrote a somewhat naive, albeit comedic, piece about alcohol when his friend said that he'd want to try some alcohol before the prohibition. Old Bugs is a name of an old derelict drunk, who spends his days in a local dive doing odd jobs in change for booze. While he is a thin man, dressed in drags, it is apparent, that he was once a man of means, perhaps even a professor.
One day a youngster with the intention of trying out the vices of the world arrives at the dive. This sparks something within Old Bugs, who uncharacteristically forces the man to drop his drink. After doing this, Bugs drops dead on his feet.
As Bugs is now dead, the locals need to figure out who he actually was, so they can contact his next of kin. One of them recalls Bugs having an old photo, which he often gazed at while drinking. As it is passed around in order to see if anyone knows the woman in it, the young man whom Bugs stopped drinking sees it as well. While he doesn't say a thing, it is apparent he knows the woman, as he promises to take care of the funeral expenses of the man.
What the story really boils down to is, that even one drink can take you over the edge and turn a promising man into a hobo. As such, it is a mixture of moralistic preaching, naive characterisation and perhaps unintentional parody towards the mindset of those who supported prohibition. And that is perhaps the main reason why it is an interesting little tale.
The Transition of Juan Romero (1919) A nameless narrator, not deeming his identity to be that important, relates a tale that took place in 1894. After a deep, seemingly bottomless chasm is found from a mine, a miner caller Juan Romero and the narrator feel a compelling need to explore it further the following night. This need is caused by a rhythmical throbbing emanating from the ground.
Romero reaches the chasm first and is seemingly swallowed by the abyss. The narrator follows him, only to end up stating, that he doesn't dare to describe what he saw before losing his consciousness. The following day both, he and Romero, are found from their bunks, Romero dead. And the chasm has vanished as well, the other mines swearing that neither of the men left their bunks the previous night.
So, indescribable horrors, nameless narrators prone to lose their senses when subjected to the terrors of the unseen world and mysteries that are hardly solved. This also was a story, Lovecraft didn't intend to be released at first, only meant for a small correspondence circle as an exercise.
It is a decent story for what it is. Not something I'd call, highly memorable, but for a narrative exercise, it is well done and does provide some more structural elements for Lovecraft's better-known stories.
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