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In the lexicon
of short story literature,
O. Henry is known
for his twist endings
and Edgar Allan
Poe is the master
of horror.
Equally revered
yet lesser known
is the work of Hector
Hugh Munto, who
published under
the pen name 'Saki.'
Munro possessed
a scathing wit,
and like the American
Dorothy Parker,
he used it to satirize
his contemporaries.
To the delight of
those with a gothic
temperament, Saki
had a definite appreciation
for the macabre,
Munro's life was
not without its
own macabre twists
and sad ironies.
Born in 1870 in
Burma, but raised
in Devonshire, England
Munro's mother was
killed by a runaway
cow on a country
lane.
In 1914, he enlisted
into the army though
officially overage.The
life of Hector Hugh
Munro was cut short
on a battlefield
in World War I by
a bullet from a
German sniper.
His last words were
spoken to a fellow
soldier: "Put
that damned cigarette
out!"
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