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Sir Walter Besant

SIR WALTER BESANT, novelist and biographer, lover of London and of the poor folk who lived in the slums of the British metropolis, was born at Portsmouth, England, August 14, 1836. He died on June 9, 1901.

Besant was one of the most many-sided men of his time. He was educated at King's College, London, and at Cambridge; he taught in a college on the picturesque island of Mauritius; he was secretary of the Palestine Exploration Fund. He earned the undying gratitude of scores of struggling young writers by establishing the Society of Authors, which kept them from being duped by unscrupulous publishers and editors. He labored indefatigably to improve the conditions of the poor.

Of his many novels, "All Sorts and Conditions of Men" stands out above the others--a tale of the poor that gripped the minds of his readers. So profound was the impression that it made that it may be said to have raised the People's Palace, the "Palace of Delight" described in the novel, where the oppressed had some chance to know social improvement and recreation. The author, who was knighted in 1895, wrote many other novels, among them "The Children of Gideon," "Armorel of Lyonesse," and "Beyond the Dreams of Avarice." He also wrote numerous biographies of writers and men who had lived adventurous lives, and he left unfinished "A Survey of London," a book published after his death, which is a storehouse of information for all who are interested in the past and present of the great city.