James Runciman (August, 1852 – 6 July 1891) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

teacher, author and journalist. He was born at Cresswell, a village near

Morpeth Morpeth may refer to: *Morpeth, New South Wales, Australia ** Electoral district of Morpeth, a former electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in New South Wales * Morpeth, Ontario, Canada * Morpeth, Northumberland, England, UK ** Morpeth (UK ...

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land on ...

, son of Walter Runciman, a coastguardman, and Jean Finlay. He was educated at Ellington school, and then for two years (1863–5) in the naval school at

Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...

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, becoming afterwards a pupil-teacher at

North Shields North Shields () is a town in the Borough of North Tyneside in Tyne and Wear, England. It is north-east of Newcastle upon Tyne and borders nearby Wallsend and Tynemouth. Since 1974, it has been in the North Tyneside borough of Tyne and Wea ...

ragged school Ragged schools were charitable organisations dedicated to the free education of destitute children in 19th century Britain. The schools were developed in working-class districts. Ragged schools were intended for society's most destitute children ...

. After an interval spent at the

British and Foreign School Society The British and Foreign School Society (BFSS) offers charitable aid to educational projects in the UK and around the world by funding schools, other charities and educational bodies. It was significant in the history of education in England, suppor ...

's Training College for Teachers in the

Borough Road Borough Road is in Southwark, London SE1. It runs east–west between St George's Circus and Borough High Street. History and location The route was created as part of the planning and road improvements associated with the completion of Wes ...

(

Borough Road College Borough Road is in Southwark, London SE1. It runs east–west between St George's Circus and Borough High Street. History and location The route was created as part of the planning and road improvements associated with the completion of We ...

, which later moved to

Isleworth Isleworth ( ) is a town located within the London Borough of Hounslow in West London, England. It lies immediately east of the town of Hounslow and west of the River Thames and its tributary the River Crane, London, River Crane. Isleworth's or ...

), he entered the service of the London School Board, acting as master successively of schools at Hale Street,

Deptford Deptford is an area on the south bank of the River Thames in southeast London, within the London Borough of Lewisham. It is named after a ford of the River Ravensbourne. From the mid 16th century to the late 19th it was home to Deptford Dock ...

, at South Street, Greenwich and at Blackheath Hill. While still a

schoolmaster The word schoolmaster, or simply master, refers to a male school teacher. This usage survives in British independent schools, both secondary and preparatory, and a few Indian boarding schools (such as The Doon School) that were modelled after B ...

, he read for himself at night, and attempted

journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the "news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree. The word, a noun, applies to the occupation (profes ...

. He soon wrote regularly for the ''Teacher'', the ''Schoolmaster'', and '' Vanity Fair''; of the last paper he became sub-editor in 1874. In January 1874, he matriculated at the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

, and passed the first bachelor of science examination in 1876. About 1880, while continuing his school-work, he was sub-editor of ''London'', a short-lived newspaper, edited by Mr. W. E. Henley. Subsequently he confined himself solely to the profession of journalism. As a writer on social or ethical topics, he proved himself equally vigorous and versatile, but his best literary work described the life of the fishermen of the North Sea, with whom he spent many of his vacations. A series of seafaring sketches, which he contributed to the ''St. James's Gazette'', was reprinted as 'The Romance of the Coast'. He dedicated his 'Dream of the North Sea', a vivid account of the fishermen's perils, to

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

, who accepted the dedication. He died prematurely, of overwork, at Tyneside, Minerva Road,

Kingston upon Thames Kingston upon Thames (hyphenated until 1965, colloquially known as Kingston) is a town in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, southwest London, England. It is situated on the River Thames and southwest of Charing Cross. It is notable as ...

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

Bibliography of works by Runciman

*''The Romance of the Coast'', 1883. *''Grace Balmaign's Sweetheart'', 1885. *''Skippers and Shellbacks'', 1885. *''School Board Idylls'', 1887. *''Schools and Scholars'', 1887. *''The Chequers, being the Natural History of a Public House set forth in a Loafer's Diary'', 1888. *''A Dream of the North Sea'', 1889, *''Joints in our Social Armour'', 1890; reprinted as ''The Ethics of Drink and Social Questions, or Joints in our Social Armour'', 1892. *''Side Lights, with Memoir by

Grant Allen Charles Grant Blairfindie Allen (February 24, 1848 – October 25, 1899) was a Canadian science writer and novelist, educated in England. He was a public promoter of evolution in the second half of the nineteenth century. Biography Early life a ...

, and Introduction by W. T. Stead; edited by J. F. Runciman'', 1893.

References

;Attribution

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Runciman, James 1852 births 1891 deaths Schoolteachers from Northumberland English writers English male journalists People from Morpeth, Northumberland Writers from Northumberland 19th-century British journalists English male non-fiction writers 19th-century English male writers