Julian Osgood Field (1852–1925) was an American socialite and writer. Some of his works were published under the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

s X.L. or Sigma.

Biography

Julian Osgood Field was born on April 23, 1852, the son of

Maunsell Bradhurst Field Maunsell Bradhurst Field (March 26, 1822 – January 24, 1875) was an American lawyer, diplomat, judge, and author. Biography Field was born in New York, March 26, 1822, and died in the same city, after a lingering illness, on January 24, 1875. ...

(1822–75), who was an official of the

US Treasury The Department of the Treasury (USDT) is the national treasury and finance department of the federal government of the United States, where it serves as an executive department. The department oversees the Bureau of Engraving and Printing and th ...

under

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

, and Julia Field (née Stanton). Educated in England, he lived largely in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

and became an intimate of the future King Edward VII of Great Britain. Field used the pseudonym "X.L." (or "Sigma") to write

decadent The word decadence, which at first meant simply "decline" in an abstract sense, is now most often used to refer to a perceived decay in social norm, standards, morality, morals, dignity, religion, religious faith, honor, discipline, or competen ...

horror fiction Horror is a genre of fiction which is intended to frighten, scare, or disgust. Horror is often divided into the sub-genres of psychological horror and supernatural horror, which is in the realm of speculative fiction. Literary historian J ...

. His anonymously authored books of recollections have been mined by biographers. Despite his background, Field was a crook, moneylender's tout, and undischarged bankrupt, pursued by many creditors. In 1901 he was sentenced to three months in prison for forging a document under the signature of a representative of Lord Astor's estate office which claimed he was to be paid a large sum of money for authoring society novels. Field used the document in an attempt to raise a loan. He was responsible for involving Lady Ida Sitwell, mother of

Osbert Sitwell Sir Francis Osbert Sacheverell Sitwell, 5th Baronet CH CBE (6 December 1892 – 4 May 1969) was an English writer. His elder sister was Edith Sitwell and his younger brother was Sacheverell Sitwell. Like them, he devoted his life to art and li ...

Sacheverell Sitwell Sir Sacheverell Reresby Sitwell, 6th Baronet, (; 15 November 1897 – 1 October 1988) was an English writer, best known as an art critic, music critic (his books on Mozart, Liszt, and Domenico Scarlatti are still consulted), and writer on a ...

and

Edith Sitwell Dame Edith Louisa Sitwell (7 September 1887 – 9 December 1964) was a British poet and critic and the eldest of the three literary Sitwells. She reacted badly to her eccentric, unloving parents and lived much of her life with her governess ...

in a long-running financial scandal, which began in 1912. In 1914, Lady Ida successfully sued Field for fraud and breach of duty. The following year, she was imprisoned for three months, and Field for 18 months, for conspiring to defraud another wealthy lady, Francis Bennett Dobbs."Three Months Imprisonment For Conspiracy To Defraud", Western Gazette, 19 March 1915

Fiction bibliography

1893 Events January–March * January 2 – Webb C. Ball introduces railroad chronometers, which become the general railroad timepiece standards in North America. * Mark Twain started writing Puddn'head Wilson. * January 6 – Th ...

"A Kiss of Judas" published in ''

The Pall Mall Magazine ''The Pall Mall Magazine'' was a monthly British literary magazine published between 1893 and 1914. Begun by William Waldorf Astor as an offshoot of ''The Pall Mall Gazette'', the magazine included poetry, short stories, serialized fiction, and ge ...

'', July

reprinted in ''Vampyres: Lord Byron to Count Dracula'', ed.

Christopher Frayling Sir Christopher John Frayling (born 25 December 1946) is a British educationalist and writer, known for his study of popular culture. Early life and education Christopher Frayling was born in Hampton, a suburb of London, in affluent circumstance ...

(London: Faber,

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...

) *

"The Luck of the Devil" published in ''The Pall Mall Magazine'', October

1894 Events January–March * January 4 – A military alliance is established between the French Third Republic and the Russian Empire. * January 7 – William Kennedy Dickson receives a patent for motion picture film in the United S ...

''Aut Diabolus Aut Nihil and Other Tales'' (London: Methuen & Co.) *

1896 Events January–March * January 2 – The Jameson Raid comes to an end, as Jameson surrenders to the Boers. * January 4 – Utah is admitted as the 45th U.S. state. * January 5 – An Austrian newspaper reports that Wil ...

''The Limb: An Episode of Adventure'' (A.D. Innes) *

1898 Events January–March * January 1 – New York City annexes land from surrounding counties, creating the City of Greater New York as the world's second largest. The city is geographically divided into five boroughs: Manhattan, B ...

''With All the Powders of the Merchant'' published in ''The Pall Mall Magazine'', September to December

Non-fiction bibliography

"A Few Words About Jules Sandeau" published in ''The Pall Mall Magazine'', November

1924 Events January * January 12 – Gopinath Saha shoots Ernest Day, whom he has mistaken for Sir Charles Tegart, the police commissioner of Calcutta, and is arrested soon after. * January 20– 30 – Kuomintang in China hol ...

"Things I Shouldn't Tell" (London, Eveleigh Nash & Grayson,

). (This and the next two items were volumes of often scandalous reminiscences about late Victorian and

Edwardian The Edwardian era or Edwardian period of British history spanned the reign of King Edward VII, 1901 to 1910 and is sometimes extended to the start of the First World War. The death of Queen Victoria in January 1901 marked the end of the Victori ...

high society. All were published anonymously.) *

"Uncensored Recollections" (London, Eveleigh Nash & Grayson,

) *

1925 Events January * January 1 ** The Syrian Federation is officially dissolved, the State of Aleppo and the State of Damascus having been replaced by the State of Syria. * January 3 – Benito Mussolini makes a pivotal speech in the Italia ...

"More Uncensored Recollections" (London, Eveleigh Nash & Grayson,

)

Plays

* "Society's Verdict", otherwise known as "Found Guilty or the Shadow of Shame". (Shaftesbury Theatre, 1899).

Works regarding

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...

"Alas, Poor Ghost" by David G. Rowlands, published in ''All Hallows'' #16

External links

Locus Mag: Stories, Listed by Author: Julian Osgood Field entry

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Field, Julian Osgood 1852 births 1925 deaths American horror novelists American male novelists 19th-century American novelists American non-fiction writers American expatriates in the United Kingdom American expatriates in France American male short story writers 19th-century American short story writers 19th-century American male writers American male non-fiction writers