British author, born at Cowlairs, near Glasgow, on the 30th of October 1789, the son of a Glasgow merchant. In 1806 he went to Jamaica, first managing some estates, and afterwards joining a business firm in Kingston. The latter post necessitated his making frequent journeys, on the incidents of which he based his best-known book, Tom Cringles Log. In 1822 he left Jamaica and settled in Glasgow, where he engaged in business. Tom Cringles Log began to appear serially in Blackwoods Magazine in 1829. Scotts second story, The Cruise of the Midge, was also first published serially in Blackwoods in 18341835. The first appearance in book form of each story was in Paris in 1834. Both stories were originally published anonymously, and their authorship was not known till after Scotts death at Glasgow, on the 7th of November 1835. See also Literary Criticism.