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 assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...

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. It is one of 15 current U.S. government departments. The department oversees the Bureau of Engraving and ...

under

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...

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

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

and

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

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

decadent Decadence was a late-19th-century movement emphasizing the need for sensationalism, egocentricity, and bizarre, artificial, perverse, and exotic sensations and experiences. By extension, it may refer to a decline in art, literature, science, ...

horror fiction Horror is a genre of speculative fiction that is intended to disturb, frighten, or scare an audience. Horror is often divided into the sub-genres of psychological horror and supernatural horror. Literary historian J. A. Cuddon, in 1984, defin ...

. 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, Sacheverell Sitwell 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 "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 ...

'', July 1893
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. He was awarded a knighthood for Services to Art and Design Education in the 2001 New Year Honours. Early lif ...

(London: Faber,

1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...

) * 1893 "The Luck of the Devil" published in ''The Pall Mall Magazine'', October 1893 *

1894 Events January * 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 States. * Ja ...

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

1896 Events January * 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 Wilhelm Röntgen's dis ...

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

1898 Events January * 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, Brooklyn, Queen ...

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

Non-fiction bibliography

* 1893 "A Few Words About Jules Sandeau" published in ''The Pall Mall Magazine'', November 1893 *

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–January 30, 30 – Kuomintang in Ch ...

"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 In the United Kingdom, the Edwardian era was a period in the early 20th century that spanned the reign of King Edward VII from 1901 to 1910. It is commonly extended to the start of the First World War in 1914, during the early reign of King Ge ...

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 (1925–1930), State of Syria. * January 3 – Benito Mussolini m ...

"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 Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

"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 19th-century American non-fiction writers American expatriates in England 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