Collins Mortimer

Collins, Mortimer (1827-1876), English lyrical poet, novelist, and general writer, was born at Plymouth, where his father was a solicitor. He was educated at a private school, and then became a schoolmaster, which occupation he quitted for literature in 1856. He published a volume of verse in 1855, and a second volume, The Inn of Strange Meetings, in 1871, and in 1872 a longer poem, The British Birds. His first story, Who was the Heir? appeared in 1855, and one of the best of his many novels, Sweet Anne Page, in 1868. He wrote some novels in collaboration with his wife, Sweet and Twenty being one. A collection of essays, The Secret of a Long Life, appeared in 1871, and he wrote largely for journals and magazines. His Select Poetical Works were published in 1886.