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Andrew Melrose (5 February 1860 - 6 November 1928〔''The Times'' obituary; 7 November 1928〕) was a British publisher. Although he was noted for publishing theological works, he was also active in promoting new fiction, and offered a substantial cash prize for the best first novel submitted to his firm. == Life and works == Melrose was born in Midlothian, Edinburgh. Much of his early career was spent at the London Ludgate Hill offices of the Sunday School Union, where from 1893 he published the ''Sunday School Chronicle''.〔 He began publishing under his own name around 1899 in York Street, Covent Garden, finally moving to an address next door to Macmillan in St. Martin Street, Leicester Square. Among the early writers he encouraged and published was W.E. Cule, a friend and colleague from the Sunday School Union. Between 1900 and 1903 Melrose published and contributed to a weekly paper ''Boys of the Empire'', the official organ of the Boys Empire League. The League's stated purpose was" to promote and strengthen a worthy Imperial Spirit in British-born boys".〔Rashna B. Singh. ''Goodly is our Heritage: Children's Literature, Empire, and the Certitude of Character'', Scarecrow Press, 2004 (p.43) ISBN 0-8108-5043-5〕 The paper was edited by Howard Spicer (later Sir Howard). In 1911, Melrose was living at 68 Southwood Lane, Highgate, with his wife Margaret and their children Ernest (20), Douglas (17), Allan (14), Kenneth (11) and Marjorie (9).〔1911 Census〕 Melrose gained a reputation for publishing distinctive books of a theological kind.〔(''The Publishers' Circular and Booksellers' Record'', Vol. 116, p.107 )〕 He was described as "an extremely shrewd, somewhat dour Scotsman, possessing a keen sense of literary values". He was one of the pioneers of offering substantial money prizes to aspiring authors.〔 Two early winners of the 250-guinea prize were Agnes E.Jacomb for her first novel ''The Faith of His Fathers'' (1909) and Patricia Wentworth for ''A Marriage Under The Terror'' (1910).〔James Milne, "Best Novel Competition Won by a Woman With Her First Book: Some Inferences Drawn" ''New York Times'', April 9, 1910 ()〕 In 1913, Margaret Peterson won the prize for her novel ''The Lure of the Little Drum''.〔A.S. Barnes, (''Educational Foundations'' ), New York, 1914, p.371〕 A notable winner was Catherine Carswell for her novel ''Open the Door'' (1920). Melrose also had a keen sense of book design, commissioning illustrations from some of the leading illustrators of his day such as Charles Robinson, Florence Meyerheim, Amelia Bauerle and William Gordon Mein. Melrose was not afraid of courting controversy in his choice of authors. In 1915 he published Caradoc Evans's story collection ''My People'', a work that provoked outrage for its depiction of Welsh society. He was also responsible for introducing David Grayson to English readers and for publishing the letters of Donald Hankey. The book on which Melrose chiefly prided himself was ''The House with the Green Shutters'' by George Douglas Brown. Melrose had met Brown through Howard Spicer, and the two encouraged Brown to write his grim story of a Scottish village. The following year, Brown died unexpectedly of pneumonia at Melrose's house in Hornsey.〔Andrew Melrose, ''George Douglas Brown, Reminiscences of a Friendship and a Notable Novel''; Cuthbert Lennox〕〔George Douglas Brown. (''The House with the Green Shutters: A Biographical Memoir'' ), Hodder and Stoughton, 1903.〕 Melrose published a memorial edition of Brown's ''House with the Green Shutters'' in 1923 and subsequently unveiled a memorial to the author in his Ayrshire birthplace.〔 Under the pseudonym of A.E.Macdonald, Melrose wrote popular biographies of missionary Alexander Murdoch Mackay.〔A.E. Macdonald (pseud.Andrew Melrose). ''Alexander Mackay, Missionary Hero of Uganda''. London, 1893.〕 British statesman William Ewart Gladstone〔E. A. Macdonald (pseud.Andrew Melrose), ''Mr. Gladstone: A Popular Biography'', 1891〕 and explorer Henry Morton Stanley.〔E.A. Macdonald (pseud.Andrew Melrose. ''The Story of Stanley, the Hero of Africa'', 1890〕 In 1927 Melrose's publishing business was taken over by the Hutchinson group and became known as Andrew Melrose Limited.〔 It published religious and general titles and the imprint lasted until the mid-1950s. Melrose's son Douglas Melrose, who was associated with his father's business, founded the publishing firm of Melrose and Co. of St. Martin's Lane. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Andrew Melrose」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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