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At the Circulating Library

A Database of Victorian Fiction, 1837–1901

A Database of Victorian Fiction, 1837–1901

Author: Charles Welsh Mason

Author: Charles Welsh Mason (1831–1875)

Biography: Rev. Charles Welsh Mason was born in 1831, the son of William Mason and Eliza Welsh. Both of his parents had connections to India: William served in the Madras Civil Service and drowned at Vizagapatam in 1854; and Eliza was the daughter of General James Welsh of the East India Company. He earned a B.A. at Trinity College, Cambridge. Afterwards, he joined the California goldrush in 1849 and lived in Mexico as a vaquero and hunter. Two works resulted from his travels: a poetry collection Poems and Songs, of which some are rendered from the Spanish (1863) and the novel The Rape of the Gamp: or, Won at Last! (1875). The latter was serialized in Harper's in the U.S. and London Society in England and published in book form posthumously. He also wrote articles for Fraser's Magazine. In the early 1860s, Mason returned to England, entered holy orders, and took a job as a schoolmaster in Maidstone, Kent. There he married Julia Beale, daughter of solicitor William Beale. The couple had three children, including novelist Charles Welsh Mason (b. 1867). In the 1870s, the couple separated. He died in 1875 in Barnsbury.

Author Tags:

References: Jackson's Oxford Journal (13 March 1875); Charles Welsh Mason [the younger], The Chinese Confessions of Charles Welsh Mason (Richards Press, 1924); Wellesley

Fiction Titles:

  1. The Amulet: A Tale of Spanish California.  1 vol.  London: Longman, 1865.
  2. The Rape of the Gamp: or, Won at Last. A Novel.  3 vol.  London: Sampson Low, 1875.