John Skelton (1831-1897) b. Edinburgh. Lawyer and journalist, Skelton contributed regularly to Fraser's Magazine, his pseudonym, 'Shirley', a reference to the eponymous hero of Charlotte Bronte's novel. Appointed Secretary to the Scottish Board of Health by Disraeli in 1868, he also contributed to Blackwood's Magazine from 1869. A friend of the artist, Noel Paton, his writing was admired by Thomas Carlyle and W. M. Thackeray.