John Joy Bell Biography
John Joy Bell (1871–1934 ), known professionally as J J Bell, was a journalist and author. Born in Hillhead, Glasgow, Bell was schooled at Kelvinside Academy and Morrison's Academy. He attended the University of Glasgow, where he studied chemistry. After becoming a journalist, Bell worked for the Glasgow Evening Times, and as sub-editor of the Scots Pictorial. His articles described the life of working-class Glaswegians, and were often written in the vernacular. He created the character of 'MacGreegor' for his Evening Times articles, and the stories were so popular that they were published in book form, and later made into a film.
Bell has often been criticised for being overly sentimental, however it is also said that his vernacular was accurately representative, which is partly what made them popular. During recent years though, Bell's books are increasingly neglected.
For many years I've watched the ships a-sailing to and fro,
The mighty ships, the little ships, the speedy and the slow:
...
I’d rather be a cyclist
Than any other beast,
For thou he slays but never stays
Upon the slain to feast.
...
'Nearly home, nearly home!' says the screw that whips the foam,
And the engine is a-throbbing like a heart,
...
I've never traveled for more'n a day,
I never was one to roam,
But I likes to sit on the busy quay,
...
One afternoon when the sun was hot
I takes a snooze on the quay;
An' a kink in my neck I must ha' got,
...
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