Bone, David William (1874-1959)

Scottish novelist. He went to sea at 15 and rose to become commodore of the Anchor Line fleet. His novels are all about the sea. Merchantmen at Arms (1919), illustrated by his brother Muirhead Bone, tells of the work of the merchant service in World War I.

Bone was born in Glasgow, the son of a journalist. He went to sea at 15 as an apprentice in the square-rigged City of Florence, and he served seven years in sailing ships before joining the Anchor Line in 1899. His novels include The Brassbounder (1910), Broken Stowage (1915), The Lookoutman (1923), and Capstan Bars (1931). Landfall at Sunset (1955) is an autobiography.