author
D. M. (David Macbeth) Moir
1798–1851
A Scottish doctor who turned everyday life, humor, and feeling into popular 19th-century prose and verse, he wrote under the pen name "Delta." Best known today for his essays, poems, and long connection with Blackwood’s Magazine, he brought a warm, observant voice to literary Edinburgh and beyond.
2 Audiobooks
The Life of Mansie Wauch tailor in Dalkeith
by D. M. (David Macbeth) Moir
The Life of Mansie Wauch Tailor in Dalkeith, written by himself
by D. M. (David Macbeth) Moir
About the author
Born in Musselburgh, Scotland, on January 5, 1798, David Macbeth Moir trained in medicine at the University of Edinburgh and went on to practice as a doctor in his hometown for much of his life. Alongside that medical career, he became a widely read man of letters, publishing poetry, essays, and criticism.
He is closely associated with the pen name "Delta" and was a regular contributor to Blackwood’s Magazine, where his writing helped build his reputation. His work ranges from lyrical and reflective poems to lively prose sketches, and readers in his own century admired the ease with which he moved between literature and professional life.
Moir died on July 6, 1851. He is remembered as part of Scotland’s rich 19th-century literary culture: a physician-author whose writing was noted for its intelligence, warmth, and versatility.