Robert Nurden introduces his grandfather, former Herald deputy editor Stanley James.

A raw young cowboy herds the cattle on a ranch in the foot-hills of the Rockies in 1890s Canada. A private in the Amer-ican army all but dies from yellow fever fighting the Spanish in Puerto Rico. A nonconformist minister preaches passionate socialism from his Walthamstow pulpit. And a 72-year-old convert takes up the post of deputy editor of the Catholic Herald – under Michael de la Bédoyère – during World War II. These contrasting character portrayals belong to the same chameleon-like figure – my grandfather, Stanley B James (1869-1951).