Novelist, playwright, short-story writer, travel writer, autobiographer, and essayist, W. Somerset Maugham wrote only one collection of short stories that justifies his inclusion in any discussion of spy fiction: Ashenden; or The British Agent (1928). St...

The British novelist William Somerset Maugham (1874-1965), one of the most popular writers in English in the 20th century, is noted for his clarity of style and skill in storytelling. Born in Paris, on Jan. 25, 1874, where his father was solicitor to the...

When William Somerset Maugham celebrated his seventh birthday in Paris, he received from Lady Anglesey, a family friend, a generous gift of twenty francs. Asked how he planned to use his money, young Willie (as he preferred to be addressed) eagerly respo...

Lawmakers have tried before to square the volumes of Maine laws pertaining to veterans' benefits, from property tax breaks to burial in a veterans cemetery. But despite the effort, scattered throughout Maine are veterans who fall through the loopholes in these laws, confused and...

The van pulls up half-empty and almost an hour late, but Marcia Smith does not complain. She never complains when the labor is free. She's been organizing this cleanup at the corner of North Capitol and Bates streets for weeks. She's wheedled a trash...

Congress: In passing a bill that will force a timetable for withdrawal of U.S. troops in Iraq, Democrats have again shown why they can't be trusted with our nation's security -- or with spending money responsibly.How sad that Congress' new majority didn't have the guts...