(1846–98), U.S. novelist and banker, born in Syracuse, N.Y.; became junior clerk in a bank at age 16 and devoted next 30 years to the banking business; began novel ‘David Harum: A Story of American Life' while recuperating from tuberculosis in 1895; manuscript rejected by six publishers before being accepted; Westcott died six months before its publication; ‘David Harum', story of a shrewd, small-town banker with an ample sense of humor, a talent for horse trading, and a streak of decency, became best-seller; more than 1,000,000 copies sold in the next 40 years.