February 15 Monday — Charles E. Hinckley for W.A. Hunter & Co., Nashville, Tenn. wrote to Sam.
I have the honor to say that you are directed, for naval purposes, to read the accompanying article [not in file] and report to the secretary of the navy at Washington, D.C. the proper way of putting our naval vessels through the Suez Canal without so much flub-dub about the pilots. Talk about a little old eighty-seven miles on the Mississip? Huhl...
late Captain Steamer “Copperopolis” San Francisco to Sacramento.
P.S. / I heard your first failure at Platt’s Hall and was just as much ashamed of you as were the editor of “The Bulletin” and his wife [MTP].
Wallace Rice wrote from Chicago to Sam (enclosed in Peter Dunne’s of Feb. 16), using Peter Dunne and Elizabeth Wallace to introduce himself, and asking if he might dedicate his book of three articles on American Humorists to Mark Twain. Also, might he “place in the third volume a dozen brief extracts, none...more than a hundred words...” from Twain’s works? [MTP].
Herbert Vandyke wrote from NYC to Sam, enclosing the names of five subscribers to the Mark Twain Library at Redding, compliments of Harry Windsor Dearborn [MTP].