February 18 Friday - In Hamilton, Bermuda, Helen S. Allen finished Sam’s Feb. 17 to Albert B. Paine.
Mr. Clemens wants me to tell you that he has broken his hind leg also Mr. Clemens wants me to tell you that “his secretary will send you the check items at her leisure”. He is glad you have sold the farm on such good terms & that it has gone to a man of whom people speak well. Mr. Clemens says that if that Wisteria could be safely removed from Jean house to the pergola he would like to buy it & move it, if it can be had at a reasonable figure. He would like to have it as a memento of Jean. The check items are,
- 1. $50.00 Jan. 10
- 18.60 $23.48 Feb, 15%\
- 25.92
- $3800.00 209,76
- 52.59 4/233,24
- 19,40 38
- 12,00 433,24
- 38.41
- 50,00
- 50,00
- 19,28
- 29,56
- 44,00
Mr. Clemens would like you to put in a bid at one of the second: hand book shops for a second-hand International Encyclopedia if you can find one at the original price buy it & send it to him.
It appears by a letter received to-day from Clara that she would read my books if she had them suppose you tell the Harpers to send her a cheap set.
“We are mixing up the first & third persons in this letter but we are depending with confidence upon his well known intelligence to unmix them”, With love from us all including Mr. Clemens / Sincerely / Helen Schuyler Allen,
[along left edge] P.S. Let Claude’s money accumulate; he doesn’t want it here. SLC [MTP].
Clemens signed a limited power of attorney to Cornelius Vanderbilt III (1873-1942) authorizing a proxy vote for the annual meeting of the Robert Fulton Monument Association, to be held Feb. 24. It was witnessed and signed by Helen Schuyler Allen [MT Journal, 19:4 (Summer, 1979), rear cover]. Note: nicknamed “Neily” by his friends, the III was the great grandson of “Commodore” Cornelius Vanderbilt (1794-1877) who made his fortune in shipping. In Mar. 1869 Clemens’ scathing “Open Letter to Com. Vanderbilt” was published in Packard's Monthly.
Albert Bigelow Paine wrote from Redding to Clemens:
In a letter from Clara, a day or two ago, she asks about admission to St. Peters on Easter, and thinks you may know how to get it. I have written to Col. Henry who has a gift for such things, but if you have any special information, you might send it along, too.
I’ve written Loomis about selling fruit at 180, & will discuss the matter next time I go down—next week. Personally, I think the stock worth 200, at least, as it pays 8% regularly with the extra 10% every little while. There does not seem to be any panic ahead, & I think the stock much more likely to go to 200 & stay there than to drop back to say 165.
I am also enclosing you the deed to the farm-house for signature and acknowledgment. The title has been reported on... [MTP].