February 28 Saturday – In Riverdale, N.Y. Sam wrote to H.H. Rogers.
Consound it, Clara tells me the Rices are coming here to dinner Tuesday Evening March 3, an engagement 2 weeks old, & swears she told me of it at the time–which is mere sickroom veracity; she never told me till to-day.
I am sorry to miss going with you to see the General, & so is Mrs. Clemens.
I thank you ever so much for getting me out of that jury business–I cannot stand jurying [MTHHR 520]. Note: n1 of source: “Clemens had been scheduled to attend a dinner at which Rogers and Salvation Army General William Booth were to be present.” Booth (1829-1912), British Methodist preacher, founded the Salvation Army in London in 1865.
William Dean Howells wrote to Sam after receiving a suggestion (Sam’s previous letter not extant) about the Stoddard-Harriott matter.
No, my dearest Clemens, I won’t. I was rather anxious to help Stoddard than to do justice on Harriott, and since Stoddard has not breathed one grateful blessing on our efforts, Harriott may go milk all the millionaires, for all me, of the last drop of human kindness in their iron dugs, before I will ask him to put the pail to the lips of that veteran babe and suckling. / Yours always [MTHL 2: 766].
Note: Howells and Sam had been trying to collect $400 owed to Stoddard (see earlier entries). Note 2 of this source: “As Howells remembered the end to this incident, ‘Clouds of sorrow had gathered about the bowed head of the delinquent since we began on him, and my fickle sympathies were turning his way from the victim who was really to blame for leaving his affairs so unguardedly to him the first place. Clemens made some sort of grim assent, and we dropped the matter” [MMT 88-9]. Charles Warren Stoddard and Frederick C. Harriott, the husband of actress Clara Morris.
Sam’s notebook: “A P H. [aphorism:] A pair in the hand is worth two in the deck” [NB 46 TS 11].
Paul Tyler wrote to Sam, complimenting him on his recent article on Christian Science in the NAR. The letter suffers bleed-through to the point of being nearly illegible [MTP].