January 18 Sunday – The New York Times, p.21, “Autographs at Auction” reported various letters sold and prices. Two of Mark Twain’s letters sold:
Two letters by Mark Twain sold, respectively, for $2.25 and $ 2.50. One was dated 1869 and in it he says: “I never will lecture outside of New England again, and I never will lecture in Brooklyn at all.” The other is in regard to a lecture in Buffalo: “I mortally hate that G.A.R. there. I once gave them a packed house, free of charge, and they never even had the common politeness to thank me” [Note: both letters were to James Redpath, on Dec. 6, 1869 and Sept. 15, 1871 respectively].
Sam’s notebook entry contains another list of names, but these are not literary persons Sam had known, as he’d listed on Jan 16 & 17: “John Hay, Noah Brooks, Riley, Commodore Smith, Cap. Ned Wakeman, Col. (What was his name)—shot Josh McNab—he told me the Vigilantes were after him / Slade” [NB 46 TS 7].