April 16 Sunday – Sam wrote from Hartford to Moncure Conway. Evidently Bliss had given it to Sam straight about progress on the pictures, for Sam told Conway:

Just as I feared, Tom Sawyer is not yet ready to issue. Would not be ready for 2 weeks or longer, yet. Therefore the spring trade is lost beyond redemption. Consequently I have told Bliss to issue in the autumn & make a Boy’s Holiday Book of it.

Sam furnished the prices for the full set of plates at $2 per page, a total of about $600. Sam advised Conway to get the May Atlantic when it hit London; that he might be able to use Howells’ review of the book in his marketing [MTLE 1: 43].

William Wright (Dan De Quille) wrote to Sam about advising Bliss that he’d sent “a picture of Old Comstock” and others to Clemens. He added other details about his book in progress, and also told of “Joe” arriving there on May 5. “They say he is worth at least $1,000,000. It seems he lost nothing in stocks. Mr. Coker, our book-keeper came up from San Francisco today…and he says Joe is ‘rich, very rich’ ” [MTP].