December 13 Thursday – Howells spoke on Venice at the Clemens house to an “extra” meeting of the Saturday Morning Girls’ Club. Twichell also attended [Twichell’s journal, Yale].

From Twichell’s journal, of the events of Dec. 12 and 13 (written Dec. 14):

To M.T.’s to dinner with H[armony]. The special occasion was the presence of W.D. Howells the author, who came to town two days since to lecture. We heard the lecture on Gibbon and the next morning I attended an extra meeting of the (girls) Sat. morning Club at M.T.’s where Mr. Howells talked most charmingly about Venice.

I had to leave the dinner table to go abut my Thursday evening duties and returned only in time to take H. home. W.D.H. is the most pleasing personality of all the literary folks I have met. He seems to be a downright and simple good man. There are certain Christian flavors about him that one perceives yet can hardly describe [Yale, copy at MTP].