August 9 Wednesday – Sam wrote from Elmira to Charles Webster.

K. [Kaolatype] flourishes, better & better, but the monthly drain has always remained about the same since its earliest days. By the way—was the Slote note collected last month?—am hanged if I can remember now whether it was or not. How do the K accounts stand, now? Let Marsh [George N. Marsh, Webster’s assistant at Kaolatype Co.] send me a statement—not one of these damned incomprehensible professional-technical debtor-&-creditor enigmas, which none but gods & bookkeepers can make head or tail of, but a plain sensible written-out statement of the case, which [baby] Jean can understand [MTBus 193].

Robert U. Johnson for Century Magazine wrote asking Sam for a series of articles on:

“Permanent Sources of Corruption in Our Government…the lobbying, logrolling, running primaries and conventions, R.R. pass system, establishment of newspapers to form public opinion, &c., &c., &c. We mean a serious exposition of the ways that are dark” [Emerson 135]. Note: Sam declined the offer.

Charles Webster wrote that he’d rec’d Sam’s letter and would go to see Laffan when he rec’d his answer. More on Osgood’s estimate and on costs per Bliss’s expenses [MTP].