May 7 Monday – In Hartford, Sam typed a letter to Mary Mason Fairbanks, gently accusing her of not “caring any great deal about us or our sufferings” since she’d made several trips east without stopping by then retiring “stealthily west again without ever coming near us.” Livy had suffered through a bout of diphtheria, then quinsy (inflamed tonsils) and “several minor things,” and was now emaciated.

“I could shave with her shoulder blades; she has no more flesh than one of those old-fashioned hoop-skirts.”

Sam related Susy’s expressed disappointment at the recovery of two of Patrick Aleer’s children from scarlet fever, since she’d looked forward to “the experience of a funeral.”

“It would be worth your while to come here and study Susie. As a general thing her speeches sound about forty-five years old, and are prodigiously entertaining; but Clara is a perfectly natural child, with nothing remarkable about her; and the same may be said about Jean” [MTP].

Sam also wrote to Charles Webster, on details and plans: He paid the music-box bill this day; reminded Webster to have “that watch company’s note transferred to John Arnot”; and another reminder with address to write his Aunt Ella Lampton. Sam announced his trip to Boston and Canada the next day [MTP].

Sam also wrote a short note to the Gerhardts that Livy was sending a box of baby clothes for them with Mrs. Langdon’s medallion in it that they should have cast in bronze [MTP]. Note: Gerhardt made several medallions with images of people, likely in terra cotta.

Christian Tauchnitz, Jr. wrote about including Sketches in their Continental Ed. Thanking Sam for his Apr. 16. He asked for a good photo of Clemens [MTP].