January 14 Friday – In Hartford Sam wrote to his sister, Pamela Moffett. This letter confirms the short trip to New York, probably to escort Olivia Lewis Langdon on the first leg of her trip to Elmira.

I had such a long talk with Charley that I failed on some of my (remotely possible) New York errands. I could have staid another day, but concluded I wouldn’t, because I should be going down again, soon. I am hoping that Livy & Jean will go with me; in which case we’ll arrange a visit & make a success of it. My intention this time was to return in the 11 o’clock train, but Charley’s neuralgia (which I did not know about), prevented that.

Sam also remarked on the “new offices” which “were worth missing a train for,” and added a note about the dinner party for the soon-to-be marrieds. Note: Paine writes:

“On the strength of the Grant success Webster had moved into still larger quarters at No.3 East Fifteenth Street, and had a ground floor for a salesroom. The force had become numerous and costly. It was necessary that a book should pay largely to maintain this pretentious establishment” [MTB 3:856].

On Jan. 10, Livy invited Dr. Edward K. Root to dinner to meet Miss Perkins and Mr. Hooker at “half past six o’clock” [MTP; Livy to her mother Jan. 13 identified Miss Perkins as Mary Perkins]. Sam to his sister on Jan. 14 identifies this as a “swell dinner party for a bride & bride-groom.” The good doctor Root has a casebook listed on http://library.uchc.edu/hms/mancol.html for genito-urinary and rectal diseases, 1880-1881. He might have provided some scintillating dinner conversation.

Note: searching Rootsweb found that Sidney Douglass Hooker (1855-1941) married Mary Russell Perkins (1857-1911) in Sackets Harbor, Jefferson, New York, birthplace of Sidney. Mary was the daughter of Sam’s prior attorney and Hartford friend, Charles Enoch Perkins. Sidney was an Episcopal clergyman, a graduate of Trinity College, where Joe Twichell studied. (See also The Descendants of Rev. Thomas Hooker by Edward Hooker p 286, 1909, Rochester N.Y.).

Sam also wrote to Lester Wallack, N.Y. theater owner, declining an invitation to some gathering or show on a Sunday, but as Sam explained, there were no Sunday trains to New York:

…that grace is denied us. I should have to go down on Saturday & return Monday, & I could not venture to spare so large a block of time from my work, since I am more busy & hurried this winter than usual. In New England we keep the Sabbath — by compulsion. This gratifies the clergy, annoys the sinner, & doubtless amuses God [MTP]. Note: years later there was train service on Sundays to N.Y. Nevertheless, Sam did not like to travel on Sundays. Or perhaps Livy didn’t care for him to.

Sam also wrote to Mrs. Robert M. Yost, enclosing a cravat of his, and a story behind it. It seems Sam entered the house one day at noon and Livy, surprised, asked where he’d been. At Harriet Beecher Stowe’s he answered. Livy was distressed that he didn’t wear a cravat. Sam knew from Livy’s manner that he’d made some breach of manners, but thought of a way to fix it.

I went up stairs & wrote a note to Mrs. Stowe of a grave explanatory character, in which I said it was my custom to never go visiting in entirely full dress, lest the effect be too strong upon the person visited; I always went without my cravat; but inasmuch as the person visited might think I had no cravat, it was my custom to send the cravat later, by a trustworthy hand, with a request that after sufficient & satisfying inspection it be returned to me — with a receipt.

Then I put the cravat on a fish-platter, & our colored butler [George Griffin] carried it over to Mrs. Stowe. She examined it, & returned it on the fish-platter, with a grave & at the same time felicitous receipt testifying her conviction of the genuineness of the cravat & the delirious joy the inspection of it had afforded her. As I said a while ago, I pinned the receipt to the cravat & put both away; but years have since elapsed, & meantime some appreciative person has walked off with that note [MTP].

Sam also thanked Mr. Yost for his “pleasant” letter.

Orion Clemens wrote from Keokuk enclosing the “back mortuary reports as far as they can be got,” which evidently, Sam had requested. Dr. Schaffer, whom Sam “spoke complimentarily of” had put Sam on the list for annual reports, and got lists from Paris, Mo. By an exchange agreement [MTP]. Note: Sam wanted to know who was dying in his old stomping grounds.

Karl Gerhardt wrote a short note about Sam’s letter of introduction to Gen. Lucius Fairchild: “What a beautiful letter. That ought to bring an order” [MTP].