Livy wrote from Florence to her mother:
This evening Mr & Mrs Chamberlain were in for an hour & we sat about a wood fire & chatted—then Mr
Clemens read to us—then to bed—where I am now—Florence is much more restful than Venice, because
we have no social demands—and one ought to know no one when they are visiting picture galleries—The
Chamberlains are a perfect delight, they never tax us in the least they are helpful to us and are bright
beyond expression [MTNJ 2: 226n19].
Mr. & Mrs. Augustus P. Chamberlaine were friends of Ralph Waldo Emerson. The Clemens met them
in Venice [220n10]