February 21 Friday – Sam wrote from Washington, D.C. to his mother, Jane Clemens and family.

“I was at 224 first—Stewart is there yet—I have moved five times since—shall move again, shortly. Shabby furniture & shabby food—that is Washn —I mean to keep moving….I couldn’t accept the Postoffice—the book contract was in the way—I could not go behind that—& besides, I did not want the office” [MTL 2: 195-6].

Sam also wrote his brother Orion, who was setting type for the St. Louis Missouri Democrat as a substitute.

“I am in for it. I must go on chasing them—until I marry—then I am done with literature & all other bosh, —that is, literature wherewith to please the general public. I shall write to please myself, then. I hope you will set type till you complete that invention…”

Notes: Orion had put together a wood-sawing machine. However, upon patent application, he discovered that such a machine had already been invented. More importantly, this letter shows that Sam continued to play the life of the bachelor in the months following his introduction to Olivia Louise Langdon [MTL 2: 197-8]. Powers cites a letter to Mollie Clemens for this date, which he says was “smothered in private files by Paine” for the reason of perpetuating the falsehood that Sam, once he’d met Livy, did not have much to do with other females [Powers, MT A Life 230].

Note: In July, 2007 at the MTP I transcribed the letter Powers refers to, from the “drop-in” letters. Here is an excerpt:

I was glad to hear from so many friends whose names are familiar to my memory—Ick, & the Ellas, Al. Patterson’s folks, India, your parents, Belle,—why, it is a party in itself! And Miss Mason—will you borrow a mustache & kiss her once for me—or several times?

I received a dainty little letter from Lou Conrad [Louisa I. Conrad], yesterday. She is in Wisconsin. But what worries me is that I have received no letter from my sweetheart in New York for three days [Emma Beach?]. This won’t do. I shall have to run up there & see what the mischief is the matter. I will break that girl’s back if she breaks my heart. I am getting too venerable now to put up with nonsense from children.

…

I rather expect to go with Mr. Burlingame on his Chinese Embassy—you know he is a tip-top good friend of mine—but for goodness sake don’t hint of this to the home folks. I would never hear the last of it. Cuss this cussed place—I am precious tired of it. There is no fun but receptions, & nobody there but stupid old muffs of Generals & Senators, who talk their plagued war & politics to me when I had rather hear Greek. When they have what they call “reunions” they are pleasant enough & are full of jollity.

The State of Illinois had one last night, & Oregon gives one at Senator Corbett’s Monday night. These suit me well. The invitations are special, & not more than a hundred to a hundred & fifty are invited. They are not crowded to death like the receptions. I like the banquets better than anything, but they do not occur often [MTP, drop-in letters].