August – At Quarry Farm in Elmira, N.Y. Sam inscribed his photograph with an aphorism to an unidentified person: “It is never too late to mend. There is no hurry. / Truly Your friend / Mark Twain ‘ New York, August 1908” [MTP].
August or September – In N.Y.C. Sam wrote to daughter Clara in Elmira.
Dear Ben, I expect to beat this letter home, but I don’t know yet.
July 1 Wednesday – At 8:30 a.m. Sam, Livy, and her trained nurse, Miss Margaret Sherry, left the Riverdale house and went down the hill to get on a launch. From the launch to Rogers’ yacht Kanawha, then down river to the Lackawanna R.R. dock at Hoboken, the group made the 10 a.m. train for the long ride to Quarry Farm in Elmira. They arrived at 4:40 p.m. Clara and Jean were to follow them the first week in August. In his July 2 to the Huttons Sam described the trip, and put it to this day:
June 12 Friday – Sam was in Fairhaven, Mass. to confer with Rogers about business matters relating to Collier’s offers and arranging agreements between Collier’s, Harpers, and the American Publishing Co. Rogers had been recuperating from an appendectomy. Until this date, Livy had not been well enough to allow Sam to leave Riverdale. On June 15 Lyon wrote that Sam “came back this morning from a little visit with Mr.
June 3 Wednesday – Sam went to Hartford, planning to arrive there just after noon. He stayed at the Whitmore home [June 1 to Whitmore].
Thomas F. Gatts wrote to Sam.
Your esteemed favor of May 30th, received this morning. I assure you that we give due consideration to every word and sentence of your letter.
While we would very much like to develop the National Mark Twain Association into local and State reading clubs; but we humbly bow to the will and desire of the man whose name we all love to honor.
June 1, before – Sam wrote to Daniel Willard Fiske, asking help in finding a furnished villa near Florence, Italy. He divulged that he was also writing Mrs. Ross , (Janet D. Ross ) and that daughter Clara was also writing Miss Hall and Miss Blood to keep an eye out for a place “during the next 5 or 6 months.” Livy added a PS in the top margin: “Do you know of any very good physicians in Florence?”
May 16 Saturday – Sam went to Fairhaven, Mass. to visit H.H. Rogers, who was recovering from an appendectomy. The men played billiards, went on a ride, then after dinner Rogers took to his bed; Sam and William E. Benjamin (Rogers’ son-in-law) played more billiards till 11:30 p.m. [May 17 to Livy].
April, late or May early – Sam wrote a short essay, “Reflections on a Letter and a Book,” so titled later by Paine. The piece was a response to a letter and book sent him by Hilary Trent (aka R.M. Manley). Sam was often irritated by such requests to read literary works, and took this instance to wax ridicule on the selfishness of the human race [AMT 1: 181, 520n181.3].
April – Mark Twain’s humorous article “Instructions in Art” first ran in Metropolitan Magazine this month and in May, 1903. In part, with some of his drawings (inserts).
March and after – Alice Jane Chandler Webster (“Jean”) (1876-1916), daughter of the late Charles Luther Webster, and Sam’s great-niece, wrote When Patty Went to College, which was published in Mar. 1903 (see Gribben p. 753). Sam referred to this book in one of the notes slipped into Livy’s sickroom which dates it somewhat. Here is the note:
There, now, my darling, Clara was here a while ago & says I be’aved ’an’some & was a cherub. Praise from Sir Hubert! [ a popular expression]
February – In Riverdale, N.Y. Sam replied with one line to Frederick A. Duneka: “This is a most dam good Conclusion—put it in, Duneka / SLC” [MTP].
Prof. William Milligan Sloane wrote from NYC to Sam. “I want you here on March 5th at one o’clock to lunch with Sidney Lee and I want you very badly. Do come, there will be some of your best friends.” Hearing “conflicting accounts” of Livy, Prof. Sloane hoped she was no worse but much better [MTP].