July 29 Monday – In Tuxedo Park, N.Y. Sam wrote to George Parsons, Mayor of Cairo, Illinois.

I thank you heartily for the high compliment of the invitation, & I would accept it at once if I could make the trip in a ship, but as that is not possible I am obliged to decline it. To me a land journey is the perfection of discomfort, & I am not expecting to try another one until I go in a hearse. A hearse with rubber tires, too, or I cancel the excursion. I hope you will have a good time: indeed I am able to predict that you will [MTP].

Sam also wrote to H.H. Rogers.

Dear Uncle Henry— / I am in bed again and out of temper. Bronchitis. It is from the slightest of slight colds, caught at sea on the 17th & now a dozen days old. It almost disappeared when I reached Tuxedo, but it hit me hard Thursday evening, & by Friday evening I was in D . Rushmore’s hands. He has modified it—the first time a doctor has performed that miracle.

Be it prudent or imprudent, I mean to get up tomorrow: There’s company coming Wednesday, & Friday, & next Tuesday, & I wish to resume life.

Miss Lyon has been to town to-day & brings news from No. 26 [Rogers’ address] that confirms Mrs. Rogers’s telegram & discredits the exaggerations of the newspapers regarding your attack. Good. I was pretty uneasy at first.

Will you please tell Mary & Harry the Clevelands can’t go, on account of Mr. Cleveland’s half- wrecked health. And so the Choates will probably be our guests. Choate promised to fill the breach if Mr. Cleveland should fail us.

The enclosed note from the Lady Mayoress will prove to you—which my unassisted word could not do—that I obeyed your commands & went to Liverpool. I did most profoundly dread the journey & the banquet & the reception, but it came out all right, & I was very glad I went. Mr. Lancaster sat opposite me at table & was very pleasant & friendly, & I was glad of a chance to foregather with him.

Monday. Harvey is coming this evening. He & I were going to sail to Bermuda tomorrow for a couple of weeks, but it turns out that he can’t. He thinks Deal Beach will set me up, & so I am to go there, 7 or 8 days from now & stay a week or ten days.

With love to all the lovely tribe …. [MTHHR 630-1]. Note: Margaret C. Japp (Mrs. John Japp) was the Lord Mayoress of Liverpool who gave Sam a letter of thanks for speaking there.

Isabel Lyon’s journal: I went early to town with AB and we talked hard all the way down.

I delivered to Ashcroft shares of U.S. Steel Stock to be sold.

I carried ms. (auto.) from Miss French to the Lincoln Safety Deposit Vaults.

I went to Boyagians to see my rugs & attended to the sealing up of the house, beside doing many other things and AB lunched with me at the Lafayette and we drove around together doing errands and at the station we met Long—Suchi Long [MTP 88]. Note: Long is not further identified.

Isabella Stotts Bohon wrote from Roseville, Ill. to ask for a personal letter from Sam [MTP]. Note: On or after July 29 Lyon replied for and also quoted Sam.

Mr. Clemens has been so very busy since his return from England that he has been unable to answer any letters, therefore he asks me to write for him & say that he is sorry he cannot grant your request. “but that by a very strict contract with my publishers I am not permitted to write that kind of note, because it could by accident get into print & cost $500 fine.”

Then Mr. Clemens dictated further: “I escorted you to church once in Keokuk. I remember it very well. It was a trifle over fifty years ago, & you were seventeen. I believe it was the first time I ever went to church; it was either the first time or the last time, I don’t know which. You were very good & lovable in those days, & I think you have remained so ever since.” Ï

Mr. Clemens does not often have old books of his in the house [MTP].

H.A. Dann wrote from Buffalo, NY to ask Sam about a story of a dog—where could he get it? [MTP]. Note: IVL: “Answd. July 31, ‘07”

Johannes Hoops, Professor of English Lit. wrote from Heidelburg to ask Sam for a visit to his school, since Clemens (he thought) was still in Europe [MTP]. Note: IVL: “Answd Aug. 19,‘07”

Frederick Ohrenschall for The Children’s Fresh Air Society wrote from Baltimore to ask Sam to give a lecture for their cause [MTP]. Note: IVL: “Answd Aug. 26, ‘07”