September 12 Thursday – In Tuxedo Park, N.Y. Sam began a letter to Dorothy Quick who had left with Miss Lyon for New York City. Clemens added to the letter on Sept. 13 and 14. “Dorothy dear, you are gone, & I am dissatisfied” [MTAq 62].
Isabel Lyon’s journal: Today I took Dorothy to New York and went on up to Redding to see Lyonesse and the King’s house. But before I left Tuxedo the King said in substance “I see that Robert Porter is coming in on the Lusitania, we’ll send him a wireless and have him here for over Sunday. He won’t come, but we’ve done our duty when we send that message.” William met me on the N.Y. side, put me on my train and I was met by Lounsbury at the little Redding station. As we drove along L pointed laconically to a height in the distance, and there the King’s house stood, supreme and lovely, for he outlines are all up and it is going to be beautiful. But Lyonesse is my delight. Eugene Adams is working away at it. The triple windows are in and the shingling is 2 parts done and when Adams tore off the plaster from the ceiling in the long room he revealed what will be a most beautiful old oak ceiling, for the beams are splendid and the flooring above is a darling color. It is going to be glorious. The bed from Halifax is stretched along on its side up stairs (they had to put it in the house while the side of the house was open). It’s posts are 7½ feet high, and the ceilings are 6¾ feet, so it must be cut down and I’ll use the cut out part for little table legs. I climbed up into the King’s house, and the scaling of those ladders and the descending by way of them was a night-mare-like journey for me [MTP TS 103]. Note: Robert Percival Porter.
George Grantham Bain wrote to ask Sam if Charles Duprez, their photographer, could take some pictures of Clemens at home in Tuxedo. Bain reminded Sam of his promise to extend the courtesy [MTP]. Note: Bain syndicated articles for ten US papers and several in Europe.
William Webster Ellsworth wrote on Century Co. notepaper to thank Sam for $50 sent in support of the Pond boy. “S.L. Clemens Esq., —I mean Doctor of something, but I can’t remember just what, —deserves to be Doctor of Everything” [MTP].
Howells & Stokes wrote to enclose a bill of $209.35 from Harry Lounsbury for materials [MTP].
Florence Duncan Jones wrote from Boston to ask Sam about some mss. she’d sent on Mrs. Eddy. Lyons had asked “about a month ago” if “she could keep thme a little longer.” She’d used “G. Mann” as a pseudonym [MTP].
Julia Langdon Loomis wrote regrets to Sam that it was “near impossible” for them to get away this fall [MTP].
John W. Postgate wrote from Cambridge, England to Sam. Postgate was a stranger to Clemens; a lecturer on comparative syntax in Greek and Latin. Postgate recalled as a student ordering the Select Works of Mark Twain and having it pass by “father’s ignorance” as a “classic.” Congratulations on his degree. Postgate was interested in dramatizing JA [MTP].
Clemens A.D. for this day is listed by MTP.