August 17 Monday – In Redding, Conn. Sam wrote to Mary B. Rogers (Mrs. H.H. Rogers, Jr.).
Where are you at, Mariechen dear? I was in New York on the 4th & 5th—called there by the tragic death of my nephew—& I had half a glimpse of Harry for half a moment—maybe less than that—& so I did not learn how you are getting along. Very satisfactorily, I hope, & that you will drop me a line & say so. Those were a couple of sweltering days, & I got a violent bilious attack out of it after my return home. The hot weather, the heavy black clothes, the depressing funeral, & the spectacle of that crushed & broken-hearted family—altogether it was a ghastly episode.
I had a glimpse, also of Will Coe, & extracted a promise from him to bring Mrs. Coe here.
They will come in September, by automobile—60 miles, but they think nothing of the distance. Don’t you think you & Harry could do that? I do wish you would. This is a quiet place, on high ground, & you would flourish most wholesomely. And you wouldn’t have to play billiards till 3 in the morning, unless you felt that a little dissipation like that would do you good. Our women-guests go to bed at 10 or along there, it is only the men that are late birds. We have had 21 guests since June 27, & they’ve all survived. They say they like the place, & I am sure they do. I like it myself; I liked it from the start; & when I was in New York those hot days, I found I had ceased to like No. 21, so I canceled the lease, & now we are fetching its furniture up here; all but enough to furnish a small flat for Clara. Jean goes to Germany early in October, to be placed under a famous specialist in Berlin. And she is glad, for she likes Germany & the language.
Mrs. Rogers writes me from the mountains that Mr. Flagler is there & wants that series of photographs illustrative of the evolution of a moral principle in a person urgently desirous of being good. A Mr. Davies, a friend of his, carried off his series. I remember it. It all comes back to me now. You had a set; & you were to send it to him & I was to have another set made for you. I reckon you forgot it, but it’s all right, I will attend to it. At bottom I thought he was joking, anyway.
Come—dash me off a line & tell me how you are.
These—from your oldest relative & the one who loves you best— / Your uncle / Mark [MTP].
Note: Henry M. Flagler; see earlier from.
Isabel Lyon’s journal: “The King ate watermelon and became an aquaduct. Miss Julia Stanford, Mr. Driggs and 3 girls came over by [the] mobile to salute the King, but Miss Julia really came to see me” [MTP: IVL TS 60]. Note: Silas W. Driggs.
George B. Harvey wrote to Sam enclosing an unspecified “communication and my endorsement.” Harvey also suggested Sam come down during the Asbury Park Carnival where 100,000 people were expected. “Please let me know as soon as you decide so that I can post the committee” [MTP]. Note: IVL: You can post them No, the doctors wont let me leave here until the first frost”; Sam’s reply is dated Aug. 19?
John B. Stanchfield wrote from NYC to Lyon c/o Clemens: “I directed Brentano to forward you a Perplexity Puzzle this morning. When the combined talent of your house shall have worked it to a correct solution, I wish you would express it to me in Babylon, as we have not had this one yet, and I will send you one of ours from that place” [MTP].