August 20 Tuesday – Sam wrote from New York to Livy, after buying exchange for some English gold coins, buying a hat and books for the trip. Charley Langdon and wife Ida arrived at the hotel late. Charley brought two boxes of cigars from Theodore Crane for Sam. Sam wrote he was going to dinner with “the Harper’s Drawer man & Will M. Carleton the farm-ballad writer.” William A. Seaver (1813-1883) had written the “Editor’s Drawer” in Harper’s New Monthly Magazine since 1867 [MTL 5: 149-50]. The dinner was held by the Union League Club, and was arranged by John Hay. It may have been Sam’s introduction to both William A. Seaver and Will M. Carleton (1845-1912) [MTL 5: 150-1n3]

A letter from Edward H. House to Simon Sterne, attorney, introduced Sam on an important “matter of infringed copyright…as he sails tomorrow AM.” [ALS, Stowe-Day Library, Hartford].

Sam obtained a sight-draft from Henry Clews & Co. Bankers, New York, to London branch of Clews, Habicht & Co. for £260.6.6; pay to Saml L Clemens by E. Zeidler [MTP].

Half an inch of rain fell in New York [NOAA.gov].