January 6 Wednesday – Sam wrote from Hartford, again to the H.O. Houghton & Co., thanking them for the present of his subscription to the Atlantic Monthly. He added a PS:

“I appreciate the voluntary compliment of being paid more than better men, but then I am trying to deserve it. This is rare among writers.”

Note: Sam was being paid $20 per page for the “pilot articles,” or about $140 per article, greater than the normal rate. For Sam the money meant far less than the status of appearing in a foremost literary magazine. Again, it was a badge of respectability—Sam wanted to be, and was, far more than a platform humorist and comedy writer. After years of declining circulation and increased competition, Howells snapped up Sam’s writing, for he was widely known and admired [MTL 6: 339].