October 10 Tuesday – Sam completed the plot for his contribution to Ah Sin, a collaboration with Bret Harte for a stage play [MTLE 1: 124].

In Cambridge, Mass., Howells wrote a short note to Sam, asking for “at least a spitting your spite at somebody or something” for the “Contributors’ Club,” a new feature of pieces published anonymously [MTHL 1: 156]. Note: Howells added this feature as a way to prop up declining circulation of Atlantic. The feature was fun for contributors and readers alike, who would guess who wrote the articles.