September 1 Monday – Sam wrote from Elmira to Charles Webster. Frank Bliss had offered terms too difficult for Sam’s plan of offering a discount for a paired sale of Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer, so Sam commented that the “question appears to answer itself.” The Frank Coker News Co. of Talledega, Ala. had been running ads for Mark Twain books in Frank Leslie’s Newspaper—Sam asked Webster to “send me pirate ads which are calculated to enrage me.” All the bothersome details had robbed Sam of any productive writing time.

This is the first summer which I have lost. I haven’t a paragraph to show for my 3-months’ working-season. But there was no help for it—been in the doctor’s [& dentist’s] hands the greater part of the time….We shall reach our hotel the evening of Sept. 16. And thenceforward we can meet when there is business to be discussed—it is the only good way….Do not imagine from anything in this, that I misappreciate you. No, I am at loggerheads with myself [MTLTP 179]. See Sept. 16 to Twichell for purpose at the doctor’s.

Sam also wrote to James B. Pond, advising the family’s plan was to reach their hotel in New York “the night of the 16th & remain 2 or 3 days” [MTP].

Frank E. Bliss wrote to Clemens, after being absent found Twain’s letter of Aug. 26 about suing the Coker Co. Bliss explained they would have to prove “the defendant knew that our books were copyrighted” and so begged off; they’d tried to serve notice but Talledega was out of the way and not an easy thing to find a competent lawyer to serve them [MTP].

Charles Webster wrote twice to Clemens: shouldn’t they copyright the new book? Agents appointed for HF; furnace work under way; he finally caught John T. Raymond at 10 pm [MTP].

Worden & Co. Sent statement of a/c Aug. 31 bal $13,693.70 [MTP].