August 6 Thursday – After lying 24 hours in the Capitol at Albany, Grant’s casket, was put on a train for the six-hour ride to New York City. The train slowed passing West Point for the cadets to salute. Once in the city, where tens of thousands waited, the casket was taken to City Hall, where it lay in state another 24 hours [Perry 229].

Sam telegraphed from New York to Livy that he’d just received her dispatch about his going to New York City. Sam also wrote two letters to Livy. The first began at midnight of Aug. 5-6, and told of the events of Aug. 5. Sam doubted he could go to Hartford, but if he did, he agreed to obey her “orders.”

Sam spent “an hour or two” at the Fifth Avenue Hotel with both Grant families. People dropped by to pay their condolences, many of whom Sam:

…had met before; among them General Sherman & his brother the Senator General Sheridan, General Van Vliet. Ex-President Hayes also came in. By & by I went to a private room with the Shermans & Gen. Van Vliet, & talked army life & anecdotes & Grant & the war; for an hour, over whisky & cigars, & had a very good time. Stumbled on Watterson & some other friends in the lobby…[MTP].

From Sam’s notebook:

Talked an hour with Gen. Sherman. He spoke in terms of prodigious praise of Gen. Grant’s military genius. “Never anything like it before.” I think those were his words. But he said this talk of Grant’s never listening to indelicate stories was bosh. Said he had seen Grant listen & laugh by the hour at Governor (Jim) Nye’s yarns. They were seldom delicate, as I well remember [MTNJ 3: 171]

Sam also wrote a short note to Thomas Corwin Donaldson (1843-1893), collector of Americana and a close friend to ex-President Hayes, enclosing ten dollars. Donaldson had a great interest in Walt Whitman, writing a biography of Whitman in 1896, and I suspect Sam’s letter made reference to Whitman:

“I comply instantly, with thanks for letting me in. I have a great veneration for the old man, & would be glad to help pay his turnout’s board, year after year, & buy another when it fails. The secret is safe with me—I shall not speak of it to anyone [MTP]. Note: Walt Whitman (1819-1892). Donaldson was taking up a collection to buy Whitman a new horse and phaeton (see Sept. 15 entry).

Cammie Bowling wrote to ask his advise and influence in changing from elocution to drama as a career [MTP]. Note: Sam wrote on the env., “Addie Gentry’s daughter. / Told her how to proceed” Addie boarded with the Clemens family one winter in Hannibal.