January – Die Meisterschaft, a 3-act bilingual play Sam wrote in 1886-7 for family entertainment ran with a few changes in Century Magazine [MTNJ 3: 333n95].

Sam’s answer to Brander Matthews’ article in the September 1887 New Princeton Review ran in the January issue of the magazine and was titled, “American Authors and British Pirates” [Budd, Collected 1: 1022]. Gribben calls it a “querulous, antagonistic reply to Matthew’s article” [458]. The article included a letter to Matthews, in response to his Sept. 1887 piece, “An Open Letter to Close a Correspondence” in the same publication. Neider calls the “tone of his article, its sauciness and its rich style” worthy of preserving [MT Life as I Find It 219n]. For example, addressing Matthews’ arguments, Sam criticized American authors who didn’t take the time and effort to copyright their works in England, yet complained about being pirated:

In your dozen pages you mention a great many injured American authors, and a great many pirated American books. Now here is a thing which is the exact truth about all of those books and all of those authors: such of the books as were issued before England allowed us copyright, suffered piracy without help; and at the very same time, five times as many English books suffered piracy without help on our side of the water. The one fact offsets the other; and the honors are easy — the rascalities, I mean. But, such of those American books as were issued after England allowed us copyright, and yet suffered piracy, suffered it by their authors’ own fault, not England’s nor anybody else’s. Their injuries are of their own creation, and they have no shadow of right to set up a single whimper. Why, I used to furnish a sick child in West Hartford with gratis milk; do you know, that cub’s mother wasn’t satisfied, but wanted me to come over there and warm it? I may be out in my calculations, but I don’t believe England is going to warm the milk for this nursery over here [223; also in Budd’s Collected 1: 927].

The Brooklyn Eagle, p.7 “MAGAZINES AND BOOKS” reported on The New Princeton Review for January:

“American Authors and British Pirates” is a racy correspondence between Mark Twain and Brander Matthews, which, however, does not clear up or advance much the practical arrangement of the copyright question, about which it is written.

Though the article’s arguments centered on international copyright, also noteworthy is Sam’s evolution of thought regarding the Negro and slavery. In Mark Twain: Social Philosopher Budd quotes Sam’s reference to past abuses of slaves in the work:

 …we used to own our brother human beings, and used to buy them and sell them, lash them, thrash them, break their piteous hearts — and we ought to be ashamed of ourselves [94].

The Hartford Lawn Club receipted Sam for $25 for a year’s dues, signed by Lucius F. Robinson, Treasurer [MTP].