May 19 Saturday – Frederick J. Hall for Webster & Co. wrote Sam a long letter about “certain glaring defects in the organization of our Subscription Department.” He objected to the manners and appearance of W.E. Dibble, hired by Webster, and urged he be replaced. With Webster gone, Hall felt he could not give much time to the subscription department. Both Sam and Hall were conscious of the connection in the public mind of Sheridan’s Memoirs with Grant’s Memoirs. “The way we handle [Sheridan’s book] will either increase the good reputation made on the ‘Grant Memoirs’ or destroy it,” Hall wrote, adding that the public was tiring of “war-literature,” which made it imperative to produce a quality product [MTNJ 3: 388n297&298]. Note: Dibble remained manager through the end of the year.

Zadel Barnes Gustafson wrote to Sam having put off her departure, reminding of his May 13 [MTP].