March 8 Tuesday – In Menton, France Sam wrote to Elisabeth N. Fairchild (Mrs. Charles S. Fairchild) in Boston, late neighbors of the Howellses. Mrs. Fairchild had written (not extant) to Sam in Berlin, to introduce him to a Mr. Gebbord. Her letter obviously contained word of William Dean Howells and his depression:

Your letter overtook us here, & we shall not be in Berlin again until next fall or winter; but we shall hope that Mr. Gebbord will come & see us then.

Oh, I know! I know! But there is no help; nothing will ever cheer Howells up again; his heart is buried in Winnie’s grave. Aldrich will always grow younger till he dies, no doubt; & we know that Dr. Holmes will.

Sam’s PS noted that his paper was soiled, but no problem, he had an envelop to match [MTP].

Sam also wrote two letters to Frederick J. Hall, the first advising that he and Livy would “remain here 2 or 3 weeks.” Sam accepted that the “trade sees no promise in the Game” (Mark Twain’s Memory Builder) and regretted putting his name to it. His advice: “put it away until some indefinite time in the far future.” Sam wanted Hall to focus on more important matters. He mentioned he’d cabled and agreed with Hall’s “purposes concerning the ‘Claimant’ book.” He liked Hall’s January statement and was glad Hall was done with W.E. Dibble, the hiring of whom was Charles Webster’s last official act for Webster & Co. (see Feb. 25, 1887 entry) [MTLTP 307].

In the second letter to Hall, Sam enclosed the Mar. 2 letter from Robert McClure, brother of Samuel S. McClure (see entry). Sam asked Hall to “preserve” McClure’s letter as “proof” that he’d “completed the McClure contract.” Sam clarified that McClure’s letter referred to his Europe letter number six concerning Berlin, not number five [MTP].

Sam and Livy wrote to Annie Trumbull, who had sent a newspaper column, “The Club Corner.” Sam was glad she was “fixed” with “a newspaper just to edit after” her “own fashion,” and that she was “doing it first rate.” Sam commented on a couple of other matters, which Annie had obviously mentioned in her last letter (not extant).

I’m going to try the game — Observation — & see what I can do at it. Just nothing, I suppose. What I notice I don’t remember, & I seldom notice anything anyway.

I dropped Dr. Root a line [Mar. 5] to congratulate him. But I ought rather to drop a line to the Club to congratulate them.

Dear me, but we are having a secluded good time here, Livy & I all by ourselves — just us two & the ocean, which is booming at our door. We shall rest & lazy around & read & smoke here 3 or 4 weeks. / With very much love — [Note: Dr. Edward K. Root was a Hartford physician who often treated the Clemenses].

Livy also wrote of their time in Menton, and her antipathy to English tourists:

As Mr. Clemens wrote we are having a delightfully quiet time here. We went out today to look on at the Battle of Flowers. Many of the carriages were perfectly beautiful in their tasteful arrangement.

This hotel is filled with English people. Such plainness, such countrified dressing such gauche gates I have never before in my life seen. I hope next time to be in a hotel with fewer English. Even if we do not know any of the people it will be more gratifying to ones aesthetic sense [MTP].

Note: To celebrate Menton’s roots in citrus fruit cultivation, the town hosts her Fête des Citrons (lemon festival) once per year, a carnival called “The Battle of Flowers.”