May – Joe Twichell’s piece appeared as the lead article in the May issue of Harper’s Monthly Magazine as “Mark Twain.” Brander Matthews’ article, “The Penalty of Humor,” p. 897-900, also ran in the same magazine. Matthews thought Twain’s writing was uneven, but the best of it was very good; critics did an injustice if they dismissed him as merely a humorist. (Reprinted in The Twainian, XXX (Mar.-Apr. 1971 1-4)) [Tenney 25].

William Peterfield Trent’s article, “Mark Twain as an Historical Novelist” ran in Bookman (N.Y.) III, p.207-10. Most of the article focused on JA. Trent felt Twain failed as Joan and other characters were not brought to life; fortunately Twain made his contribution elsewhere, as in TS, and was “something far more than a man of letters, even a great one; he is something more than a mere humorist, even a thoroughly genial and whole-souled one — he is a great writer” [Tenney 25].