September 16 Monday – Sam and group left Damascus at noon, and camped that night at Kefr Hauwar. Meanwhile, the QC arrived at Mt. Carmel at 10 AM and left again at noon, arriving at Jaffa (now part of Tel Aviv) at 8 PM.
September 15 Sunday – From Sam’s notebook:
September 14 Saturday – Sam and group arrived at Damascus.
September 13 Friday – Sam and group broke camp at 6:30 AM and visited Baalbek before returning south to camp at Sirghaya.
September 12 Thursday – The group broke camp at 6:30 AM and stayed that night near Zahlah, about two thirds of the way between Beirut and Baalbek. From Sam’s notebook:
“Passed up the Valley & camped on l. side under the dews of Hermon. –first passing through a dirty Arab village & visiting the tomb of Noah, of Deluge notoriety” [MTNJ 1: 417].
September 11 Wednesday – Clemens, Dr. George Birch, William Church, Joshua Davis, William Denny, Julius Moulton, Dan Slote, and Jack Van Nostrand left Beirut, Lebanon on horseback at 3 PM. They camped that night about ten miles east of the city.
September 10 Tuesday – QC arrived at Beirut before dawn.
September 8 Sunday – From Sam’s notebook: “Isle of Samos St. Paul. Isle of Patmos St John’s Revelations. Isle of Rhodes, where the Colossus stood. St. Paul. Isle of Cyprus—Be at Beirut Sept. 10” [MTNJ 1: 416].
Sam’s “Holy Land Excursion. Letter from Mark Twain Number Six” dated July 16 ran in the Alta California [McKeithan 41-7].
September 7 Saturday – Skandera gives this as the date Sam first saw the miniature of Olivia Langdon. Note: She cites Dewey Ganzel, 1968, who cites Sam’s reminiscences, which did not include a date. Still, this may indeed be the very date.
September 6 Friday – QC passengers, including Sam, visited Ephesus in the day. QC departed Smyrna at 11 PM.