May 7 and 9 Saturday – The Boston Herald ran an article publicizing Sam’s complaints against George W. Cable in their recent reading tour, “Personal Peculiarities of a Well Known Author.” Sam remained silent on these accusations of stinginess and inconvenience caused to others as a result of Cable’s refusal to travel on Sundays. It wasn’t until ten years later that Sam came out against such claims, which Fatout asserts were generated by Sam’s talk with others [Circuit 228-31].

May 6 Wednesday – Ulysses S. Grant wrote to Adam Badeau, saying “you and I must give up all association so far as the preparation for any literary work goes which bears my signature.” Sam was fully behind Grant’s action [Perry 200]. Sam and Grant knew that Badeau had likely planted the story in the New York World claiming that Grant’s book was written by a ghost-writer. Perry claims Mark Twain was that ghost-writer [202].

May 5 Tuesday – Sam wrote a short note from Hartford to Orion, enclosing a letter from a relative he had “no shred of remembrance of. …maybe you & Ma may like to read her letter. All well & send love” [MTP]. Note: see Apr. 24: Clemma L. Bradley (nee Lampton) from McKinney, Texas.

May 4 Monday – James Redpath wrote to arrange a meeting in NYC. “If you are to be down on a Thursday I wish to take you to the Twilight Club”. He offered several other plans [MTP]. Note: this is clearly a reply to a non-extant letter by Clemens.

May 3 Sunday – In Hartford, Sam wrote to Charles Webster. He’d “watched closely” and had “not seen a single reference to the World’s lie in any newspaper” (The New York World’s lie about Grant—see Apr. 30 entry). He realized that if no other papers copied the report, that suing them would only give “that daily issue of unmedicated closet-paper” publicity.

May 2 Saturday – From Susy’s unfinished biography:

The next morning we rose early, took an early train for Hartford and reached Hartford at ½ past 2 o’clock. We were very glad to get back [MTA 2: 171].

May 1 Friday – Sam spoke at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York, for their Founder’s Day, reading the popular “Trying Situation” and “Golden Arm” [Fatout, MT Speaking 656].

From Susy’s unfinished biography (her spelling):

May – Sam’s article “What Ought he to Have Done?” ran in the May issue of Babyhood [Lou Budd’s list furnished by Thomas Tenney and citing Branch]. Note: this piece also ran in The Christian Union, July 16, 1885 [Camfield, bibliog.]. It was also reprinted in the July 21 Courant as “Mark Twain on the Government of Children.” Susy Clemens reported that upon reading the piece, Livy was “shocked an

April 30 Thursday – From Susy Clemens’ unfinished biography (her spelling):

…mamma planned to take the four-o’clock car back to Hartford. We rose quite early that morning and went to the Vienna Bakery and took breakfast there. From there we went to a German bookstore and bought some German books for Clara’s birthday.

April 29 Wednesday – Sam gave a reading on this second day at Madison Square Theater, Author’s Reading given for the Longfellow Memorial, an entertainment managed by George Parsons Lathrop (1851-1898). Charles Eliot Norton introduced the readers [MTB 817]. Note: Paine mistakenly identifies this event as “early May.”