June 12 Sunday – Clemens wrote to Dwight H. Buell asking if he might buy stock in the typesetter early. This letter not extant but referred to in Buell’s June 14 reply.

June 11 Saturday – Sam said goodbye to his West Point friends and returned to Hartford.

At Hartford Sam wrote to John Henton Carter (“Commodore Rollingpin”) of St. Louis, giving him permission to use “any published sketch of mine you choose,” but Sam added that he couldn’t “furnish anything new,” being “limited by existing contracts” [MTP].

June 10 Friday – Sam attended the West Point graduation exercises for the class of 1881. He sat on the dais with the other dignitaries, even though he had no speaking role. General Christopher C. Augur gave the graduation address. There were other speakers as well, including Dr.

June 9 Thursday – Sam went with a party by train to West Point for graduation festivities, otherwise known as “June Week.” The group included Joseph Twichell, General Sherman, Secretary of War Robert Lincoln (son of Abraham Lincoln) and a dozen others.

June 8 Wednesday – Clara Clemens’ seventh birthday.

Sam gave a speech at the Army of the Potomac Banquet, Allyn House, Hartford: “The Benefit of Judicious Training” was the toast that Sam responded to [Fatout, MT Speaking 151-4]. West Point was the example Sam gave as the basis for his advice:

“All I know about military matters I got from the gentlemen at West Point, and to them belongs the credit” [Leon 148].

June 7 Tuesday – Sam left the family in Branford, Conn. and went back to the Hartford house, which was being decorated for some sort of event. Sam wrote to Livy at 8:45 P.M. that he’d helped Mr. Beals to string flags of countries around the balconies, and nixed a giant arch that bore “letters as big as your head” spelling out “The Home of Mark Twain.” Katy Leary made up a bed for Sam on the study divan [MTP].

June 5 Sunday – Sam wrote from Branford, Conn. to Webster, confirming his legal actions taken (“…you did right to sue the quack”). Sam concluded that Slote had paid him only about a third ($1,800 or $2,000 per year) of what he should have received on the scrapbook invention [MTBus 160].