May 18 Thursday – A.H. Mead wrote from New Haven to say he was going to “let the law take its course in Gladding’s case.” He theorized that Ira Gladding had intercepted Sam’s letter and took the money [MTP].
May 17 Wednesday – Eighteen-year-old Charles S. Babcock wrote from Cambridge, Mass:
Mr. Clemens / Dear Sir, / I am going to make bold to ask of you a great favor. I wish to publish a small sheet, say, about 16×22 inches—divided into four pages of three columns each.
May 16 Tuesday – Sam sent a postcard from Hartford to Elisha Bliss, asking if the pictures were ready to ship and giving Moncure Conway’s London address. Sam received a postal card reply, sometime shortly thereafter as mentioned in his next letter to Conway [MTLE 1: 61-62].
The front page of the New York Evening Post of May 16, 1876:
The Atlantic Monthly.
May 15 Monday – Sam wrote from Hartford to Charles Casey in Ireland. Casey was the supposed president of the “Mark Twain Club” of Pollerton Castle, Carlow, in Ireland. Casey had even sent detailed “official proceedings.” Sam saw through Casey’s “club” and guessed that he was the only member.
May 12 Friday – Reginald Cholmondeley wrote on the S.S. Argo. “When you come to England next year I wish you would be kind enough to bring me a collection of live North American birds & you had better on your arrival come on straight to me in March or April” [MTP]. Note: evidently Reginald was serious; see July 2 letter.
May 11 Thursday – James R. Osgood wrote, having missed Sam when he was in Boston on Monday. He’d just read Sam’s “conscience article” [Carnival of Crime; see May 16] and, like everything he wrote, seemed to be the best. “Why don’t you let me put some of your short articles into our Vest Pocket Series? It would do us both good” His “object” was to invite for an excursion by rail where they “can play euchre all night Friday!” [MTP]. Note: Sam wrote on top of the letter, “Request granted for Vest Pocket Series”
May 10 Wednesday – Sam returned home at midday [Twichell to Sam May 8; Lilly Warner to George Warner May 9 and 10; cited MTPO].
Sam wrote to E.B. Hewes, warden at the Conn. State Prison at Wethersfield, inquiring about one Ira Gladding, whom he’d been encouraged to underwrite with a second chance. Sam’s letter is not extant but referred to by Hewe’s reply of May 12. See Hewe’s reply and also A.H. Mead’s request of May 12 and reply of May 15.
May 9 Tuesday – No further Boston activities were found.
Mary (Mollie) B. Shoot (stage name: Florence Wood) wrote from NYC, enclosing a playbill for her upcoming appearance there. She’d noticed Sam’s recent stage role:
I saw in the “Herald” that you were a grand success as “Peter Spyk”. Pray accept my congratulations (though it is late in the day to offer them.)
May 8 Monday – Sam invited the Howellses and the Aldriches to join the Clemenses and Joe Twichell to share his box for Anna Dickinson’s “disastrous performance” of A Crown of Thorns, or Ann Boyleyn in Boston [MTHL 1: 134]. Neither Livy nor Twichell made the trip, the latter canceling due to arriving house guests, Dean and Sarah Sage.
May 7 Sunday – Sam traveled to Boston along with Joe Twichell; Livy stayed home to nurse Susy, who was recovering from “about the savagest assault of diphtheria a child ever did recover from” [MTHL 1: 117; 133; 136]. They probably met at the Parker House as planned and enjoyed dinner.