December 26 Thursday – In Morristown, New Jersey, Bret Harte wrote to Sam, complaining about William A. Kendall, the past “sick & needy poet” who Sam had taken up a collection for to gain passage from New York to California. Kendall had accused Harte of swindling contributors to the Overland.
December 24 Tuesday – Camfield gives this as the day the poem, “The New Cock-Robin “ ran in the Hartford Evening Post [bibliog.] and cites [Vogelback, “Control of Tribune” 377-80], but Vogelback only cites the Jan. 2 reprint in the Chicago Tribune [377]. Still, it is likely the Dec. 23 verse ran within a few days. Evidently, copies of the Evening Post are not available.
December 23 Monday – Sam wrote a poem for the Hartford Evening Post, “The New Cock-Robin” Answering the repeated question, “Who’s to be Editor of the Tribune” Sam suggested a different man for each verse. The Tribune had always been a favorite and even a critical paper for Sam’s need of good reviews. The poem ran in the Post on either this day or the next, and was reprinted later in several other major newspapers [MTL 5: 262]
December 21 Saturday – Sam’s article dated Dec. 3, “How I Escaped Being Killed in a Duel” ran in Every Saturday and in Tom Hood’s Comic Annual for 1873 [Camfield, bibliog.; Budd, “Collected” 1014].
Bill paid to Hartford Ice Co. 5,825lbs $23 [MTP]. Judging from other bill documents, the Clemens family went through this amount of ice every six months or so (see May 2, 1873 entry).
December 20 Friday – The Springfield Mass. Union ran a correspondent’s article about Twichell’s church, which included a description of Sam in attendance on Dec. 15.
Livy and Sam wrote from Hartford to Jane Clemens and family. Livy wrote of Christmas and gifts sent and her joy at plans for Jane Clemens and Annie Moffett to come for the holidays.
December 19 Thursday – It was Orion and Mollie’s one year anniversary, and they dined with Sam and Livy [Livy & Sam to Jane Clemens, Dec. 20].
Bill paid to W.L. Denning for repair of rocker & cradle $4 [MTP].
December 18 Wednesday – Bill paid to Moore, Weeks & Co., Hartford for repair of rocker & cradle $4 [MTP].
December 17 Tuesday – Sam wrote from Hartford to Thomas Nast, thanking him for his help for Charley (Charles M.) Fairbanks and complementing him on Nast’s Almanac.
“I wish you could go to England with us in May. Surely you could never regret it. I do hope my publishers can make it pay you to illustrate my English book. Then I should have good pictures. They’ve got to improve on ‘Roughing It ’ ” [MTL 5: 251-2].
December 15 Sunday – In a Springfield (Mass.) Union article of Dec. 20, an account and description of Sam attending Twichell’s church was published. Sam was a regular member in his early Hartford days.
December 14 Saturday – Sam’s LETTER FROM “MARK TWAIN” “Appeal for Ned Wakeman” dated Hartford, Dec. 3, ran in the San Francisco Alta California.