Day By Day Dates

August 13 Thursday – W.H.H. Daggett, Hartford awning dealer, charged Sam $2 for “putting up awnings” [MTP].

Orion Clemens wrote of checks rec’d and of work completed on the history game; Ma went to a picnic [MTP].

August 14 Friday – Sam wrote from Elmira to Daniel Whitford, his attorney, asking if he knew the “President of the Balt & Ohio Tel Co, or parties connected with the new Co.” Sam was touting Paige’s telegraph invention. “Any idiot can operate it. No experts required” [MTP].

Daniel Whitford for Alexander & Green wrote that the Century people had given up all claim to the picture of Gen. Grant [MTP].

August 15 Saturday – Sam wrote from Elmira to Robert Underwood Johnson, of the Century Magazine. He began a draft of this letter in his notebook [MTNJ 3: 172]. Webster & Co. intended to use what was purported to be the last photograph of Grant for the deluxe edition of the Memoirs, but Webster wrote Sam on Aug.

August 16 Sunday – Hjalmar Boyesen wrote to ask if Sam thought an illustrated history of Norway would pay as a subscription book [MTP].

August 17 Monday – Henrietta B. Babcock wrote from Cleveland to ask Sam’s help with producing her play [MTP]. Note: Sam wrote on the env., “Answer — Don’t [know] anything aboutg dramatic literature”

J.E. Buerk wrote from Boston to sell a German translation of TS to Sam made by his late brother [MTP]. Note: Sam wrote on the env., “No—don’t want it”

August 18 Tuesday – Sam was granted his third and last patent, number 324,535, for a “Game Apparatus,” the board version of the history game [The Twainian, Nov-Dec 1957 p3; Aug. 27, 1965 letter from GSA on file at MTP]. See filing date and card info made by Patent Engraving Co., New York Oct. 9, 1884 entry.

August 19 Wednesday – Livy’s mother, Olivia Lewis Langdon, celebrated her 75th birthday. The Clemens family all went to town for the celebration [Salsbury 209]. Susy and Clara Clemens performed the second part of The Merry Wives of Windsor as part of the birthday fun [Gribben 629]. From Livy’s diary:

August 20 Thursday – The New York Times printed on page 5 “GENERAL GRANT’S BOOK / A LETTER FROM THE PUBLISHERS,” Dated Aug. 18, with a note from the late General dated July 4. The letter addressed rumors of the Grant contract, that Mrs.

August 21 Friday – J.E. Larkin photographer, Elmira, billed Sam $8 for “1 ½ doz Cab[inet] cards 3 negatives”, paid Aug. 24 [MTP].

Chatto & Windus wrote with royalties of £979.11 in 3 drafts [MTP].

Daniel Whitford for Alexander & Green wrote more about recent legal matters [MTP].

August 22 Saturday – Karl Gerhardt wrote “another chapter in the Nathan Hale farce” [MTP]. Note: Gerhardt was bidding on doing a statue of Nathan Hale, now at the Conn. capitol in Hartford.

William N. Woodruff wrote [MTP]. Only the env. survives; Note: Sam wrote on the env., “Containing Judge [George] Turner’s suicide”

August 23 Sunday – Orion Clemens wrote to warn Sam about an unworthy woman being given the book agency in that county [MTP].

August 24 Monday – Sam and Livy left the children with the Cranes at Quarry Farm and took a trip to Albany, where they stayed at the home of Dean Sage [MTNJ 3: 179n5; The Twainian, Sept-Oct. 1956, p4].

Livy’s diary entry:

August 25 Tuesday – Sam, Livy, and the Sages traveled to Mt. Onteora, New York in the Catskills near Tannersville to visit Candace Wheeler (Mrs. Thomas M. Wheeler), mother of Dora Wheeler Keith, the artist. “Mrs Wheeler specialized in the design of tapestries and fabrics for Louis C.

August 26 Wednesday – Webster & Co. per Frederick J. Hall wrote “pleasure to report that in round numbers the reported sales up to date are 151,000 sets” [MTP]. Note: Sam wrote on the env., “Immense news”

August 27 Thursday –Sam wrote from Mt. Onteora, New York to Miss Nettie (last name not given).

“Dear Miss Nettie— /Anybody can tell the bare truth: let us study to adorn it./ Truly Yours / Mark Twain” [MTP].

August 28 Friday – In a Aug. 31 letter to Sarah A. Sage, Sam refers to his “finished business in New York in about three hours and a half,” so it would seem he and Livy traveled from Onteora back to New York City, and then on to Quarry Farm the next day. (See Aug.

August 29 Saturday – Sam and Livy returned to Quarry Farm [The Twainian Sept-Oct 1956, p4; Susan Crane’s letters to Paine]. They arrived “before supper” [Aug. 31 to Sage]. Livy’s diary entry:

“Quarry Farm Aug 29th / Here we are back again after our pleasant trip away. We enjoyed our stay in the Catskills exceedingly….We found the children all well and glad to get us back”[MTP].

August 30 Sunday – Sam wrote from Elmira to Orion, who was anxious about agents taking books from Webster & Co., and not paying for them.

August 31 Monday – Sam wrote from Elmira to Sarah A. Sage (Mrs. Dean Sage).

I find my youth renewed by that lark in the mountains, whereas it is to be hoped that Dean Sage is just as old as he was before, for throwing away his opportunity. I believe he would have profited by staying and letting business run it’s [sic] self for a while. Come to think of it, Joe ought to have been there, that was just the place for Joe [Twichell] [MTP].

September 1 Tuesday – Jesse R. Grant wrote giving Henry A. Taylor’s NYC address and saying he’d advise Taylor that Sam would call on him regarding the Turkish railroad scheme [MTP].

Frank C. Raubs wrote from City Prison, NYC to beg for a loan of $50 for bail [MTP]. Note: Sam wrote on the env., “From the scoundrel Raubs” who had stolen from Webster & Co.

September 2 Wednesday – Susan E. Dickinson wrote: “I sent Miss Bond off to school 24 hours before your letter came. Now I send her your check; and she will send it back to me to draw from bank here…”” [MTP]. Note: Sam wrote on the env., “Anna Dickinson’s sister”; Sade E. Bond.

September 3 Thursday – Webster & Co. per Frederick J. Hall wrote reporting total sales of the Grant books at 175,000 sets; other agent requests to be answered with postcards preprinted [MTP].

September 4 Friday – William Hamersley wrote with his usual illegible scrawl about the Paige operators and stock [MTP].

Daniel Whitford for Alexander & Green wrote another couple of large pages in longhand, suggesting that nothing from the Grant book be published ahead of time [MTP]. Note: Sam wrote on the env., “Possibly 250,000 sets sold”

September 5 Saturday – Sam wrote from Elmira to Karl Gerhardt. Sam did not want a connection between the Webster Co. and Gerhardt’s bust and statue of Grant. He did not want either of the two works by Gerhardt to be see as his attempt to profit from Grant’s death.

September 6 Sunday – Sade E. Bond wrote, enclosed in Dickinson Sept. 16 [MTP].

Orion Clemens wrote: Check for $150 rec’d. “Ma went up to Burlington (40 miles) with a steamboat excursion Thursday. Returned same day.” Ma sent Puss and bought a dress to overdraw her account $4 [MTP].