Day By Day Dates

October 29 Tuesday – Frederick J. Hall wrote, “The Yankee is all in type.” Complete sheets were printed by Nov. 15; Last week’s report enclosed (not extant); “As you will seeby these reports, we have been taking in considerable money, and of course, our expenses now are heavy, as we are manufacturing both the Conkling book and your book [CY], putting most of our energies on your book. As yet the money returns from these works are not very heavy” [MTLTP 258n2; MTP].

October 30 Wednesday – In Hartford Sam wrote to Bruce Weston Munro, who as a 21-year-old hopeful writer in 1881, contacted Sam for advice and occasionally sent him writing to review. He evidently did so again because Sam responded:

I’m going to read the preface sure — & you have the word of an honest man for it [MTP].

Note: Sam never offered much to Munro in the way of advice, which may say something about his opinion of Munro’s writing. See also Mar. 17, 1887.

October 31 Thursday – William Dean Howells penciled a postcard to Sam: “I expect to start for Hartford at four o’clock Saturday afternoon. Stop me if you can’t bear it. W.D. Howells” (not in MTHL) [MTP].

November – Sam and Charles Webster wrote to New York Governor David Hill) urging that Frank M. Scott, former bookkeeper at Webster & Co., serving a six-year sentence for embezzling, be pardoned [MTNJ 3: 497n49]. Up until this time Sam was adamant and hostile for punishment of Scott, so the turnaround suggests someone else’s influence, say Livy’s?

November 1 Friday – Colonel John M. Wilson, Superintendent at West Point wrote to Sam:

Since I had the pleasure of meeting you in Washington, I have been assigned to the command of this post, and I am anxious to do something this winter for the entertainment of the Cadets.

November 2 Saturday – William Dean Howells wrote his father, “I am going down to spend Sunday with Mark Twain…” [MTHL 2: 618 n1].

Frederick J. Hall wrote to Sam that he was “stirring up our general agents…Yesterday, November 1st — which was by the way my twenty-ninth birthday — we sent out 500 volumes Sheridan; 680 volumes Literature [LAL]; secured an order from Watson Gill for 2500 more Grant…” Monthly report enclosed but not extant [MTP].

November 3 Sunday – William Dean Howells spent the day as Sam’s guest. He likely read the first part of his short experimental novel soon to be published in Harper’s, The Shadow of a Dream (Mar.-May 1890) [MTHL 2: 618n1].

Howard P. Taylor wrote to Sam that he’d called several times at Webster & Co. but failed to catch him in.

November 4 Monday – Dean Sage wrote to Sam that Parsons promised to join him the next day on his trip to Hartford to see the typesetter; Parsons would stay at the Allyn House [MTP]. Note: this implies that Sage and wife would stay at the Clemens home.

Clara Spaulding Stanchfield wrote to Sam [MTP]. A card in the MTP file says this letter “missing as of 1-87”

November 5 Tuesday – Sam went to New York with William Dean Howells. “Personal Intelligence” column in the New York Times, Nov. 5, p.5:

Samuel L. Clemens of Hartford is at the Victoria Hotel. [Note: Sam’s usual hotel during this period was the Murray Hill, which did not disclose Sam’s presence there for the newspapers to print. The Victoria may have been Howells’ preference].

November 6 Wednesday – Sam returned to Hartford [MTNJ 3: 526n142].

Richard W. Gilder for Century Magazine wrote to Sam that Nov. 15 was the date of the Fellowcraft Club dinner. Sam would go and schemed a surprise with James B. Pond (see Nov. 15).

November 7 Thursday – Marvin Safe Co., N.Y. wrote to Sam: “We beg to acknowledge your favor stating that you will guarantee payment of safe for Mr. J.W. Paige” [MTP].

Frederick J. Hall wrote to Sam: “I referred you a letter from Mr. Blakely Hall of the ‘N.Y. Sun’, together with Mr. Hazeltine — who does a great deal of reviewing for the ‘Sun’ — was in to-day to see us about the book.” Hall thought, knowing Sam’s “quite close relations with the ‘Sun’,” to refer the matter to him. [MTP].

November 8 Friday – In Hartford Sam wrote to Mr. (James?) Goodwin.

My Dear Mr. Goodwin:

If I had written this letter as many times as I have intended to do it, I should have had to sell one of the children to pay the postage; but I didn’t, & the family are all here yet [MTP]. Note: The James Goodwin mansion was one of four Sam cited in a request to compare taxes — see Aug. 19, 1889 entry.

November 9 Saturday – In Hartford Sam wrote for Livy to his mother-in-law, Olivia Lewis Langdon.

…we have been having good times ourselves — a perfectly delightful visit from David Robinson & Miss Nelly; a visit with only one defect — it was too short. They are restful people, & a comfort in all their ways.

November 10 Sunday – In Hartford Sam wrote to his niece, eighteen-year-old Julia Langdon (daughter of Charles J. Langdon) now in Geneva, Switzerland with her family.

Thank you ever so much for your stirring letter from Paris, & the vivid glimpse you gave us of our mightily — prized & gratefully remembered guide, Joseph Very….

November 11 Monday – In Hartford Sam wrote to Dan Beard, thrilled about the illustrations for CY.

Hold me under permanent obligations. What luck it was to find you!…it was a fortunate hour that I went netting for lightning-bugs & caught a meteor [MTP].

Frederick J. Hall wrote that completed sheets of CY would be done by Friday, Nov. 15 [MTLTP 258n2].

November 12 Tuesday – Sam went to Boston and gave a dinner speech at the Press Club [Fatout, MT Speaking 659].

November 13 Wednesday – Sam was in Mount Auburn, Mass. part of the day, completing his visit with the Howells family. He returned either this evening or early the next morning.

Sylvester Baxter for Boston Herald wrote to ask Sam for advance sheets of CY so he might “give a good story about it in the Herald; Howells had given Baxter “an enthusiastic account” of the book [MTP].

November 14 Thursday – In Hartford, Sam responded to Sylvester Baxter’s Nov. 13 letter.

November 15 Friday – Sam and Livy made a trip to New York, where Sam was to speak [MTHL 2: 621n3]. This is the day Fred Hall reported on Nov. 11 that complete sheets would have been printed for CY, so it’s likely Sam stopped by Webster & Co.

In the evening Sam gave a dinner speech at the Fellowcraft Club, New York City. Fatout prefaces a copy of the speech in Mark Twain Speaking, p.247-50:

November 16 Saturday – Sam and Livy returned to Hartford. In Hartford, Sam telegraphed Joe Goodman in care of Samuel Moffett (not having Joe’s address), saying “Close no bargain if you have not already done so. Wait for my letter.” Then Sam wrote the letter, leading with his description of the telegram and outlining his “new project”, and marking it “Private”:

November 19 Tuesday – In Hartford Sam wrote to Thomas Bailey Aldrich, thanking him for the “lovely book” and promising in December to send him “one that hasn’t much poetry in it, but pictures enough to make up” [MTP]. Gribben labels this as “an advance copy” of Wyndam Towers, since “Aldrich published no other volumes during this period” [18].

November 20 Wednesday – Webster & Co. sent Sam the first copies of Connecticut Yankee, albeit unbound set of stitched sheets [Hirst, “A Note on the Text” Afterword materials p.28, Oxford ed. 1996].

November 21 Thursday – Frederick J. Hall wrote to Sam:

The only thing you have to do on the day of publication is, to cross the Canadian line, at any point, and register in some hotel in Canada and remain there during the hours of publication in England. ….P.S. If there are no hotels at which you can register at Niagara Falls in Canada, if you will post a letter or send a telegram from there that will be sufficient proof [MTP].

November 22 Friday – In Hartford, Sam again wrote Sylvester Baxter of the Boston Herald, who he wanted to come out with an early review of CY. He wrote he was telegraphing his publisher to verify they’d sent Baxter an unbound copy. He also confided he’d asked Howells to write and tell Baxter he had no objections to a notice coming out before his, in Harper’s. His last revelation is interesting — knowing that aspects of the book might be objectionable, he wrote:

November 23 Saturday – Sam once allowed his name to be advertised with the Loisette memory system, but his short note to Franklin G. Whitmore, likely in response to an inquiry, said Sam had “changed his mind long ago” [MTP].

Frederick J. Hall wrote to Sam confirming that copyright laws required that Clemens “be on Canadian soil the day the book is published in England, viz: December 6th” [MTNJ 3: 535n162]. See Dec. 6.