March 7 Thursday – The New York Weekly announced it would print (re-print) a series of Mark Twain’s “inimitable papers.” The weekly reprinted five of Sandwich Islands Letters to the Union, but without mention of the prior publication [MTL 2: 12n3].
March 12, 13 and 15 Friday – Three articles: “Female Suffrage: Views of Mark Twain” first appeared in the St. Louis Missouri Democrat on these days [Budd, “Collected” 1007; MTTMB 287n1].
These were reprinted in the Alta California April 10, 28, and May 11. From two of Sam’s letters on suffrage:
March 13 Wednesday – Sam’s “Volley from the Down-Trodden” ran in the Missouri Democrat [Camfield bibliog.].
March 14 Thursday – The first of five letters from Hawaii, reprints of five early Sacramento Union letters with “a few minor omissions” ran in the New York Weekly. Dated Mar. 18, 1866, beginning: “We arrived here to-day at noon…” this first article omitted “the short anecdote of Brown’s mistaking a cake of soap for a ‘curious foreign dish’” [The Twainian, Mar. 1944 p2-3]. These letters are notable for their promotional value to Sam’s upcoming New York lecture.
March 15 Friday – Alta California printed Sam’s article “THE FIRST DEATH” which Sam had dated from December 24 to January 1 [Schmidt].
Camfield lists this as “Letter from Mark Twain” Number IV [bibliog.]. Sam’s article “Iniquitous Crusade Against’ Man’s Regal Birthright Must Be Crushed” ran in the Missouri Democrat [Camfield bibliog.].
March 16 Saturday – Alta California printed Sam’s article “THE TWIN MOUNTAINS” which Sam dated New Year’s Day [Schmidt].
Camfield lists this as “Letter from Mark Twain” Number V [bibliog.].
March 17 Sunday – Sam was asked to make a few remarks to a Sunday school, at his sister Pamela’s church. Sam told the “Jumping Frog” story, but could not supply a moral from the story, so “let it slide” [MTL 2: 19 n2; Sanborn 322].
Alta California printed Sam’s article “UNDER WAY AGAIN” which Sam dated Jan. 1 [Schmidt].
Camfield lists this as “Letter from Mark Twain” Number VI [bibliog.]. Sam’s article “A Curtain Lecture Concerning Skating” ran in the New York Sunday Mercury [Camfield bibliog.].
March 19 Tuesday – Sam wrote from St. Louis to Charles Webb asking Webb to telegraph the expected publishing date of the Jumping Frog book, saying that if it is more than ten days off, “I had better lecture here.” Sam felt he would have to return to New York if the book was to be out soon. Webb answered that he could not have the book out before April 25 [MTL 2: 18; Sanborn 323]. Note:
The book was not published until about May 1 and never sold well. Webb simply didn’t have “the stuff” to market Sam properly.
March 23 Saturday – Alta California printed Sam’s article “KEY WEST” dated Jan. 6 [Schmidt].
Camfield lists this as “Letter from Mark Twain” Number VII [bibliog.].
March 24 Sunday – Sam was asked to speak at a Sunday school in Carondelet, a town bordering St. Louis. Sam told the John Godfrey sky-rocket story that later appeared in Roughing It [Sanborn 323].
Sam wrote a letter to the editor of the St. Louis Daily Missouri Republican [Tenney 2]. A humorous advertisement for the Mar. 25 lecture also ran in the same paper, repeating Sam’s promise, first made in the Petaluma performance, to show how cannibals would eat a child, given a volunteer from the audience [Lorch 54].
March 25 Monday – In St. Louis, Sam gave his “Sandwich Islands” lecture to a standing room only crowd at Mercantile Library Hall for the benefit of the South St. Louis Mission Sunday School.
March 26 Tuesday – At Mercantile Library Hall in St. Louis, Sam repeated the lecture, but due to bad weather only about 80 showed up. In the audience was Henry M. Stanley (1841-1904) of Livingstone fame, reporting for a Missouri paper. Stanley took down much of Sam’s lecture in shorthand [Lorch 56]. See Mar. 28 entry. On the first performance, from the St. Louis Daily Missouri Republican:
March 27 Wednesday ca. – On or about this day Sam traveled to Hannibal, where he stayed about a week [Lorch 57].
March 28 Thursday – Alta California printed Sam’s article “THE OVERGROWN METROPLOIS” dated Feb.2 [Schmidt]. Camfield lists this as “Letter from Mark Twain” Number VIII [bibliog.]. Henry M. Stanley reviewed Sam’s lecture of Mar. 26 for the St. Louis Daily Missouri Democrat. “Everyone retired highly delighted with the irrepressible Californian,” wrote Stanley, who became a rather controversial figure by 1872, when Sam first visited England. Stanley claimed to be American but was born in Wales [MTL 5: 201n3&4]. Note: Lorch claims Stanley reported for the Missouri Republican [56].
March 30 Saturday – Alta California printed Sam’s article “MY ANCIENT FRIENDS, THE POLICE” dated Feb. 18 [Schmidt]. Camfield lists this as “Letter from Mark Twain” Number IX [bibliog.].
April 2 Tuesday – Sam lectured in Brittingham Hall in his old hometown of Hannibal [MTL 2: 19n2]. Hannibal gave Sam the largest turnout in its history, though turning out wasn’t what put Hannibal on the map.
April 4 Thursday – Sam arrived in Keokuk at the Deming House four days before his lecture. He probably spent the time visiting Orion and Mollie, as well as other friends and cousins [MTL 2: 20 n2]. Posters were placed on street corners claiming that “Sam Clemens, the greatest Humorist in America,” was arriving to lecture [Lorch 57].
April 5 Friday – Sam moved to the Tepfer House because he did not like the service at the Deming House [MTL 2: 20n2]. Alta California printed Sam’s article, “THE DREADFUL RUSSIAN BATH,” dated Feb. 23. Camfield lists this as “Letter from Mark Twain” Number X [bibliog.].
April 6 Saturday – The Keokuk Gate City gave Sam a friendly welcome. His are not the worn-out jests, and hackneyed phrases…he is fresh and vigorous, full of life and spirit….Years ago, before the war, Mark Twain…was one of the cleverest and most popular “printer boys” in Keokuk. He returns to us now, a famous man, and proverbs or scripture to the contrary, we trust that our citizens will honor him with a rousing house….[Lorch 57].
April 7 Sunday – Sam’s article “Female Suffrage” ran in the New York Mercury [Budd, “Collected” 1007].
April 8 Monday – Sam lectured at the Chatham Square Methodist Episcopal Church in Keokuk, Iowa to about 140 persons – “Sandwich Islands” [MTL 2: 20].
April 9 Tuesday – From the Keokuk Constitution:
It has been many a day since our ribs were tickled so much as at listening to Sam Clemens’ lecture last evening upon the Sandwich Islands….Those of our citizens who did not hear the lecture missed one of the richest treats of their lives [Lorch 57-8].
Sam lectured – “Sandwich Islands” – at the National Hall, Quincy, Illinois, where Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) had spoken in February. Lorch points out, “relatives of the family were living there in 1867 who may have arranged an invitation” [57].
April 11 Thursday – Sam wrote from St. Louis to Howard Tucker, treasurer of the Keokuk Library Association, which sponsored Sam’s lecture, confirming receipt of $35 as his fee [MTL 2: 20].
April 12 Friday – Before leaving the city, Sam petitioned the Polar Star Masonic Lodge Number Seventy-nine of St. Louis for readmission. He was duly reinstated on April 21, 1867, by which time he was in New York [Jones 365].
Sam left St. Louis for New York “in an express train…a distance of nearly twelve hundred miles by the route I came” [MTL 2: 23n1].
April 13 Saturday – The New York Eagle announced that Henry Ward Beecher would not go on the Quaker City excursion. Forty of his parishioners then decided not to go. General Sherman also would bail out, citing Indian wars [MTL 2: 25n3; MTNJ 1: 303].