December 5 and 7 Monday – Sam wrote from New York to Livy of misgivings about being a Christian—about understanding that he needed Christ for his own sake, not to win Livy’s heart and approval.
“Bless me, I am so tied hand & foot with these lecture appointments that I don’t know whether I am standing on my head or my heels” [MTL 2: 312-18].
December 5 Thursday – Sam wrote from Washington to Miss Emeline Beach “Emma”, the seventeen year old daughter of Moses Beach, both of whom had been aboard the Quaker City. The Beach family was members of Henry Ward Beecher’s congregation, and Moses Beach took umbrage at Sam’s article about the passengers of the Quaker City.
December 8 Sunday – Sam’s “Holy Land Excursion. Letter from Mark Twain Number Twenty-nine” dated Sept. 17 ran in the Alta California [McKeithan 188-93].
December 8 Tuesday – Sam made a “little journey to Hartford” to bare his soul to Twichell about his struggles with prayer and his desire for success. According to Sam’s letter to Livy of Dec. 9, he and Twichell sat up from 10 PM to 1 AM talking about Livy and religion. It had been bothering Sam that he’d been praying with “selfish motives” instead of seeking Jesus “for himself alone” [MTL 2: 318].
December 9 Wednesday – Sam returned to New York on the 1:20 AM train.
Opera House, Newark, New Jersey: Sam gave his “Vandals” lecture, sponsored here by the Clayonian Society. Back in his room, Sam wrote Livy about his talk with Twichell, and the successful lecture in Newark.
February 1 Saturday – Sam wrote from Washington to John Russell Young, editor of the New York Tribune enclosing three Holy Land letters he “smouched” from the Alta bunch:
“…& added 3 at the end of the list to make up the deficiency, but as you will see by the inclosed telegram, they don’t seem to understand it” [MTL 2: 173].
February 1 Monday – Sam gave his “Vandals” lecture at Strawn’s Hall in Jacksonville, Illinois [MTPO].
Afterwards he wrote Francis Bliss a short note, saying he would be in Elmira from Feb. 3 till Feb. 11 and asking for proofs of Innocents Abroad to be sent there if ready. Proofs were not sent until early March, when Sam was in Hartford [MTP].
February 10 Monday – Sam wrote from Washington to Emma Beach and began with: “PS.—Don’t skip any of this letter, now—because it is just full of wisdom.” Sam often put his postscripts at the top of his letters. Sam told Emeline he was still sick.
February 10 Wednesday – Elisha Bliss wrote from Hartford to Sam about the proofs for Innocents Abroad. He had none to send but was “pushing things now very rapidly however” [MTL 3: 98-9]. Sam most likely received the letter on Feb. 11 or 12.
February 11 Tuesday – Sam’s article, MARK TWAIN IN WASHINGTON, dated Dec. 23, 1867, ran in the San Francisco California Alta. Subtitles: The President and Vice President; The President’s last; The Big Trees; Senatorial; Miscellaneous [Schmidt].
February 12 Friday – Sam left Elmira “at the last minute” that evening and slept overnight on the train back to Cleveland.
February 13 Thursday – Sam’s article, “The Facts Concerning the Recent Important Resignation” dated Feb. 9, ran in the New York Tribune [Camfield, bibliog.].
February 13 Saturday – Sam wrote from Cleveland to Livy. “(10AM) I have been here two hours in a splendid state of exasperation. I went to bed in the cars at half past nine, last night & slept like a log until 7 this morning, & woke up thoroughly refreshed” [MTL 3: 88].
He discovered that he’d missed a lecture date in Alliance, Ohio made by Abel Fairbanks, a date unknown to Sam. That evening Sam gave his “Vandals” lecture in Ravenna, Ohio.
Sam wrote letters from Ravenna that evening including this to Livy:
February 14 Friday – Sam gave the toast “Woman” to the Press Club Dinner. He revised it to overcome the objections of Mary Mason Fairbanks [MTL 2: 191n1]. Fatout lists the toast as Feb. 18, as does Sam in his letter of Feb. 20 to Mrs. Fairbanks [MT Speaking 649].
February 14 Sunday – Sam responded from Ravenna, Ohio to Elisha Bliss’ letter of Feb. 10, which he’d received while in Elmira. Sam wanted to handle all details of revision on the proofs, having learned the lesson of neglecting this step with his Jumping Frog book. He wrote Bliss that he expected to be in Hartford two or three weeks starting the last week of February. Sam also wrote Twichell and answered General Joseph R. Hawley’s (1826-1905) letter of Feb. 10 about Sam’s desire to buy into the Hartford Courant. Hawley and Charles Dudley Warner (1829- 1900) ran the Courant.
February 15 Monday – Sam wrote in the morning from Ravenna, Ohio to Livy about having her engagement ring made. He left Ravenna “about noon” and that evening gave his “Vandals” lecture in Alliance, Ohio.
February 16 Sunday – Sam’s “Holy Land Excursion. Letter from Mark Twain Number Thirty-nine” dated Sept. 1867 at “Nazareth” ran in the Alta California [McKeithan 248-54].
February 16 Tuesday – Sam wrote from Titusville, Pennsylvania to Livy the next day that he had:
…sat up until 2 in the morning (because no porter at hotel to call me,) & returned on a coal train to Ravenna—went to bed for one hour & a half & then got up half asleep & started in the early train for this Titusville section of country—had to wait from 1 P.M. till 5, at Corry, Pa., & so found an excellent hotel & went to bed… [MTL 3: 103-4].
Sam gave his “Vandals” lecture at Corinthian Hall in Titusville, Pennsylvania [MTPO].
February 17 Wednesday – In Titusville, late after the lecture, Sam wrote letters to Livy, Joe Goodman, and Mary Mason Fairbanks. To Mary, Sam wrote teasingly:
“I haven’t got nothing more to write, I believe, because there ain’t no topics of interest here to write about, except that Beech was here & the angel of the coal mine went down in an oil well. No damage to either. Oils well that ends well” [MTL 3: 107-8].
February 18 Thursday – Sam telegraphed from Franklin, Pa. to the Young Men’s Association of Genesco Academy to say he would not be able to make the lecture planned there. Sam headed for Elmira again, to see Livy. For a good account of the cancellation and subsequent Mar. 1 lecture, see The Twainian, Nov.-Dec. 1961 p1-4.
The Genesco Academy of Young Men wrote to acknowledge Sam’s telegram [MTP].
February 18 Tuesday –MARK TWAIN IN WASHINGTON dated Jan. 11 ran in the Enterprise. Sections included: “Stewart’s Speech,” and:
The Political Stink-Pots Opened.
February – Sam’s humorous article, “General Washington’s Negro Body-Servant,” first ran in the Galaxy Magazine for Feb. 1868 [Emerson 63].
February, early – Sam moved again, to 76 Indiana Avenue, Washington, D.C.
February 19 Wednesday – Sam wrote from Washington, D.C. to Anson Burlingame.
“Don’t neglect or refuse to keep a gorgeous secretaryship or a high interpretership for me in your great embassy—for pilgrim as I am, I have not entirely exhausted Europe yet, & may want to get converse with some of those Kings again, by & bye.”
February 19 Friday – The Genesco Academy of Young Men wrote again to Sam trying to pin down when Twain could come and lecture [MTP].
February 19–22 Monday – Sam spent four days visiting the Langdons in Elmira. Sam sent three telegrams from Elmira to the Genesco Academy, promising to lecture there Mar. 1 [MTL 3: 110- 111]. Sam left Elmira on Feb.22 with Jervis Langdon, who was headed to New York City on business. Sam stayed with him a day or two [Sanborn 422].