Elmira, Hartford and England: Day By Day

June 2 Sunday – Langdon Clemens, Sam’s only son, died in his mother’s arms [MTL 5: 98; Kaplan 150]. Sam blamed himself for not noticing the baby had been uncovered in an April carriage ride. Sam always blamed himself in some way for deaths that visited the family. He kept the carriage ride to himself until his autobiographical dictation in 1906.

June 20 Saturday – Edmund Routledge wrote from London to Sam having just rec’d and read of Mark Twain’s Sketches. Number One. He was sorry Sam might forfeit copyright in England on these and talked of buying cuts from the book [MTP].

June 21 Wednesday – Sam wrote from Elmira to Elisha Bliss, sending him three articles, “$125 for the lot,” payable to Orion at one-tenth of the $125 per week until paid. He wanted Bliss to mention his upcoming lecture and told him to say this:

June 21 Friday – Sam wrote from Hartford to Joseph L. Blamire, NY agent for George Routledge & Sons publishers. Sam made 400 revisions to a copy of Innocents Abroad, in attempt to make the book more palatable to English tastes. He wrote that he expected to be in New York the next Wednesday, staying with Dan Slote.

June 21 Sunday – Sam wrote from Elmira to William Dean Howells. Sam sent compliments on Howells’ third novel, A Foregone Conclusion, which appeared in the July Atlantic Monthly.

“The new baby is a gaudy thing & the mother is already sitting up” [MTL 6: 165].

June 22 Saturday – Sam signed a new contract with Elisha Bliss, superceding his 1870 contract which called for the African diamond mine book. The new contract gave Sam his ten percent royalty, thus solving the problem he’d had with Roughing It. The contract was not fulfilled until 1879, when Sam and Bliss agreed that The Adventures of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) would be used to satisfy the contract [MTL 5: 101-2].

June 22 Sunday – The Clemens family and Kate Field dined at the Dilkes [MTL 5: 375n1]. Kate Field, in a letter to the New York Tribune, wrote of the evening:

June 23 Sunday – Sam wrote from Hartford to Joseph L. Blamire, enclosing the preface for Innocents Abroad, which Routledge would publish in two volumes [MTL 5: 110].

June 23 Monday – From Livy’s diary:

Little Susy is very well indeed, she creeps all about the room, eats meat and potato for her breakfast every morning and is fat and hearty as possible—Nellie takes care of her now nights. I am out so much that I need my unbroken sleep [Salsbury 20].

June 23 Tuesday – Sam’s “A Postal Case” was published in the Boston Daily Advertiser [MTL 6: 163n4].

Anna E. Dickinson wrote to Sam

Dear Mr. Clemmens, [sic]—I hope you are so well & happy that to tax yourself in behalf of some one, who has no earthly claim on you, will seem no very serious matter.

June 24 Monday – Sam receipted $5,000 advance from Elisha Bliss for copyright on Roughing It [MTP].

June 24 Tuesday – Sam was granted patent number 140,245 for his “Improvement in Scrap-Books.” The scrapbooks were manufactured but sales didn’t take place until 1877 and were handled by Sam’s New York friend, Dan Slote. This proved to be Sam’s only profitable patent [MTL 5: 145n4]. Note: Aug. 27, 1965 letter from General Services Admin.

June 24 Wednesday – Sam wrote to an unidentified person that the “Mark Twain” nom de plume was one used by Captain Isaiah Sellers, and that Sam used it after Sellers died [MTL 6: 166]. Note: The trouble with that explanation is that Sellers died a year later (1864) than Sam adopted the name, and that no record can be found where Sellers ever used the handle for his river news as Sam claimed.

June 25 Wednesday – Sam and entourage moved to rooms at the Langham Hotel in Portland Place, where a billiards room was available [MTL 5: 372]. “It was a period of continuous honor and entertainment. If Mark Twain had been a lion on his first visit, he was little less than royalty now.

June 25 Thursday – Sam wrote from Elmira to the editor of the New York Evening Post. Sam denied he was writing a book on English manners and customs [MTL 6: 167]. Sam’s reception in England was so overwhelmingly classy and positive, that he no doubt found it impossible to poke fun at the English. Maybe he simply hadn’t stuck around long enough.

June 26 Wednesday – Date of letter to Sam from J. Langdon & Co. with statement of Livy’s account and enclosed check for $1,018.18 [MTP].

June 26 Thursday – Clara Spaulding left the Clemens family with her mother to tour Europe for six weeks. She returned on Aug. 9 [MTL 5: 404n1].

June 26 Friday – From Charles E. Perkins’ cash book, Sam’s account: “By cash brot over June 26  By dft on NY  5000.00; To po Garvie 2500.00” [Berg collection, NYPL]. Note: drawing from New York bank and paying part to William and/or Robert Garvie in Hartford on construction costs.

June 27 Tuesday – Sam wrote two short notes from Elmira to Orion. Sam had written a new lecture that day and wanted Bliss to leave out the talk about the “Suffrage to Boys”.  His second note announced he “wrote a third lecture to-day—& tomorrow I go back on the book again.” This last lecture, “Reminiscences of Some Pleasant Characters whom I have Met” was one given later.

June 27 Thursday – John Henry Riley wrote from Phila. to Sam: “Friend Clemens / My dear fellow, Are you going to make an effort to come and see me?…I may hold on for a month or so, (who knows?) and I may go off any night.” He was dying of cancer [MTP].

June 28 Wednesday – Sam wrote from Elmira to James Redpath. This was another list of particulars, prices, and places that Sam dictated terms about [MTL 4: 419-21].

June 28 Saturday – Sam wrote from the Langham to William Stirling-Maxwell (1818-1878) of London, who had invited Sam to visit the Cosmopolitan Club. The membership included: Lord Houghton, John Motley (1814-1877), Joaquin Miller, Thomas Hughes, Robert Browning, and Anthony Trollope [MTL 5: 391-2].

June 28 Sunday – Sam replied from Elmira to the June 23 of Anna E. Dickinson, who was going abroad and had asked for letters of introduction to his friends. Sam sent introductory letters off to Frank Finlay, editor Northern Whig, Belfast; Dr. John Brown, Edinburgh, Rev. George MacDonald, London; and Sir Thomas & Lady Hardy, London.

June 29 Thursday – Sam wrote from Elmira to Orion, asking if the three articles he’d sent had arrived, begging off on opining on one of Orion’s machine inventions, and news that his lecture engagements would pay $250 in Boston, Philadelphia, New York, and Brooklyn [MTL 4: 423].

June 29 Sunday – Sam wrote from London to Joseph Twichell. Livy added a note at the end. A man named Chew had made an agreement to share a story that Sam might publish. Sam liked the story but waited for Chew to send details, it seems the “story” had already been printed. For some reason Chew felt he was owed money when Sam refused to plagiarize. Sam thought different.