第2章

IwasonthePennsylvaniafiveminutesbeforesheleftN。Orleans，andI musttellyouthetruth，Mollie——threehundredhumanbeingsperishedbythatfearfuldisaster。Henrywasasleep——wasblownup——thenfellbackonthehotboilers，andIsupposethatrubbishfellonhim，forheisinjuredinternally。Hegotintothewaterandswamtoshore，andgotintotheflatboatwiththeothersurvivors——[HenryhadreturnedoncetothePennsylvaniatorenderassistancetothepassengers。Laterhehadsomehowmadehiswaytotheflatboat。]——Hehadnothingonbuthiswetshirt，andhelaythereburningupwithasouthernsunandfreezinginthewindtilltheKateFrisbeecarnealong。HiswoundswerenotdressedtillhegottoMemphis，15hoursaftertheexplosion。Hewassenselessandmotionlessfor12hoursafterthat。ButmayGodblessMemphis，thenoblestcityonthefaceoftheearth。Shehasdoneherdutybythesepoorafflictedcreatures——especiallyHenry，forhehashadfive——aye，ten，fifteen，twentytimesthecareandattentionthatanyoneelsehashad。Dr。Peyton，thebestphysicianinMemphis(heisexactlyliketheportraitsofWebster)satbyhimfor36hours。Thereare32scaldedmeninthatroom，andyouwouldknowDr。PeytonbetterthanIcandescribehim，ifyoucouldfollowhimaroundandheareachmanmurmurashepasses，“MaytheGodofHeavenblessyou，Doctor！“Theladieshavedonewell，too。OursecondMate，ahandsome，nobleheartedyoungfellow，willdie。Yesterdayabeautifulgirlof15stoopedtimidlydownbyhissideandhandedhimaprettybouquet。Thepoorsufferingboy”seyeskindled，hislipsquiveredoutagentle“Godblessyou，Miss，“andheburstintotears。Hemadethemwritehernameonacardforhim，thathemightnotforgetit。 Prayforme，Mollie，andprayformypoorsinlessbrother。 YourunfortunateBrother，SAML。L。CLEMENS。 P。S。IgotheretwodaysafterHenry。 ItissaidthatMarkTwainneverreallyrecoveredfromthetragedyofhisbrother”sdeath——thatitwasresponsiblefortheserious，patheticlookthatthefaceoftheworld”sgreatestlaugh-makeralwaysworeinrepose。 Hewentbacktotheriver，andinSeptemberofthesameyear，afteranapprenticeshipoflessthaneighteenmonths，receivedhislicenseasaSt。LouisandNewOrleanspilot，andwasacceptedbyhisoldchief，Bixby，asfullpartneronanimportantboat。InLifeontheMississippiMarkTwainmakestheperiodofhisstudyfromtwototwoandahalfyears，butthisismerelyanattempttomagnifyhisdullness。Hewas，infact，anaptpupilandapilotofveryhighclass。 Clemenswasnowsuddenlyliftedtoapositionofimportance。TheMississippiRiverpilotofthosedayswasapersonofdistinction，earningasalarythenregardedasprincely。Certainlytwohundredandfiftydollarsamonthwaslargeforaboyoftwenty-three。Atonce，ofcourse，hebecametheheadoftheClemensfamily。HisbrotherOrionwastenyearsolder，buthehadnotthegiftofsuccess。Bycommonconsenttheyoungerbrotherassumedpermanentlythepositionoffamilycounselorandfinancier。Weexpecthimtofeeltheimportanceofhisnewposition，andheistoohumantodisappointus。Incidentally，wenoticeanimprovementinhisEnglish。Henolongerwrites“betweenyouandI“ FragmentofalettertoOrionClemens。WrittenatSt。 Louisin1859：……Iamnottalkingnonsense，now——Iaminearnest，Iwantyoutokeepyourtroublesandyourplansoutofthereachofmeddlers，untilthelatterareconsummated，sothatincaseyoufail，noonewillknowitbutyourself。 Aboveallthings(betweenyouandme)nevertellMaanyofyourtroubles； sheneversleptawinkthenightyourlastlettercame，andshelooksdistressedyet。Writeonlycheerfulnewstoher。Youknowthatshewillnotbesatisfiedsolongasshethinksanythingisgoingonthatsheisignorantof——andshemakesalittlefussaboutitwhenhersuspicionsareawakened；butthatmakesnodifference。Iknowthatitisbetterthatshebekeptinthedarkconcerningallthingsofanunpleasantnature。 Sheupbraidsmeoccasionallyforgivingheronlythebrightsideofmyaffairs(butunfortunatelyforhershehastoputupwithit，forIknowthattroublesthatIcurseawhileandforget，woulddisturbherslumbersforsometime。)(ParenthesisNo。2——Possiblybecausesheisdeprivedofthesoothingconsolationofswearing。)Tellherthegoodnewsandmethebad。 Puttingallthingstogether，IbegintothinkIamratherluckythanotherwise——anotionwhichIwasslowtotakeup。TheothernightIwasabouttoroundtoforastorm——butconcludedthatIcouldfindasmootherbanksomewhere。Ilanded5milesbelow。Thestormcame——passedawayanddidnotinjureus。Comingup，daybeforeyesterday，IlookedatthespotIfirstchose，andhalfthetreesonthebankweretorntoshreds。Wecouldn”thavelived5minutesinsuchatornado。AndIamalsoluckyinhavingaberth，whilealltheyoungpilotsareidle。Thisistheluckiestcircumstancethateverbefellme。Notonaccountofthewages—— forthatisasecondaryconsideration——butfromthefactthattheCityofMemphisisthelargestboatinthetradeandthehardesttopilot，andconsequentlyIcangetareputationonher，whichisathingInevercouldaccomplishonatransientboat。Ican“bank“intheneighborhoodof$100amonthonher，andthatwillsatisfymeforthepresent(principallybecausetheotheryoungstersaresuckingtheirfingers。) Blessme！whatapleasurethereisinrevenge！andwhatvastrespectProsperitycommands！Why，sixmonthsago，Icouldenterthe“Rooms，“andreceiveonlyacustomaryfraternalgreeting——butnowtheysay，“Why，howareyou，oldfellow——whendidyougetin？“ Andtheyoungpilotswhousedtotellme，patronizingly，thatIcouldneverlearntherivercannotkeepfromshowingalittleoftheirchagrinatseeingmesofaraheadofthem。Permitmeto“blowmyhorn，“forI derivealivingpleasurefromthesethings，andImustconfessthatwhenIgotopaymydues，Iratherliketoletthed——drascalsgetaglimpseofahundreddollarbillpeepingoutfromamongstnotesofsmallerdimensions，whosefaceIdonotexhibit！Youwilldespisethisegotism，butItellyouthereisa“sternjoy“init…… Pilotsdidnotremainlongononeboat，asarule；justwhyitisnotsoeasytounderstand。Perhapstheylikedtheexperienceofchange；perhapsbothcaptainandpilotlikedthepursuitoftheideal。Inthelight- heartedletterthatfollows——writtentoafriendofthefamily，formerlyofHannibal——wegetsomethingoftheuncertaintyofthepilot”sengagements。 ToMrs。ElizabethW。Smith，in，Jackson，CapeGirardeauCounty，Mo。： ST。Louis，Oct。31[probably1859]。 DEARAUNTBETSEY，——Mahasnotwrittenyou，becauseshedidnotknowwhenIwouldgetstarteddowntheriveragain…… Yousee，AuntBetsey，Imadebutonetriponthepacketafteryouleft，andthenconcludedtoremainathomeawhile。IhavejustdiscoveredthismorningthatIamtogotoNewOrleansonthe“Col。Chambers“——fine，light-draught，swift-runningpassengersteamer——allmodernaccommodationsandimprovements——throughwithdispatch——forfreightorpassageapplyonboard，orto——but——Ihaveforgottentheagent”sname——however，itmakesnodifference——andasIwassaying，orhadintendedtosay，AuntBetsey，probably，ifyouarereadytocomeup，youhadbettertakethe“BenLewis，“thebestboatinthepacketline。ShewillbeatCapeGirardeauatnoononSaturday(dayaftertomorrow，)andwillreachhereatbreakfasttime，Sunday。IfMr。Hamiltonischiefclerk，——verywell，Iamslightlyacquaintedwithhim。AndifMessrs。CarterGrayandDeanSomebody(Ihaveforgottenhisothername，)areinthepilot-house——verywellagain-Iamacquaintedwiththem。JusttellMr。Gray，AuntBetsey—— thatIwishhimtoplacehimselfatyourcommand。 Allthefamilyarewell——exceptmyself——Iaminabadwayagain——disease，Love，initsmostmalignantform。Hopesareentertainedofmyrecovery，however。Atthedinnertable——excellentsymptom——Iamstillas“terribleasanarmywithbanners。” AuntBetsey——thewickednessofthisworld——butIhaven”ttimetomoralizethismorning。 GoodbyeSAMCLEMENS。 Aswedonothearofthis“attack“again，therecoverywasprobablyprompt。Hislettersarenotfrequentenoughforustokeeptrackofhisboats，butweknowthathewasassociatedwithBixbyfromtimetotime，andnowandagainwithoneoftheBowenboys，hisoldHannibalschoolmates。Hewasrevelingintheriverlife，theeaseanddistinctionandromanceofit。Nootherlifewouldeversuithimaswell。Hewasattheagetoenjoyjustwhatitbroughthim——attheairy，golden，overweeningageofyouth。 ToOrionClemens，inKeokuk，Iowa： ST。LOUIS，Mch。1860。 MYDEARBRO。，——Yourlasthasjustcometohand。ItremindsmestronglyofTomHood”sletterstohisfamily，(whichIhavebeenreadinglately)。 Butyoursonlyremindmeofhis，foralthoughthereisastrikinglikeness，yourhumourismuchfinerthanhis，andfarbetterexpressed。 TomHood”swit，(inhisletters)hasasavoroflaboraboutitwhichisverydisagreeable。Yourletterisgood。ThatportionofitwhereintheoldsowfiguresistheverybestthingIhaveseenlately。ItsquietstyleresemblesGoldsmith”s“CitizenoftheWorld，“and“DonQuixote，“—— whicharemybeauidealsoffinewriting。 Youhavepaidthepreacher！Well，thatisgood，also。Whatamanwantswithreligioninthesebreadlesstimes，surpassesmycomprehension。 PamelaandIhavejustreturnedfromavisittothemostwonderfullybeautifulpaintingwhichthiscityhaseverseen——Church”s“HeartoftheAndes“——whichrepresentsalovelyvalleywithitsrichvegetationinallthebloomandgloryofatropicalsummer——dottedwithbirdsandflowersofallcolorsandshadesofcolor，andsunnyslopes，andshadycorners，andtwilightgroves，andcoolcascades——allgrandlysetoffwithamajesticmountaininthebackgroundwithitsgleamingsummitclothedineverlastingiceandsnow！Ihaveseenitseveraltimes，butitisalwaysanewpicture——totallynew——youseemtoseenothingthesecondtimewhichyousawthefirst。Wetooktheoperaglass，andexamineditsbeautiesminutely，forthenakedeyecannotdiscernthelittlewaysideflowers，andsoftshadowsandpatchesofsunshine，andhalf-hiddenbunchesofgrassandjetsofwaterwhichformsomeofitsmostenchantingfeatures。 Thereisnoslurringofperspectiveeffectaboutit——themostdistant—— theminutestobjectinithasamarkedanddistinctpersonality——sothatyoumaycounttheveryleavesonthetrees。Whenyoufirstseethetame，ordinary-lookingpicture，yourfirstimpulseistoturnyourbackuponit，andsay“Humbug“——butyourthirdvisitwillfindyourbraingaspingandstrainingwithfutileeffortstotakeallthewonderin——andappreciateitinitsfulness——andunderstandhowsuchamiraclecouldhavebeenconceivedandexecutedbyhumanbrainandhumanhands。Youwillnevergettiredoflookingatthepicture，butyourreflections—— youreffortstograspanintelligibleSomething——youhardlyknowwhat——willgrowsopainfulthatyouwillhavetogoawayfromthething，inordertoobtainrelief。Youmayfindrelief，butyoucannotbanishthepicture——Itremainswithyoustill。Itisinmymindnow——andthesmallestfeaturecouldnotberemovedwithoutmydetectingit。Somuchforthe“HeartoftheAndes。” Mawasdelightedwithhertrip，butshewasdisgustedwiththegirlsforallowingmetoembraceandkissthem——andshewashorrifiedattheSchottischeasperformedbyMissCastleandmyself。Shewasperfectlywillingformetodanceuntil12o”clockattheimminentperilofmygoingtosleepontheafterwatch——butthenshewouldtopoffwithaveryinconsistentsermonondancingingeneral；endingwithaterrificbroadsideaimedatthatheresyofheresies，theSchottische。 ItookMaandthegirlsinacarriage，roundthatportionofNewOrleanswherethefinestgardensandresidencesaretobeseen，andalthoughitwasablazinghotdustyday，theyseemedhugelydelighted。Touseanexpressionwhichiscommonlyignoredinpolitesociety，theywere“hell- bent“onstealingsomeoftheluscious-lookingorangesfrombrancheswhichoverhungthefences，butIrestrainedthem。Theywerenotawarebeforethatshrubberycouldbemadetotakeanyqueershapewhichaskilfulgardenermightchoosetotwistitinto，sotheyfoundnotonlybeautybutnoveltyintheirvisit。WewentouttoLakePontchartraininthecars。 YourBrotherSAMCLEMENS WehavenotbeforeheardofMissCastle，whoappearstohavebeenoneofthegirlswhoaccompaniedJaneClemensonthetripwhichhersongavehertoNewOrleans，butwemayguessthattheotherwashiscousinandgoodcomrade，EllaCreel。Onewishesthathemighthaveleftusamoreextendedaccountofthatlong-agoriverjourney，afullerglimpseofagoldenagethathasvanishedascompletelyasthedaysofWashington。 Wemaysmileatthenaturalyouthfuldesiretoairhisreading，andhisartappreciation，andwemayfindhisopinionsnotwithoutinterest。Wemayevencommendthem——inpart。PerhapswenolongercounttheleavesonChurch”strees，butGoldsmithandCervantesstilldeservetheplaceassignedthem。 Hedoesnottelluswhatboathewasonatthistime，butlaterintheyearhewaswithBixbyagain，ontheAlonzoChild。Wegetabitofthepilotinportinhisnext。 ToOrionClemens，inKeokuk，Iowa： “ALONZOCHILD，“N。ORLEANS，Sep。28th1860。 DEARBROTHER，——IjustreceivedyoursandMolliesletteryesterday——theyhadbeenheretwoweeks——forwardedfromSt。Louis。Wegothereyesterday——willleaveatnoonto-day。OfcourseIhavehadnotime，in24hours，todoanything。ThereforeI”llanswerafterweareunderwayagain。Yesterday，Ihadmanythingstodo，butBixbyandIgotwiththepilotsoftwootherboatsandwentoffdissipatingonatendollardinnerataFrenchrestaurantbreatheitnotuntoMa！——whereweatesheep-head，fishwithmushrooms，shrimpsandoysters——birds——coffeewithbrandyburntinit，&c&c，-ate，drankandsmoked，from2p。m。until5o”clock，andthen——thenthedaywastoofargonetodoanything。 Pleasefindenclosedandacknowledgereceiptof——$20。00 InhasteSAML。CLEMENS Itshouldbesaid，perhaps，thatwhenhebecamepilotJaneClemenshadreleasedhersonfromhispledgeinthematterofcardsandliquor。Thislicensedidnotupsethim，however。Hecaredverylittleforeitherofthesedissipations。Hisonegreatindulgencewastobacco，amatteruponwhichhewaspresentlytoreceivesomegravecounsel。Hereportsitinhisnextletter，asufficientlyinterestingdocument。TheclairvoyantofthisvisitwasMadameCaprell，famousinherday。Clemenshadbeenurgedtoconsulther，andoneidleafternoonconcludedtomaketheexperiment。Theletterreportingthemattertohisbrotherisfragmentary，andisthelastremainingtousofthepilotingperiod。 FragmentofalettertoOrionClemens，inKeokuk，Iowa： NEWORLEANSFebruary6，1862……She”saverypleasantlittlelady——ratherpretty——about28，——say5feet2andonequarter——wouldweigh116——hasblackeyesandhair——ispoliteandintelligent——usedgoodlanguage，andtalksmuchfasterthanI do。 Sheinvitedmeintothelittlebackparlor，closedthedoor；andwewerealone。Wesatdownfacingeachother。Thensheaskedmyage。Thensheputherhandsbeforehereyesamoment，andcommencedtalkingasifshehadagooddealtosayandnotmuchtimetosayitin。Somethingafterthisstyle： MADAME。Yoursisawateryplanet；yougainyourlivelihoodonthewater； butyoushouldhavebeenalawyer——thereiswhereyourtalentslie：youmighthavedistinguishedyourselfasanorator，orasaneditor；youhavewrittenagreatdeal；youwritewell——butyouareratheroutofpractice； nomatter——youwillbeinpracticesomeday；youhaveasuperbconstitution，andasexcellenthealthasanymanintheworld；youhavegreatpowersofendurance；inyourprofessionyourstrengthholdsoutagainstthelongestsieges，withoutflagging；still，theupperpartofyourlungs，thetopofthemisslightlyaffected——youmusttakecareofyourself；youdonotdrink，butyouuseentirelytoomuchtobacco；andyoumuststopit；mind，notmoderate，butstoptheuseofittotally； thenIcanalmostpromiseyou86whenyouwillsurelydie；otherwiselookoutfor28，31，34，47，and65；becareful——foryouarenotofalong- livedrace，thatisonyourfather”sside；youaretheonlyhealthymemberofyourfamily，andtheonlyoneinitwhohasanythinglikethecertaintyofattainingtoagreatage——so，stopusingtobacco，andbecarefulofyourself……Insomerespectsyoutakeafteryourfather，butyouaremuchmorelikeyourmother，whobelongstothelong-lived，energeticsideofthehouse……Youneverbroughtallyourenergiestobearuponanysubjectbutwhatyouaccomplishedit——forinstance，youareself-made，self-educated。 S。L。C。Whichprovesnothing。 MADAME。Don”tinterrupt。Whenyousoughtyourpresentoccupationyoufoundathousandobstaclesintheway——obstaclesunknown——notevensuspectedbyanysaveyouandme，sinceyoukeepsuchmatterstoyourself——butyoufoughtyourway，andhidthelongstruggleunderamaskofcheerfulness，whichsavedyourfriendsanxietyonyouraccount。TodoallthisrequiresallthequalitiesIhavenamed。 S。L。C。Youflatterwell，Madame。 MADAME。Don”tinterrupt：Uptowithinashorttimeyouhadalwayslivedfromhandtomouth-nowyouareineasycircumstances——forwhichyouneedgivecredittonoonebutyourself。Theturningpointinyourlifeoccurredin1840-7-8。 S。L。C。Whichwas？ MADAME。Adeathperhaps，andthisthrewyouupontheworldandmadeyouwhatyouare；itwasalwaysintendedthatyoushouldmakeyourself； therefore，itwaswellthatthiscalamityoccurredasearlyasitdid。 Youwillneverdieofwater，althoughyourcareeruponitinthefutureseemswellsprinkledwithmisfortune。Youwillcontinueuponthewaterforsometimeyet；youwillnotretirefinallyuntiltenyearsfromnow……Whatisyourbrother”sage？35——andalawyer？andinpursuitofanoffice？Well，hestandsabetterchancethantheothertwo，andhemaygetit；heistoovisionary——isalwaysflyingoffonanewhobby；thiswillneverdo——tellhimIsaidso。Heisagoodlawyer——a，verygoodlawyer——andafinespeaker——isverypopularandmuchrespected，andmakesmanyfriends；butalthoughheretainstheirfriendship，helosestheirconfidencebydisplayinghisinstabilityofcharacter……Thelandhehasnowwillbeveryvaluableafterawhile—— S。L。C。Saya50yearshence，orthereabouts。Madame—— MADAME。No——lesstime-butnevermindtheland，thatisasecondaryconsideration——lethimdropthatforthepresent，anddevotehimselftohisbusinessandpoliticswithallhismight，forhemustholdofficesundertheGovernment…… Afterawhileyouwillpossessagooddealofproperty——retireattheendoftenyears——afterwhichyourpursuitswillbeliterary——trythelaw—— youwillcertainlysucceed。Iamdonenow。Ifyouhaveanyquestionstoask——askthemfreely——andifitbeinmypower，Iwillanswerwithoutreserve——withoutreserve。 Iaskedafewquestionsofminorimportance——paidher$2——andleft，underthedecidedimpressionthatgoingtothefortuneteller”swasjustasgoodasgoingtotheopera，andthecostscarcelyatriflemore——ergo，Iwilldisguisemyselfandgoagain，oneofthesedays，whenotheramusementsfail。Nowisn”tshethedevil？Thatistosay，isn”tshearightsmartlittlewoman？ Whenyouwantmoney，letMaknow，andshewillsendit。SheandPamelaarealwaysfussingaboutchange，soIsentthemahundredandtwentyquartersyesterday——fiddler”schangeenoughtolasttillIgetback，I reckon。 SAM。 ItisnotsodifficulttocreditMadameCaprellwithclairvoyantpowerswhenonehasreadthelettersofSamuelClemensuptothispoint。Ifwemayjudgebythosethathavesurvived，herprophecyofliterarydistinctionforhimwashardlywarrantedbyanythingshecouldhaveknownofhispastperformance。Theselettersofhisyouthhaveavalueto-dayonlybecausetheywerewrittenbythemanwholaterwastobecomeMarkTwain。ThesquibsandskitswhichhesometimescontributedtotheNewOrleanspaperswerebright，perhaps，andpleasingtohispilotassociates，buttheywerewithoutliteraryvalue。Hewastwenty-fiveyearsold。Morethanoneauthorhasachievedreputationatthatage。MarkTwainwasofslowergrowth；atthatagehehadnotevendevelopedadefiniteliteraryambition：WhateverthebasisofMadameCaprell”sprophecy，wemustadmitthatshewasagoodguesseronseveralmatters，“arightsmartlittlewoman，“asClemenshimselfphrasedit。 Sheoverlookedoneitem，however：theproximityoftheCivilWar。 Perhapsitwastoocloseathandforsecondsight。AlittlemorethantwomonthsaftertheCaprellletterwaswrittenFortSumterwasfiredupon。MaskTwainhadmadehislasttripasapilotuptherivertoSt。Louis——thenationwasplungedintoafouryears” conflict。 Therearenolettersofthisimmediateperiod。YoungClemenswenttoHannibal，andenlistinginaprivatecompany，composedmainlyofoldschoolmates，wentsoldieringfortworainy，ingloriousweeks，bytheendofwhichhehadhadenoughofwar，andfurthermorehaddiscoveredthathewasmoreofaUnionabolitionistthanaslave- holdingsecessionist，ashehadatfirstsupposed。Convictionswerelikelytoberatherinfirmduringthoseearlydaysofthewar，andsubjecttochangewithoutnotice。EspeciallywasthissoinaborderState。 III LETTERS1861-62。ONTHEFRONTIER。MININGADVENTURES。 JOURNALISTICBEGINNINGS Clemenswentfromthebattle-fronttoKeokuk，whereOrionwaspreparingtoaccepttheappointmentprophesiedbyMadameCaprell。 OrionwasastanchUnionist，andamemberofLincoln”sCabinethadofferedhimthesecretaryshipofthenewTerritoryofNevada。Orionhadaccepted，andonlyneededfundstocarryhimtohisdestination。 Hispilotbrotherhadthefunds，anduponbeingappointed“private“ secretary，agreedtopaybothpassagesontheoverlandstage，whichwouldbearthemacrossthegreatplainsfromSt。JotoCarsonCity。 MarkTwain，inRoughingIt，hasdescribedthatgloriousjourneyandthefrontierlifethatfollowedit。Hislettersformasupplementofrealismtoatalethatismoreorlessfictitious，thoughmarvelouslytrueincolorandbackground。Thefirstbearsnodate，butitwaswrittennotlongaftertheirarrival，August14，1861。 Itisnotcomplete，butthereisenoughofittogiveusaveryfairpictureofCarsonCity，“awoodentown；itspopulationtwothousandsouls。” PartofalettertoMrs。JaneClemens，inSt。Louis： (Datenotgiven，butSept，orOct。，1861。) MYDEARMOTHER，——Ihopeyouwillallcomeoutheresomeday。ButIshan”tconsenttoinviteyou，untilwecanreceiveyouinstyle。ButIguessweshallbeabletodothat，oneofthesedays。IintendthatPamelashallliveonLakeBigleruntilshecanknockabulldownwithherfist——say，aboutthreemonths。 “Telleverythingasitis——nobetter，andnoworse。” Well，“GoldHill“sellsat$5，000perfoot，cashdown；“Wildcat“isn”tworthtencents。Thecountryisfabulouslyrichingold，silver，copper，lead，coal，iron，quicksilver，marble，granite，chalk，plasterofParis，(gypsum，)thieves，murderers，desperadoes，ladies，children，lawyers，Christians，Indians，Chinamen，Spaniards，gamblers，sharpers，coyotes(pronouncedKi-yo-ties，)poets，preachers，andjackassrabbits。 Ioverheardagentlemansay，theotherday，thatitwas“thed——destcountryunderthesun。”——andthatcomprehensiveconceptionIfullysubscribeto。Itneverrainshere，andthedewneverfalls。Noflowersgrowhere，andnogreenthinggladdenstheeye。Thebirdsthatflyoverthelandcarrytheirprovisionswiththem。Onlythecrowandtheraventarrywithus。Ourcityliesinthemidstofadesertofthepurest—— mostunadulterated，andcompromisingsand——inwhichinfernalsoilnothingbutthatfag-endofvegetablecreation，“sage-brush，“venturestogrow。 IfyouwilltakeaLilliputiancedartreeforamodel，andbuildadozenimitationsofitwiththestiffestarticleoftelegraphwire——setthemonefootapartandthentrytowalkthroughthem，you”llunderstand(providedtheflooriscovered12inchesdeepwithsand，)whatitistowanderthroughasage-brushdesert。Whencrushed，sagebrushemitsanodorwhichisn”texactlymagnoliaandequallyisn”texactlypolecatbutisasortofcompromisebetweenthetwo。Itlooksagooddeallikegrease-wood，andistheugliestplantthatwaseverconceivedof。Itisgrayincolor。Ontheplains，sage-brushandgrease-woodgrowabouttwiceaslargeasthecommongeranium——andinmyopiniontheyareaverygoodsubstituteforthatuselessvegetable。Grease-woodisaperfect- mostperfectimitationinminiatureofaliveoaktree-barringthecolorofit。Astotheotherfruitsandflowersofthecountry，thereain”tany，except“Pulu“or“Tuler，“orwhatevertheycallit，——aspeciesofunpoeticalwillowthatgrowsonthebanksoftheCarson——aRIVER，20 yardswide，kneedeep，andsovillainouslyrapidandcrooked，thatitlookslikeithadwanderedintothecountrywithoutintendingit，andhadrunaboutinabewilderedwayandgotlost，initshurrytogetoutagainbeforesomethirstymancamealonganddrankitup。Isaidwearesituatedinaflat，sandydesert——true。Andsurroundedonallsidesbysuchprodigiousmountains，thatwhenyougazeatthemawhile，——andbegintoconceiveoftheirgrandeur——andnexttofeeltheirvastnessexpandingyoursoul——andultimatelyfindyourselfgrowingandswellingandspreadingintoagiant——Isaywhenthispointisreached，youlookdisdainfullydownupontheinsignificantvillageofCarson，andinthatinstantyouareseizedwithaburningdesiretostretchforthyourhand，putthecityinyourpocket，andwalkoffwithit。 Astochurches，IbelievetheyhavegotaCatholiconehere，butlikethatonetheNewYorkfiremanspokeof，Ibelieve“theydon”trunhernow：“Now，althoughwearesurroundedbysand，thegreatestpartofthetownisbuiltuponwhatwasonceaveryprettygrassyspot；andthestreamsofpurewaterthatusedtopokeaboutitinruralslothandsolitude，nowpassthroughondustystreetsandgladdentheheartsofmenbyremindingthemthatthereisatleastsomethingherethathathitsprototypeamongthehomestheyleftbehindthem。Andup“King”sCanon，“ (pleasepronouncecanyon，afterthemannerofthenatives，)thereare“ranches，“orfarms，wheretheysayhaygrows，andgrass，andbeetsandonions，andturnips，andother“truck“whichissuitableforcows——yes，andevenIrishpotatoes；also，cabbage，peasandbeans。 Thehousesaremostlyframe，unplastered，but“papered“insidewithflour-sackssewedtogether，andthehandsomerthe“brand“uponthesacksis，theneaterthehouselooks。Occasionally，youstumbleonastonehouse。Onaccountofthedrynessofthecountry，theshinglesonthehouseswarptilltheylooklikeshortjointsofstovepipesplitlengthwise。 (Remaindermissing。) Inthisletterissomethingofthe“wildfreedomoftheWest，“whichlaterwouldcontributetohisfame。Thespiritofthefrontier——ofMarkTwain——wasbeginningtostirhim。 Therehadbeennosecretaryworkforhimtodo，andnoprovisionforpayment。Hefoundhisprofitinstudyinghumannatureandinprospectingnativeresources。Hewasnotinterestedinminingnotyet。WithaboynamedJohnKinneyhemadeanexcursiontoLakeBigler——nowTahoe——andlocatedatimberclaim，reallyofgreatvalue。Theyweresupposedtobuildafencearoundit，buttheyweretoofulloftheenjoymentofcamp-lifetocompleteit。Theyputinmostoftheirtimewanderingthroughthestatelyforestordriftingoverthetransparentlakeinaboatlefttherebylumbermen。Theybuiltthemselvesabrushhouse，buttheydidnotsleepinit。In”RoughingIt”hewrites，“Itneveroccurredtous，foronething； and，besides，itwasbuilttoholdtheground，andthatwasenough。 Wedidnotwishtostrainit。” Theywerehavingaglorioustime，whentheircamp-firegotawayfromthemandburneduptheirclaim。Hisnextletter，ofwhichthebeginningismissing，describesthefire。 FragmentofalettertoMrs。JaneClemensandMrs。Moffett，inSt。Louis：……Thelevelranksofflamewererelievedatintervalsbythestandard- bearers，aswecalledthetalldeadtrees，wrappedinfire，andwavingtheirblazingbannersahundredfeetintheair。ThenwecouldturnfromthisscenetotheLake，andseeeverybranch，andleaf，andcataractofflameuponitsbankperfectlyreflectedasinagleaming，fierymirror。 Themightyroaringoftheconflagration，togetherwithoursolitaryandsomewhatunsafeposition(fortherewasnoonewithinsixmilesofus，) renderedthesceneveryimpressive。Occasionally，oneofuswouldremovehispipefromhismouthandsay，“Superb！magnificent！Beautiful！but- bytheLordGodAlmighty，ifweattempttosleepinthislittlepatchtonight，we”llneverlivetillmorning！forifwedon”tburnup，we”llcertainlysuffocate。”Buthewaspersuadedtositupuntilwefeltprettysafeasfarasthefirewasconcerned，andthenweturnedin，withmanymisgivings。Whenwegotupinthemorning，wefoundthatthefirehadburnedsmallpiecesofdriftwoodwithinsixfeetofourboat，andhadmadeitswaytowithin4or5stepsofusontheSouthside。Welookedlikelavamen，coveredaswewerewithashes，andbegrimedwithsmoke。Wewereveryblackintheface，butwesoonwashedourselveswhiteagain。 JohnD。Kinney，aCincinnatiboy，andafirst-ratefellow，too，whocameoutwithjudgeTurner，wasmycomrade。WestaidattheLakefourdays—— Ihadplentyoffun，forJohnconstantlyremindedmeofSamBowenwhenwewereonourcampaigninMissouri。Butfirstandforemost，forAnnie”s，Mollies，andPamela”scomfort，beitknownthatIhaveneverbeenguiltyofprofanelanguagesinceIhavebeeninthisTerritory，andKinneyhardlyeverswears——Butsometimeshumannaturegetsthebetterofhim。 Ontheseconddaywestartedtogobylandtothelowercamp，adistanceofthreemiles，overthemountains，eachcarryinganaxe。Idon”tthinkwegotlostexactly，butwewanderedfourhoursoverthesteepest，rockiestandmostdangerouspieceofcountryintheworld。Icouldn”tkeepfromlaughingatKinney”sdistress，soIkeptbehind，sothathecouldnotseeme。Afterhewouldgetoveradangerousplace，withinfinitelaborandconstantapprehension，hewouldstop，leanonhisaxe，andlookaround，thenbehind，thenahead，andthendrophisheadandruminateawhile——Thenhewoulddrawalongsigh，andsay：“Well——couldanyBillygoathavescaledthatplacewithoutbreakinghis——neck？“ AndIwouldreply，“No，——Idon”tthinkhecould。”“No——youdon”tthinkhecould”(mimickingme，)“Whydon”tyoucursetheinfernalplace？ Youknowyouwantto——Ido，andwillcursethe——thievingcountryaslongasIlive。”Thenwewouldtoiloninsilenceforawhile。 FinallyItoldhim”Well，John，whatifwedon”tfindourwayoutofthistoday——we”llknowallaboutthecountrywhenwedogetout。”“Ohstuff——Iknowenough——andtoomuchaboutthed——dvillainouslocalityalready。”Finally，wereachedthecamp。Butaswebroughtnoprovisionswithus，thefirstsubjectthatpresenteditselftouswas，howtogetback。Johnsworehewouldn”twalkback，sowerolledadriftlogapieceintotheLake，andsetaboutmakingpaddles，intendingtostraddlethelogsandpaddleourselvesbackhomesometimeorother。ButtheLakeobjected——gotstormy，andwehadtogiveitup。SowesetoutfortheonlyhouseonthissideoftheLake——threemilesfromthere，downtheshore。Wefoundthewaywithoutanytrouble，reachedtherebeforesundown，playedthreegamesofcribbage，borrowedadug-outandpulledbacksixmilestotheuppercamp。Aswehadeatennothingsincesunrise，wedidnotwastetimeincookingoursupperorineatingit，either。 Aftersupperwegotoutourpipes——builtarousingcampfireintheopenair-establishedafarobank(aninstitutionofthiscountry，)onourhugeflatgranitediningtable，andbetwhitebeanstilloneo”clock，whenJohnwenttobed。Wewereupbeforethesunthenextmorning，wentoutontheLakeandcaughtafinetroutforbreakfast。Butunfortunately，I spoiltpartofthebreakfast。Wehadcoffeeandteaboilingonthefire，incoffee-potsandfearingtheymightnotbestrongenough，Iaddedmoregroundcoffee，andmoretea，but——youknowmistakeswillhappen——Iputtheteainthecoffee-pot，andthecoffeeintheteapot——andifyouimaginethattheywerenotvillainousmixtures，justtrytheeffectonce。 AndsoBellaistobemarriedonthe1stofOct。Well，Isendherandherhusbandmyverybestwishes，and——Imaynotbehere——butwhereverI amonthatnight，we”llhavearousingcamp-fireandajollificationinhonoroftheevent。 InadayortwoweshallprobablygototheLakeandbuildanothercabinandfence，andgeteverythingintosatisfactorytrimbeforeourtriptoEsmeraldaaboutthefirstofNovember。 WhathasbecomeofSamBowen？Iwouldgivemylastshirttohavehimouthere。Iwillmakenopromises，butIbelieveifJohnwouldgivehimathousanddollarsandsendhimoutherehewouldnotregretit。Hemightpossiblydoverywellhere，buthecoulddolittlewithoutcapital。 RemembermetoallmySt。LouisandKeokukfriends，andtellChallieandHallieRensonthatIheardamilitarybandplay“WhataretheWildWavesSaying？“theothernight，anditremindedmeveryforciblyofthem。ItbroughtEllaCreelandBelleacrosstheDeserttooinaninstant，fortheysangthesonginOrion”syardthefirsttimeIeverheardit。Itwaslikemeetinganoldfriend。ItellyouIcouldhaveswallowedthatwholeband，tromboneandall，ifsuchacomplimentwouldhavebeenanygratificationtothem。 Lovetotheyoungfolks，SAM。 ThereferenceintheforegoinglettertoEsmeraldahastodowithminingplans。Hewasbeginningtobemildlyinterested，and，withhisbrotherOrion，hadacquired“feet“inanEsmeraldacamp，probablyataverysmallprice——sosmallastoholdoutnoexcitingprospectofriches。Inhisnextletterhegivesusthesizeofthisclaim，whichhehasvisited。 Hisinterest，however，stillappearstobechieflyinhistimberclaimonLakeBigler(Tahoe)，thoughwearenevertohearofitagainafterthisletter。 ToMrs。Moffett，inSt。Louis： CARSONCITY，Oct。25，1861。 MYDEARSISTER，——IhavejustfinishedreadingyourletterandMa”sofSept。8th。Howintheworldcouldtheyhavebeensolongcoming？YouaskmeifIhaveforgottenmypromisetolayaclaimforMr。Moffett。 Bynomeans。Ihavealreadylaidatimberclaimonthebordersofalake(Bigler)whichthrowsComointheshade——andifwesucceedingettingoneMr。Jones，tomovehissaw-millupthere，Mr。Moffettcanjustconsiderthatclaimbetterthanbankstock。Jonessayshewillmovehismillupnextspring。InthatclaimItookupabouttwomilesinlengthbyoneinwidth——andthenamesinitareasfollows：“Sam。LClemens，Wm。A。 Moffett，Thos。Nye“andthreeothers。Itissituatedon“SamClemensBay“——sonamedbyCapt。Nye——anditgoesbythatnameamongtheinhabitantsofthatregion。Ihadbetterstopabout“theLake，“though，——forwheneverIthinkofitIwanttogothereanddie，theplaceissobeautiful。I”llbuildacountryseatthereoneofthesedaysthatwillmaketheDevil”smouthwaterifheevervisitstheearth。JimLamptonwillneverknowwhetherIlaidaclaimthereforhimornotuntilhecomesherehimself。Wehavenowgotabout1，650feetofminingground—— andifitprovesgood，Mr。Moffett”snamewillgoin——ifnot，Icanget“feet“forhimintheSpringwhichwillbegood。Yousee，Pamela，thetroubledoesnotconsistingettingminingground——forthatisplentyenough——butthemoneytoworkitwithafteryougetitisthemischief。 WhenIwasinEsmeralda，ayoungfellowgavemefiftyfeetinthe“BlackWarrior“——anunprospectedclaim。Theotherdayhewrotemethathehadgonedowneightfeetontheledge，andfounditeightfeetthick——andprettygoodrock，too。Hesaidhecouldtakeoutrocknowiftherewereamilltocrushit——butthemillsareallengaged(thereareonlyfourofthem)so，ifIwerewilling，hewouldsuspendworkuntilSpring。Iwrotehimtoletitaloneatpresent——because，yousee，intheSpringIcangodownmyselfandhelphimlookafterit。Therewillthenbetwentymillsthere。OrionandIhaveconfidenceenoughinthiscountrytothinkthatifthewarwillletusalonewecanmakeMr。Moffettrichwithoutitsevercostinghimacentofmoneyorparticleoftrouble。Weshalllayplentyofclaimsforhim，butiftheyneverpayhimanything，theywillnevercosthimanything，OrionandIarenotfinanciers。Therefore，youmustpersuadeUncleJimtocomeouthereandhelpusinthatline。 Ihavewrittentohimtwicetocome。Iwrotehimtoday。InbothlettersItoldhimnottoletyouorMaknowthatwedealtinsuchromanticnonsenseas“brilliantprospects，“becauseIalwaysdidhateforanyonetoknowwhatmyplansorhopesorprospectswere——for，ifIkeptpeopleinignoranceinthesematters，noonecouldbedisappointedbutmyself，iftheywerenotrealized。YouknowInevertoldyouthatIwentontheriverunderapromisetopayBixby$500，untilIhadpaidthemoneyandclearedmyskirtsofthepossibilityofhavingmyjudgmentcriticised。 Iwouldnotsayanythingaboutourprospectsnow，ifwewerenearerhome。 ButIsupposeatthisdistanceyouaremoreanxiousthanyouwouldbeifyousawuseverymonth-andthereforeitishardlyfairtokeepyouinthedark。However，keepthesematterstoyourselves，andthenifwefail，we”llkeepthelaughinthefamily。 Whatwewantnowissomethingthatwillcommencepayingimmediately。 Wehavegotachancetogetintoaclaimwheretheysayatunnelhasbeenrun150feet，andtheledgestruck。Igotahorseyesterday，andwentoutwiththeAttorney-Generalandtheclaim-owner——andwetriedtogototheclaimbyanewroute，andgotlostinthemountains——sunsetovertookusbeforewefoundtheclaim——myhorsegottoolametocarryme，andI gotdownanddrovehimaheadofmetillwithinfourmilesoftown——thenwesentRiceonahead。Bunker，(whosehorsewasingoodcondition，) undertook，toleadmine，andIfollowedafterhim。Darknessshuthimoutfrommyviewinlessthanaminute，andwithinthenextminuteIlosttheroadandgottowanderinginthesagebrush。Iwouldfindtheroadoccasionallyandthenloseitagaininaminuteorso。IgottoCarsonaboutnineo”clock，atnight，butnotbytheroadItraveledwhenIleftit。TheGeneralsaysmyhorsedidverywellforawhile，butsoonrefusedtolead。Thenhedismounted，andhadajollytimedrivingbothhorsesaheadofhimandchasingthemhereandtherethroughthesagebrush(itdoesmysoulgoodwhenIthinkofit)untilhegottotown，whenbothanimalsdesertedhim，andhecursedthemhandsomelyandcamehomealone。 Ofcoursethehorseswenttotheirstables。 TellSammyIwilllayaclaimforhim，andhemustcomeoutandattendtoit。Hemustgetridofthatpropensityfortumblingdown，though，forwhenwegetfairlystartedhere，Idon”tthinkweshallhavetimetopickupthosewhofall…… ThatisStoughter”shouse，Iexpect，thatCousinJimhasmovedinto。 ThisisjustthecountryforCousinJimtolivein。Idon”tbelieveitwouldtakehimsixmonthstomake$100，000here，ifhehad3，000dollarstocommencewith。Isupposehecan”tleavehisfamilythough。 TellMrs。BensonIneverintendtobealawyer。Ihavebeenaslaveseveraltimesinmylife，butI”llneverbeoneagain。Ialwaysintendtobesosituated(unlessImarry，)thatIcan“pullupstakes“andclearoutwheneverIfeellikeit。 Weareverythankfultoyou，Pamela，forthepapersyousend。Wehavereceivedhalfadozenormore，and，nexttoletters，theyarethemostwelcomevisitorswehave。 Writeoftener，Pamela。 Yr。BrotherSAM。 The“CousinJim“mentionedinthisletteristheoriginalofthecharacterofColonelSellers。WhateverMarkTwain”slateropinionofCousinJimLampton”sfinancialgeniusmayhavebeen，heseemstohaverespecteditatthistime。 Morethanthreemonthspassuntilwehaveanotherletter，andinthattimetheminingfeverhadbecomewellseated。MarkTwainhimselfwasfulloftheSellersoptimism，anditwasboundtooverflow，fortifyashewouldagainstit。 Hemetwithlittleenoughencouragement。Withthreecompanions，inmidwinter，hemadeaminingexcursiontothemuchexploitedHumboldtregion，returningempty-handedafteramonthortwoofhardexperience。 ThisisthetrippicturesquelydescribedinChaptersXXVIItoXXXIIIofRoughingIt——[ItissetdownhistoricallyinMarkTwain”ABiography。” Harper&brothers。]——He，mentionstheHumboldtinhisnextletter，butdoesnotconfesshisfailure。 ToMrs。JaneClemensandMrs。Moffett，inSt。Louis： CARSONCITY，Feb。8，1862。 MYDEARMOTHERANDSISTER，——ByGeorgePamela，IbegintofearthatIhaveinvokedaSpiritofsomekindorotherwhichIwillfindsomedifficultyinlaying。Iwasn”tmuchterrifiedbyyourgrowinginclinations，butwhenyoubegintocallpresentimentstoyouraid，IconfessthatI “weaken。”Mr。Moffettisright，asIsaidbefore——andIamnotmuchafraidofhisgoingwrong。Menareeasilydealtwith——butwhenyougetthewomenstarted，youareinforit，youknow。ButIhavedecidedontwothings，viz：Anyofyou，orallofyou，mayliveinCalifornia，forthatistheGardenofEdenreproduced——butyoushallneverliveinNevada；andsecondly，noneofyou，saveMr。Moffett，shallevercrossthePlains。IfyouwereonlygoingtoPike”sPeak，alittlematterof700 milesfromSt。Jo，youmighttakethecoach，andIwouldn”tsayaword。 ButIconsideritover2，000milesfromSt。JotoCarson，andthefirst6or800milesismereFourthofJuly，comparedtothebalanceoftheroute。ButLordblessyou，amanenjoyseveryfootofit。IfyouevercomehereortoCalifornia，itmustbebysea。Mr。Moffettmustcomebyoverlandcoach，though，byallmeans。Hewouldconsideritthejolliestlittletripheevertookinhislife。EitherJune，July，orAugustarethepropermonthstomakethejourneyin。Hecouldnotsufferfromheat，andthreeorfourheavyarmyblanketswouldmakethecoldnightscomfortable。Ifthecoachwerefullofpassengers，twogoodblanketswouldprobablybesufficient。Ifhecomes，andbringsplentyofmoney，andfailstoinvestittohisentiresatisfaction；Iwillprophesynomore。 ButIwilltellyouafewthingswhichyouwouldn”thavefoundoutifI hadn”tgotmyselfintothisscrape。IexpecttoreturntoSt。LouisinJuly——persteamer。Idon”tsaythatIwillreturnthen，orthatIshallbeabletodoit——butIexpectto——youbet。IcamedownherefromHumboldt，inordertolookafterourEsmeraldainterests，andmysore- backedhorseandthebadroadshavepreventedmefrommakingthejourney。 YesterdayoneofmyoldEsmeraldafriends，BobHowland，arrivedhere，andIhavehadatalkwithhim。Heownswithmeinthe“HoratioandDerby“ ledge。Hesaysourtunnelisin52feet，andasmallstreamofwaterhasbeenstruck，whichbidsfairtobecomea“bigthing“bythetimetheledgeisreached——sufficienttosupplyamill。Now，ifyouknewanythingofthevalueofwater，here；youwouldperceive，ataglancethatifthewatershouldamountto50or100inches，wewouldn”tcarewhetherschoolkeptornot。Iftheledgeshouldprovetobeworthless，we”dsellthewaterformoneyenoughtogiveusquitealift。Butyousee，theledgewillnotprovetobeworthless。Wehavelocated，nearby，afinesiteforamill；andwhenwestriketheledge，youknow，we”llhaveamill- site，waterpower，andpay-rock，allhandy。Thenweshan”tcarewhetherwehavecapitalornot。Mill-folkswillbuildusamill，andwaitfortheirpay。Ifnothinggoeswrong，we”llstriketheledgeinJune——andifwedo，I”llbehomeinJuly，youknow。 Pamela，don”tyouknowthatundemonstratedhumancalculationswon”tdotobeton？Don”tyouknowthatIhaveonlytalked，asyet，butprovednothing？Don”tyouknowthatIhaveexpendedmoneyinthiscountrybuthavemadenonemyself？Don”tyouknowthatIhaveneverheldinmyhandsagoldorsilverbarthatbelongedtome？Don”tyouknowthatit”salltalkandnocidersofar？Don”tyouknowthatpeoplewhoalwaysfeeljolly，nomatterwheretheyareorwhathappenstothem——whohavetheorganofhopepreposterouslydeveloped——whoareendowedwithanuncongealablesanguinetemperament——whoneverfeelconcernedaboutthepriceofcorn——andwhocannot，byanypossibility，discoveranybutthebrightsideofapicture——areveryapttogotoextremes，andexaggeratewith40-horsemicroscopicpower？OfcourseInevertriedtoraisethesesuspicionsinyourmind，butthenyourknowledgeofthefactthatsomepeople”spoorfrailhumannatureisasortofcrazyinstitutionanyhow，oughttohavesuggestedthemtoyou。Now，ifIhadn”tthoughtlesslygotyouintothenotionofcomingouthere，andtherebygotmyselfintoascrape，Iwouldn”thavegivenyouthathighly-coloredparagraphaboutthemill，etc。，because，youknow，ifthatprettylittlepictureshouldfail，andwashout，andgotheDevilgenerally，itwouldn”tcostmethelossofanhour”ssleep，butyoufellowswouldbesomuchdistressedonmyaccountasIcouldpossiblybeif“circumstancesbeyondmycontrol“weretopreventmybeingpresentatmyownfuneral。But——but—— “Inthebrightlexiconofyouth，There”snosuchwordasFail” andI”llproveit！ Andlookhere。Icamenearforgettingit。Don”tyousayawordtomeabout“trains“acrosstheplains。BecauseIamdownonthatarrangement。 Thatsortofthingis“playedout，“youknow。TheOverlandCoachortheMailSteameristhething。 YouwanttoknowsomethingabouttheroutebetweenCaliforniaandNevadaTerritory？Supposeyoutakemywordforit，thatitisexceedinglyjolly。Ortake，forawinterview，J。RossBrown”spicture，inHarper”sMonthly，ofpackmulestumblingfifteenhundredfeetdownthesideofamountain。Whyblessyou，there”ssceneryonthatroute。YoucanstandonsomeofthosenoblepeaksandseeJerusalemandtheHolyLand。Andyoucanstartaboulder，andsendittearinguptheearthandcrashingovertrees-down-down-down-totheverydevil，Madam。Andyouwouldprobablystandupthereandlook，andstareandwonderatthemagnificencespreadoutbeforeyoutillyoustarvedtodeath，ifletalone。Butyoushouldtakesomeonealongtokeepyoumoving。 Sinceyouwanttoknow，Iwillinformyouthataneight-stampwatermill，putupandreadyforbusinesswouldcostabout$10，000to$12，000。Then，thewatertorunitwithwouldcostfrom$1，000to$30，000——andevenmore，accordingtothelocation。WhatImeanbythat，is，thatwaterpowersinTHISvicinity，areimmenselyvaluable。So，also，inEsmeralda。 ButHumboldtisanewcountry，andthingsdon”tcostsomuchthereyet。 Isawagoodwaterpowersoldtherefor$750。00。Buthereisthewaythethingismanaged。AmanwithagoodwaterpoweronCarsonriverwillleanhisaxeupagainstatree(providedyoufindhimchoppingcord-woodat$4aday，)andtakinghischalkpipeoutofhismouthtoaffordhimanopportunitytoansweryourquestions，willlookyoucoollyinthefaceandtellyouhislittlepropertyisworthfortyorfiftythousanddollars！Butyoucaneasilyfixhim。Youtellhimthatyou”llbuildaquartzmillonhisproperty，andmakehimafourthorathird，orhalfownerinsaidmillinconsiderationoftheprivilegeofusingsaidproperty——andthatwillbringhimtohismilkinajiffy。Sohespitsonhishands，andgoesinagainwithhisaxe，untilthemillisfinished，whenlo！outpopsthequondamwood-chopper，arrayedinpurpleandfinelinen，andpreparedtodealinbank-stock，orbetontheraces，ortakegovernmentloans，withanair，astotheamount，ofthemostdon”tcare- a-d——destunconcernthatyoucanconceiveof。ByGeorge，ifIjusthadathousanddollars——I”dbeallright！Nowthere”sthe“Horatio，“forinstance。Therearefiveorsixshareholdersinit，andIknowIcouldbuyhalfoftheirinterestsat，say$20perfoot，nowthatflourisworth$50perbarrelandtheyarepressedformoney。ButIamhardupmyself，andcan”tbuy——andinJunethey”llstriketheledgeandthen“good-byecanary。”Ican”tgetitforloveormoney。Twentydollarsafoot！ Thinkofit。Forgroundthatisproventoberich。Twentydollars，Madam——andwewouldn”tpartwithafootofour75forfivetimesthesum。 SoitwillbeinHumboldtnextsummer。Theboyswillgetpushedandsellgroundforasongthatisworthafortune。ButIamatthehelm，now。 IhaveconvincedOrionthathehasn”tbusinesstalentenoughtocarryonapeanutstand，andhehassolemnlypromisedmethathewillmeddlenomorewithmining，orothermattersnotconnectedwiththeSecretary”soffice。So，yousee，ifminesaretobeboughtorsold，ortunnelsrun，orshaftssunk，partieshavetocometome——andmeonly。I”mthe“firm，“ youknow。 “Howlongdoesittakeoneofthoseinfernaltrainstogothrough？“ Well，anywherebetweenthreeandfivemonths。 TellMargaretthatifyouevercometoliveinCalifornia，thatyoucanpromiseherahomeforahundredyears，andabullyone——butshewouldn”tlikethecountry。SomepeoplearemaliciousenoughtothinkthatifthedevilweresetatlibertyandtoldtoconfinehimselftoNevadaTerritory，thathewouldcomehere——andlooksadlyaround，awhile，andthengethomesickandgobacktohellagain。ButIhardlybelieveit，youknow。Iamsaying，mindyou，thatMargaretwouldn”tlikethecountry，perhaps——northedevileither，forthatmatter，oranyothermanbutIlikeit。Whenitrainshere，itneverletsuptillithasdonealltherainingithasgottodo——andafterthat，there”sadryspell，youbet。Why，Ihavehadmywhiskersandmoustachessofullofalkalidustthatyou”dhavethoughtIworkedinastarchfactoryandboardedinaflourbarrel。 Sincewehavebeenheretherehasnotbeenafire——althoughthehousesarebuiltofwood。They“holler“firesometimes，though，butIamalwaystoolatetoseethesmokebeforethefireisout，iftheyeverhaveany。 Nowtheyraisedayellhereinfrontoftheofficeamomentago。Iputawaymypapers，andlockedupeverythingofvalue，andchangedmyboots，andpulledoffmycoat，andwentandgotabucketofwater，andcamebacktoseewhatthematterwas，remarkingtomyself，“IguessI”llbeonhandthistime，anyway。”ButImetafriendonthepavement，andhesaid，“Whereyoubeen？Fire”southalfanhourago。” MasaysAxtelewasabove“suspition“——butIhavesearchedthroughWebster”sUnabridged，andcan”tfindtheword。However，it”sofnoconsequence——Ihopehegotdownsafely。IknewAxteleandhiswifeaswellasIknowDanHaines。Mrs。A。oncetriedtoembarrassmeinthepresenceofcompanybyaskingmetonameherbaby，whenshewaswellawarethatIdidn”tknowthesexofthatPhenomenon。ButItoldhertocallitFrances，andspellittosuitherself。Thatwasaboutnineyearsago，andAxtelehadnoproperty，andcouldhardlysupporthisfamilybyhisearnings。Hewasapiouscuss，though。MemberofMargaretSexton”sChurch。 AndMasays“itlookslikeamancan”tholdpublicofficeandbehonest。” Why，certainlynot，Madam。Amancan”tholdpublicofficeandbehonest。 Lordblessyou，itisacommonpracticewithOriontogoabouttownstealinglittlethingsthathappentobelyingaroundloose。AndIdon”trememberhavingheardhimspeakthetruthsincewehavebeeninNevada。 Heeventriestoprevailuponmetodothesethings，Ma，butIwasn”tbroughtupinthatway，youknow。Youshowedthepublicwhatyoucoulddointhatlinewhenyouraisedme，Madam。Butthenyououghttohaveraisedmefirst，sothatOrioncouldhavehadthebenefitofmyexample。 Doyouknowthathestoleallthestampsoutofan8stampquartzmillonenight，andbroughtthemhomeunderhisover-coatandhidtheminthebackroom？ Yrs。etc。，SAM AlittlelaterhehadheadedfortheEsmeraldaHills。SometimeinFebruaryhewasestablishedthereinacampwithayoungmanbythenameofHoratioPhillips(Raish)。LaterhecampedwithBobHowland，who，asCityMarshalofAurora，becameknownasthemostfearlessmanintheTerritory，and，stilllater，withCalvinH。Higbie(Cal)，towhom”RoughingIt”wouldonedaybededicated。Hisownfundswereexhaustedbythistime，andOrion，withhisratherslendersalary，becamethefinancialpartnerofthefirm。 ItwasacomfortlesslifethereintheEsmeraldacamp。Snowcoveredeverything。Therewasnothingtodo，andapparentlynothingtoreport；fortherearenolettersuntilApril。ThenthefirstoneisdatedCarsonCity，whereheseemstobemakingabriefsojourn。Itisaratherheavyattempttobelight-hearted；itsplayfulnesssuggeststhatofadancingbear。 ToMrs。JaneClemens，inSt。Louis： CARSONCITY，April2，1862。 MYDEARMOTHER，——YoursofMarch2ndhasjustbeenreceived。IseeIaminforitagain——withAnnie。ButsheoughttoknowthatIwasalwaysstupid。SheusedtotrytoteachmelessonsfromtheBible，butInevercouldunderstandthem。Doesn”tsheremembertellingmethestoryofMoses，oneSunday，lastSpring，andhowhardshetriedtoexplainitandsimplifyitsothatIcouldunderstandit——butIcouldn”t？AndhowshesaiditwasstrangethatwhilehermaandhergrandmaandheruncleOrioncouldunderstandanythingintheworld，IwassodullthatIcouldn”tunderstandthe“ea-siestthing？“Anddoesn”tsherememberthatfinallyalightbrokeinuponmeandIsaiditwasallright——thatIknewoldMoseshimself——andthathekeptaclothingstoreinMarketStreet？Andthenshewenttohermaandsaidshedidn”tknowwhatwouldbecomeofheruncleSamhewastoodulltolearnanything——ever！AndI”mjustasdullyet。NowIhavenodoubtherletterwasspelledright，andwascorrectinallparticulars——butthenIhadtoreaditaccordingtomylights；andtheybeinginferior，sheoughttooverlookthemistakesImakespecially，asitisnotmyfaultthatIwasn”tbornwithgoodsense。Iamsureshewilldetectanencouragingrayofintelligenceinthatlastargument…… Iamwaitinghere，tryingtorentabetterofficeforOrion。Ihavegottherefusalafternextweekofaroomonfirstfloorofafire-proofbrick-rent，eighteenhundreddollarsayear。Don”tknowyetwhetherwecangetitornot。Ifitisnotrentedbeforetheweekisup，wecan。 IwassorrytohearthatDickwaskilled。Igavehimhisfirstlessoninthemusketdrill。WehadhalfadozenmusketsinourofficewhenitwasoverIsbell”sMusicRooms。 IhopeIamwearingthelastwhiteshirtthatwillembellishmypersonformanyaday——forIdohopethatIshallbeoutofCarsonlongbeforethisreachesyou。 Lovetoall。 VeryRespectfullySAM。 The“Annie“inthisletterwashissisterPamela”slittledaughter； longyearsafter，shewouldbethewifeofCharlesL。Webster，MarkTwain”spublishingpartner。“Dick“thereadermayrememberasDickHingham，oftheKeokukprinting-office；hewaskilledinchargingtheworksatFortDonelson。 ClemenswasbackinEsmeraldawhenthenextletterwaswritten，andwebeginnowtogetpicturesofthatcheerlessmining-camp，andtoknowsomethingofthealternatehopesanddiscouragementsofthehuntforgold——themineronedaysoaringonwingsofhope，onthenextbecomingexcited，irritable，profane。Thenamesofnewminesappearconstantlyandvanishalmostatatouch，suggestingthefairy-likeevanescenceoftheirriches。 Butafewofthelettersherewillbestspeakforthemselves；notallofthemareneeded。Itisperhapsunnecessarytosaythatthereisnointentionalhumorinthesedocuments。 ToOrionClemens，inCarsonCity： ESMERALDA，13thApril，1862。 MYDEARBROTHER，——Wassongotherenightbeforelast“fromthewars。” TellLockhartheisnotwoundedandnotkilled——isaltogetherunhurt。 HesaysthewhiteslefttheirstonefortbeforeheandLieut。Noblegotthere。Alargeamountofprovisionsandammunition，whichtheyleftbehindthem，fellintothehandsoftheIndians。Theyhadapitchedbattlewiththesavagessomefiftymilesfromthefort，inwhichScott(sheriff)andanothermanwaskilled。Thiswasthedaybeforethesoldierscameupwiththem。ImeanNoble”smen，andthoseunderCols。 EvansandMayfield，fromLosAngeles。Evansassumedthechiefcommand—— andnextmorningtheforcesweredividedintothreeparties，andmarchedagainsttheenemy。Col。Mayfieldwaskilled，andSergeantGillespie，alsoNoble”scolonelwaswounded。TheCaliforniatroopswentbackhome，andNobleremained，tohelpdrivethestockoverhere。And，asCousinSallyDillardsays，thisisallIknowaboutthefight。 WorknotyetbegunontheH。andDerby——haven”tseenityet。Itisstillinthesnow。Shallbeginonitwithin3or4weeks——striketheledgeinJuly。Guessitisgood——worthfrom$30to$50afootinCalifornia。 Whydidn”tyousendthe“LiveYankee“deed-theveryoneIwanted？Havemadenoinquiriesaboutit，much。Don”tintendtountilIgetthedeed。 Senditalong——bymail——d——ntheExpress——havetopaythreetimesforallexpressmatter；onceinCarsonandtwicehere。Idon”texpecttotakethesaddle-bagsoutoftheexpressoffice。Ipaidtwenty-fivects。 fortheExpressdeeds。 MannamedGebhartshothereyesterdaywhiletryingtodefendaclaimonLastChanceHill。Expecthewilldie。 Thesemillsherearenotworthad——n-exceptClayton”s——anditisnotinfullworkingtrimyet。 Sendme$40or$50——bymail——immediately。 TheRedBirdisprobablygood——can”tworkonthetunnelonaccountofsnow。The“Pugh“Ihavethrownaway——shan”tre-locateit。Itisnothingbutbed-rockcroppings——toomuchworktofindtheledge，ifthereisone。 Shan”trecordthe“Farnum“untilIknowmoreaboutit——perhapsnotatall。 “Governor“underthesnow。 “Douglas“and“RedBird“arebothrecorded。 Ihavehadopportunitiestogetintoseveralledges，butrefusedallbutthree——expecttobackoutoftwoofthem。 Stiryourselfasmuchaspossible，andlayup$100or$15，000，subjecttomycall。Igotoworkto-morrow，withpickandshovel。Something”sgottocome，byG——，beforeIletgo，here。 Col。YoungssaysyoumustrentKinkead”sroombyallmeans——Governmentwouldratherpay$150amonthforyourofficethan$75forGen。North”s。 Saysyouareplayingyourhandverybadly，foreithertheGovernment”sgoodopinionoranybody”selse，inkeepingyourofficeinashanty。SaysputGov。Nyeinyourplaceandhewouldhaveastylishoffice，andnoobjectionswouldeverbemade，either。WhenoldCol。Youngstalksthisway，Ithinkittimetogetafineoffice。Iwishyouwouldtakethatoffice，andfitituphandsomely，sothatIcanomittellingpeoplethatbythistimeyouarehandsomelylocated，whenIknowitisnosuchthing。 Iamlivingwith“RatioPhillips。”Sendhimoneofthoseblackportfolios——bythestage，andputacoupleofpen-holdersandadozensteelpensinit。 IfyoushouldhaveoccasiontodisposeofthelongdeskbeforeIreturn，don”tforgettobreakopenthemiddledrawerandtakeoutmythings。 Envelopmyblackclothcoatinanewspaperandhangitinthebackroom。 Don”tbuyanythingwhileIamhere——butsaveupsomemoneyforme。Don”tsendanymoneyhome。Ishallhaveyournextquarter”ssalaryspentbeforeyougetit，Ithink。Imeantomakeorbreakherewithinthenexttwoorthreemonths。 Yrs。 SAM The“wars“mentionedintheopeningparagraphofthisletterwereincidenttothetroubleconcerningtheboundarylinebetweenCaliforniaandNevada。Thetroublecontinuedforsometime，withoccasionalbloodshed。Thenextletterisanexultantone。Therewerefewenoughofthissort。Wecannotpretendtokeeptrackofthemultiplicityofminesandshareswhichlurethegold-hunters，peckingawayattheflintyledges，usuallyinthesnow。Ithasbeennecessarytoabbreviatethisletter，formuchofithaslostallimportancewiththeyears，andismerelyconfusing。Hopeisstillhighinthewriter”sheart，andconfidenceinhisassociatesstillunshaken。Laterhewastolosefaithin“Raish，“whetherwithjusticeornotwecannotknownow。 ToOrionClowns，inCarsonCity： ESMERALDA，May11，1862。 MYDEARBRO。，——TOuseaFrenchexpressionIhave“gotmyd——dsatisfy“atlast。Twoyears”timewillmakeuscapitalists，inspiteofanything。 Therefore，weneedfretandfume，andworryanddoubtnomore，butjustliestillandputupwithprivationsforsixmonths。Perhapsthreemonthswill“letusout。”Then，ifGovernmentrefusestopaytherentonyournewofficewecandoitourselves。Wehavegottowaitsixweeks，anyhow，foradividend，maybelonger——butthatitwillcomethereisnoshadowofadoubt，Ihavegotthethingsifteddowntoadeadmoralcertainty。Iownone-eighthofthenew“MonitorLedge，ClemensCompany，“ andmoneycan”tbuyafootofit；becauseIknowittocontainourfortune。Theledgeissixfeetwide，andoneneedsnoglasstoseegoldandsilverinit。PhillipsandIownonehalfofasegregatedclaiminthe“Flyaway“discovery，andgoodinterestsintwoextensionsonit。 Weputmentoworkonourpartofthediscoveryyesterday，andlastnighttheybroughtussomefinespecimens。Rocktakenfromtenfeetbelowthesurfaceontheotherpartofthediscovery，hasyielded$150。00tothetoninthemillandweareatwork300feetfromtheirshaft。 May12——Yoursbythemailreceivedlastnight。“EighteenhundredfeetintheC。T。Rice”sCompany！“Well，Iamgladyoudidnotacceptofthe200 feet。TellRicetogiveittosomepoorman。 Buthereafter，whenanybodyholdsupaglitteringprospectbeforeyou，justargueinthiswise，viz：That，ifallsparechangebedevotedtoworkingthe“Monitor“and“Flyaway，“12months，or24atfurthest，willfindallourearthlywishessatisfied，sofarasmoneyisconcerned——andthemore“feet“wehave，themoreanxietywemustbear——therefore，whynotsay“No——d——nyour”prospects”Iwaitonasurething——andamanislessthanaman，ifhecan”twait2yearsforafortune？“WhenyouandIcameouthere，wedidnotexpect”63or”64tofindusrichmen—— andifthatpropositionhadbeenmade，wewouldhaveaccepteditgladly。 Now，itismade。 Well，Iamwilling，now，that“Neary”stunnel，“oranybodyelse”stunnelshallsucceed。Someofthemmaybeatusafewmonths，butweshallbeonhandinthefullnessoftime，assureasfate。Iwouldhatetoswapchanceswithanymemberofthe“tribe“——infact，Iamsolosttoallsenseandreasonastobecapableofrefusingtotrade“Flyaway“(withbut200feetintheCompanyoffour，)footforfootforthatsplendid“LadyWashington，“withitslistsofcapitalistproprietors，andits35，000feetofPricelessground。 Iwouldn”tmindbeinginsomeofthoseClearCreekclaims，ifIlivedinCarsonandwecouldsparethemoney。ButIhavestruckmytentinEsmeralda，andIcarefornominesbutthosewhichIcansuperintendmyself。Iamacitizenherenow，andIamsatisfied——althoughR。andI arestrappedandwehaven”tthreedays”rationsinthehouse。 RaishislookinganxiouslyformoneyandsoamI。Sendmewhateveryoucanspareconveniently——IwantittoworktheFlyawaywith。Myfourthofthatclaimonlycostme$50，(whichisn”tpaidyet，though，)andI supposeIcouldsellithereintownfortentimesthatamounttoday，butIshallprobablyholdontoittillthecowscomehome。Ishallworkthe“Monitor“andtheotherclaimswithmyownhands。Iprospectedofapoundof“M，“yesterday，andRaishreduceditwiththeblow-pipe，andgotabouttenortwelvecentsingoldandsilver，besidestheotherhalfofitwhichwespiltontheflooranddidn”tget。Thespecimencamefromthecroppings，butwasachoiceone，andshowedmuchfreegoldtothenakedeye。 Well，Ilikethecornerup-stairsofficeamazingly——provided，ithasonefine，largefrontroomsuperblycarpeted，forthesafeanda$150desk，orsuchamatter——onehandsomeroomamidships，lesshandsomelygottenup，perhaps，forrecordsandconsultations，andonegood-sizedbedroomandadjoiningitakitchen，neitherofwhichlattercanbeenteredbyanybodybutyourself——andfinally，whenoneoftheledgesbeginstopay，thewholetobekeptinparlororderbytwolikelycontrabandsatbigwages，thesametobefreeofexpensetotheGovernment。Youwanttheentiresecondstory——nolessroomthanyouwouldhavehadinHarrisandCo”s。 Makethemfixforyoubeforethe1stofJuly-formaybeyoumightwantto“comeoutstrong“onthe4th，youknow。 No，thePostOfficeisallrightandkeptbyagentlemanbutW。F。 Expressisn”t。Theycharge25ctstoexpressaletterfromhere，butI believetheyhavequitchargingtwiceforlettersthatarriveprepaid。 The“Flyaway“specimenIsentyou，(takenbymyselffromDeKay”sshaft，300feetfromwherewearegoingtosink)cannotbecalled“choice，“ exactly——saysomethingabovemedium，tobeonthesafeside。ButIhaveseenexceedinglychoicechunksfromthatshaft。MyintentionatfirstinsendingtheAntelopespecimenwasthatyoumightseethatitresemblestheMonitor——but，cometothink，amancantellabsolutelynothingaboutthatwithoutseeingbothledgesthemselves。ItriedtobreakahandsomechunkfromahugepieceofmydarlingMonitorwhichwebroughtfromthecroppingsyesterday，butitallsplinteredup，andIsendyouthescraps。 Icallthat“choice“——anyd——dfoolwould。Don”taskifithasbeenassayed，forithasn”t。Itdon”tneedit。Itisamplyabletospeakforitself。Itissixfeetwideontop，andtraversedthroughandthroughwithveinswhosecolorproclaimstheirworth。WhatthedevildoesamanwantwithanymorefeetwhenheownsintheFlyawayandtheinvinciblebomb-proofMonitor？ IfIhadanythingmoretosayIhaveforgottenwhatitwas，unless，perhaps，thatIwantasumofmoney——anywherefrom$20to$150，assoonaspossible。 Raishsendsregards。HeorI，onewilldropalinetothe“Age“ occasionally。Isupposeyousawmylettersinthe“Enterprise。” Yr。BRO，SAM P。S。IsupposePamelaneverwillregainherhealth，butshecouldimproveitbycomingtoCalifornia——providedthetripdidn”tkillher。 YouseeBixbyisontheflag-ship。HealwayswasthebestpilotontheMississippi，anddeserveshis“posish。”Theyhavedonearecklessthing，though，inputtingSamBowenonthe“Swan“——forifabomb-shellhappenstocomehisway，hewillinfalliblyjumpoverboard。 Sendmeanotherpackageofthoseenvelopes，perBagley”scoatpocket。 Weseehowanxioushewasforhisbrothertomakeagoodofficialshowing。IfaniggardlyGovernmentrefusedtoprovidedecentquarters——nomatter；theminers，withgoldpouringin，wouldthemselvespayforasuite“superblycarpeted，“andallkeptinorderby“twolikelycontrabands“——thatistosay，negroes。SamuelClemensinthosedaysbelievedinexpansionandimpressivesurroundings。Hisbrother，thoughalsominingmad，wasratherinclinedtobepennywiseinthematterofofficeluxury——notabadidea，asitturnedout。 Orion，bytheway，wasacquiring“feet“onhisownaccount，andinoneinstance，atleast，seemstohavewonhisbrother”scommendation。 The”Enterprise”lettersmentionedweshallpresentlyhearofagain。 ToOrionClemens，inCarsonCity： ESMERALDA，Sunday，May——，1862。 MYDEARBROTHER，——Well，ifyouhaven”t“struckitrich”thatis，ifthepieceofrockyousentmecamefromabonafideledge——anditlooksasifitdid。Ifthatisaledge，andyouown200feetinit，why，it”sabigthing——andIhavenothingmoretosay。Ifyouhaveactuallymadesomethingbyhelpingtopaysomebody”sprospectingexpensesitisawonderofthefirstmagnitude，anddeservestorankassuch。 Ifthatrockcamefromawell-definedledge，thatparticularveinmustbeatleastaninchwide，judgingfromthisspecimen，whichisfullythatthick。 WhenIcameintheotherevening，hungryandtiredandill-natured，andthrewdownmypickandshovel，Raishgavemeyourspecimen——saidBagleybroughtit，andaskedmeifitwerecinnabar。Iexamineditbythewaningdaylight，andtookthespecksoffinegoldforsulphurets——wroteyouIdidnotthinkmuchofit——andpostedtheletterimmediately。 ButassoonasIlookedatitinthebroadlightofday，Isawmymistake。Duringtheweek，wehavemadethreehorns，gotablow-pipe，&c，andyesterday，allprepared，weprospectedthe“MountainHouse。”Ibrokethespecimenintwo，andfounditfulloffinegoldinside。Thenwewashedoutone-fourthofit，andgotanobleprospect。Thiswereducedwiththeblow-pipe，andgotabouttwocents(herewithenclosed)inpuregold。 Asthefragmentprospectedweighedratherlessthananounce，thiswouldgiveabout$500totheton。Wewereeminentlywellsatisfied。 Therefore，holdontothe“MountainHouse，“foritisa“bigthing。” Touchitlightly，asfarasmoneyisconcerned，though，foritiswelltoreservethecodeofjusticeinthematterofquartzledges——thatis，considerthemall(andtheirowners)guilty(of“shenanigan“)untiltheyareprovedinnocent。 P。S——Monday——RatioandIhaveboughtone-halfofasegregatedclaimintheoriginal“Flyaway，“for$100——$5odown。Wehaven”tacentinthehouse。Wetwowillworktheledge，andhavefullcontrol，andpayallexpenses。Ifyoucanspare$100conveniently，letmehaveit——or$50，anyhow，consideringthatIownonefourthofthis，itisofcoursemorevaluablethanone1/7ofthe“MountainHouse，“althoughnotsorich…… Thereistoomuchofasamenessinthelettersofthisperiodtouseallofthem。Therearealwaysnewclaims，andworkdone，apparentlywithoutsystemorcontinuance，hopingtouncoversuddenboundlessaffluence。 Inthenextletterandtheonefollowingitwegetahintofanepisode，orratheroftwoincidentswhichhecombinedintoanepisodeinRoughingIt。Thestoryastoldinthatbookisanaccountofwhatmighthavehappened，ratherthanhistory。Therewasneverreallyanymoneyinthe“blindlead“oftheWideWestclaim，exceptthatwhichwassunkinitbyunfortunateinvestors。Onlyextractsfromtheselettersaregiven。Theotherportionsareirrelevantandofslightvalue。 ExtractfromalettertoOrionClemens，inCarsonCity： 1862。 Twoorthreeoftheold“Salina“companyenteredourholeontheMonitoryesterdaymorning，beforeourmengotthere，andtookpossession，armedwithrevolvers。Andaccordingtothed——dlawsofthisforeverd——dcountry，nothingbuttheDistrictCourt(andthereain”tany)cantouchthematter，unlessitassumestheshapeofaninfernalhumbugwhichtheycall“forcibleentryanddetainer，“andinordertobringthatabout，youmustcompelthejumperstousepersonalviolencetowardyou！Wewentupanddemandedpossession，andtheyrefused。Saidtheywereinthehole，armedandmeanttodieforit，ifnecessary。 Igotinwiththem，andagaindemandedpossession。TheysaidImightstayinitaslongasIpleased，andworkbuttheywoulddothesame。 Iaskedoneofourcompanytotakemyplaceinthehole，whileIwenttoconsultalawyer。Hedidso。Thelawyersaiditwasnogo。Theymustoffersome“force。” Ourboyswilltrytobetherefirstinthemorning——inwhichcasetheymaygetpossessionandkeepit。NowyouunderstandtheshootingscrapeinwhichGebhartwaskilledtheotherday。TheClemensCompany——allofus——hatetoresorttoarmsinthismatter，anditwillnotbedoneuntilitbecomesaforcedhand——butIthinkthatwillbetheendofit，never- the-less。 Theminerelocatedinthisletterwasnotthe“WideWest，“butitfurnishedtheproperincident。Theonlymentionofthe“WideWest“ isfoundinaletterwritteninJuly。 ExtractfromalettertoOrionClemens，inCarsonCity： 1862 IfIdonotforgetit，Iwillsendyou，pernextmail，apinchofdecom。 (decomposedrock)whichIpinchedwiththumbandfingerfrom“WideWest“ ledgeawhileago。RaishandIhavesecured200outofa400ft。init，whichperhaps(theledge，Imean)isaspurfromtheW。W——ourshaftisabout100ft。fromtheW。W。shaft。Inordertogetin，weagreedtosink30ft。Wehavesub-lettoanothermanfor50ft。，andwepayforpowderandsharpeningtools。 The“WideWest“claimwasforfeited，butthereisnoevidencetoshowthatClemensandhispartnerswereever，exceptinfiction，“millionairesfortendays。”Thebackground，thelocalcolor，andthepossibilitiesareallrealenough，butMarkTwain”saiminthis，asinmostofhisotherreminiscentwriting，wastoarrangeandadapthisfactstotheneedsofagoodstory。 Thelettersofthissummer(1862)mostofthembearevidenceofwaningconfidenceinminingasasourceoffortune——theminerhasnowlittlefaithinhisownjudgment，andnoneatallinthatofhisbrother，whowaswithoutpracticalexperience。 LettertoOrionClemens，inCarsonCity： ESMERALDA，Thursday。 MYDEARBRO。，——Yoursofthe17th，perexpress，justreceived。Partofitpleasedmeexceedingly，andpartofitdidn”t。Concerningtheletter，forinstance：YouhavePROMISEDmethatyouwouldleaveallminingmatters，andeverythinginvolvinganoutlayofmoney，inmyhands。 Sendingamanfoolingaroundthecountryafterledges，forGod”ssake！ whentherearehundredsoffeetofthemundermynosehere，beggingforowners，freeofcharge。Idon”twantanymorefeet，andIwon”ttouchanotherfoot——soyousee，Orion，asfarasanyledgesofPerry”sareconcerned，(oranyotherexceptwhatIexaminefirstwithmyowneyes，) Ifreelyyieldmyrighttoshareownershipwithyou。 Thebalanceofyourletter，Isay，pleasesmeexceedingly。EspeciallythatabouttheH。andD。beingworthfrom$30to$50inCal。Itpleasesmebecause，iftheledgesprovetobeworthless，itwillbeapleasantreflectiontoknowthatotherswerebeatenworsethanourselves。Raishsoldaman30feet，yesterday，at$20afoot，althoughIwaspresentatthesale，andtoldthemanthegroundwasn”tworthad——n。HesaidhehadbeenhankeringafterafewfeetintheH。andD。foralongtime，andhehadgotthematlast，andhecouldn”thelpthinkinghehadsecuredagoodthing。Wewentandlookedattheledges，andbothofthemacknowledgedthattherewasnothinginthembutgood“indications。”YettheownersintheH。andD。willpartwithanythingelsesoonerthanwithfeetintheseledges。Well，theworkgoesslowly——veryslowlyon，inthetunnel，andwe”llstrikeitsomeday。But——ifwe“strikeitrich，“——I”velostmyguess，that”sall。IexpectthatthewayitgotsohighinCal。was，thatRaish”sbrother，overtherewasoffered$750。00 for20feetofit，andherefused