第16章

First，HowellsandIhadachattogether。IaskedaboutMrs。H。Hesaidshewasfine，stillsteadilyimproving，andnearlybacktoheroldbesthealth。Iasked(asifIdidn”tknow)： “Whatdoyouattributethisstrangemiracleto？“ “Mind-cure——simplymind-cure。” “Lord，whataconversion！Youwereascofferthreemonthsago。” “I？Iwasn”t。” “Youwere。Youmadeelaboratefunofmeinthisveryroom。” “Ididnot，Clemens。” “It”salie，Howells，youdid。” Idetailedtohimtheconversationofthattime——withthestatelyargumentfurnishedbyBoyeseninthefactthatapatienthadactuallybeenkilledbyamind-curist；andHowells”sownsmartremarkthatwhenthemind-curistisdonewithyou，youhavetocallina“regular“atlastbecausetheformercan”tprocureyouaburialpermit。 Atlasthegavein——hesaidherememberedthattalk，buthadnowbeenamind-curistsolongitwasdifficultforhimtorealizethathehadeverbeenanythingelse。 Mrs。H。cameskippingin，presently，theveryperson，toadot，thatsheusedtobe，somanyyearsago。 Mrs。H。said：“Peoplemaycallitwhattheylike，butitisjusthypnotism，andthat”sallitis——hypnotismpureandsimple。Mind-cure！—— theidea！Why，thiswomanthatcuredmehasn”tgotanymind。She”sagoodcreature，butshe”sdullanddumbandilliterateand” “NowEleanor！“ “IknowwhatI”mtalkingabout！——don”tIgotheretwiceaweek？AndMr。 Clemens，ifyoucouldonlyseeherwoodenandsatisfiedfacewhenshesnubsmeforforgettingmyselfandshowingbyathoughtlessremarkthattomeweatherisstillweather，insteadofbeingjustanabstractionandasuperstition——oh，it”sthefunniestthingyoueversaw！A-n-d-whenshetiltsuphernose-well，it”s——it”s——Wellit”sthatkindofanosethat” “NowEleanor！——thewomanisnotresponsibleforhernose”andso-onandso-on。Itdidn”tseemtomethatIhadanyrighttobehavingthisfeastandyounotthere。 Sheconvincedmebeforeshegotthrough，thatsheandWilliamJamesareright——hypnotismandmind-curearethesamething；nodifferencebetweenthem。Verywell；theverysource，theverycenterofhypnotismisParis。 Dr。Charcot”spupilsanddisciplesarerightthereandreadytoyourhandwithoutfetchingpoordearoldSusyacrossthestormysea。LetMrs。 Mackay(towhomIsendmybestrespects，tellyouwhomtogototolearnallyouneedtolearnandhowtoproceed。Do，doit，honey。Don”tloseaminute……At11o”clocklastnightMr。Rogerssaid： “Iamabletofeelphysicalfatigue——andIfeelitnow。Younevershowany，eitherinyoureyesoryourmovements；doyoueverfeelany？“ IwasabletosaythatIhadforgottenwhatthatfeelingwaslike。Don”tyourememberhowalmostimpossibleitwasformetotiremyselfattheVilla？Well，itisjustsoinNewYork。Igotobedunfatiguedat3，Igetupfreshandfinesixhourslater。IbelieveIhavetakenonlyonedaylightnapsinceIhavebeenhere。 Whentheanchorisdown，thenIshallsay： “Farewell——alongfarewell——tobusiness！Iwillnevertouchitagain！“ Iwillliveinliterature，Iwillwallowinit，revelinit，Iwillswiminink！JoanofArc——butallthisispremature；theanchorisnotdownyet。 To-morrow(Tuesday)IwilladdaP。S。ifI”veanytoadd；but，whetherorno，Imustmailthistomorrow，forthemailsteamergoesnextday。 5。30p。m。GreatScott，thisisTuesday！Imustrushthisletterintothemailinstantly。 TellthatsassyBenI”vegotherwelcomeletter，andI”llwriteherassoonasIgetadaylightchance。I”vemosttimeatnight，butI”ddrutherwritedaytimes。 SAML。 TheReidandSimmonsmentionedintheforegoingwereRobertReidandEdwardSimmons，distinguishedpainter——thelatterabrilliant，fluent，andindustrioustalker。Thetitle；“Fire-escapeSimmons，“ whichClemensgiveshim，originatedwhenOliverHerford，whosequaintwithassolongdelightedNew-Yorkers，onedaypinnedupbythebackdoorofthePlayersthenotice：“ExitincaseofSimmons。” Gwen，apopularnovelofthatday，waswrittenbyBlancheWillisHoward。 “Jamie“Dodge，inthenextletter，wasthesonofMrs。MaryMapesDodge，editorofSt。Nicholas。 ToClaraClemens，inParis： MR。ROGERS”SOFFICE，Feb。5，”94。 DearBenny——Iwasintendingtoansweryourletterto-day，butIamawaydowntown，andwillsimplywhirltogetherasentenceortwoforgood- fellowship。IhaveboughtphotographsofCoquelinandJaneHadingandwillaskthemtosignthem。IshallmeetCoquelintomorrownight，andifHadingisnotpresentIwillsendherpicturetoherbysomebody。 IamtobreakfastwithMadameNordicainafewdays，andmeantimeIhopetogetagoodpictureofhertosign。Shewasofthebreakfastcompanyyesterday，butthepictureofherselfwhichshesignedandgavemedoesnotdohermajesticbeautyjustice。 Iamtoobusytoattendtothephoto-collectingright，becauseIhavetoliveuptothenamewhichJamieDodgehasgivenme——the“BelleofNewYork“——anditjustkeepsmerushing。YesterdayIhadengagementstobreakfastatnoon，dineat3，anddineagainat7。Igotawayfromthelongbreakfastat2p。m。，wentandexcusedmyselffromthe3o”clockdinner，thenlunchedwithMrs。Dodgein58thstreet，returnedtothePlayersanddressed，dinedoutat9，andwasbackatMrs。Dodge”sat10p。m。wherewehadmagic-lanternviewsofasuperbsort，andalotofyarnsuntilanhouraftermidnight，andgottobedat2thismorning——agooddealofagainonmyrecenthours。ButIdon”tgettired；I sleepassoundasadeadperson，andalwayswakeupfreshandstrong—— usuallyatexactly9。 Iwasatbreakfastlatelywherepeopleofsevenseparatenationalitiessatandthesevenlanguagesweregoingallthetime。Atmysidesatacharminggentlemanwhowasadelightfulandactivetalker，andinteresting。Hetalkedgliblytothosefolksinallthosesevenlanguagesandstillhadalanguagetospare！Iwantedtokillhim，forveryenvy。 Igreetyouwithloveandkisses。 PAPA。 ToMrs。Clemens，inParis： Feb。 Livydear，lastnightIplayedbilliardswithMr。Rogersuntil11，thenwenttoRobertReid”sstudioandhadamostdelightfultimeuntil4thismorning。Noladieswereinvitedthistime。Amongthepeoplepresentwere—— Coquelin； RichardHardingDavis； Harrison，thegreatout-doorpainter； Wm。H。Chase，theartist； Bettini，inventorofthenewphonograph。 NikolaTesla，theworld-wideillustriouselectrician；seearticleabouthiminJan。orFeb。Century。 JohnDrew，actor； JamesBarnes，amarvelousmimic；my，youshouldseehim！ Smedleytheartist； Zorntheartist； Zogbaumtheartist； Reinharttheartist； Metcalftheartist； Ancona，headtenorattheOpera； Oh，agreatlotofothers。Everybodytherehaddonesomethingandwasinhiswayfamous。 SomebodywelcomedCoquelininanicelittleFrenchspeech；JohnDrewdidthelikeformeinEnglish，andthenthefunbegan。CoquelindidsomeexcellentFrenchmonologues——oneofthemanungrammaticalEnglishmantellingacolorlesshistorietteinFrench。Itnearlykilledthefifteenortwentypeoplewhounderstoodit。 Itoldayarn，Anconasanghalfadozensongs，Barnesdidhisdarlingimitations，HardingDavissangthehangingofDannyDeever，whichwasofcoursegood，buthefolloweditwiththatmostfascinating(forwhatreasonIdon”tknow)ofallKipling”spoems，“OntheRoadtoMandalay，“ sangittenderly，anditsearchedmedeeperandcharmedmemorethantheDeever。 YoungGerritSmithplayedsomeravishingdancemusicandwealldancedaboutanhour。Therecouldn”tbeapleasanternightthanthatonewas。 SomeofthosepeoplecomplainedoffatiguebutIdon”tseemtoknowwhatthesenseoffatigueis。 CoquelintalksquitegoodEnglishnow。Hesaid： “Ihaveabrotherwhohasthefinemind——ah，acharminganddelicatefancy，andheknowsyourwritingssowell，andlovesthem——andthatisthesamewithme。ItwillstirhimsowhenIwriteandtellhimIhaveseenyou！“ Wasn”tthatnice？Wetalkedagooddealtogether。Heisaswinningashisownface。Buthewouldn”tsignthatphotographforClara。“That？ No！Sheshallhaveabetterone。Iwillsendittoyou。” Heismuchdriven，andwillforgetit，butReidhaspromisedtogetthepictureforme，andIwilltryandkeephimreminded。 Oh，dear，mytimeisallusedupandyourlettersarenotanswered。 Mama，dear，Idon”tgoeverywhere——Ideclinemostthings。ButthereareplentythatIcan”twellgetoutof。 Iwillrememberwhatyousayandnotmakemyyarningtoocommon。 IamsogladSusyhasgoneonthattripandthatyouaretryingtheelectric。Mayyoubothprosper。Foryouaremightydeartomeandinmythoughtsalways。 SAML。 TheaffairsoftheWebsterPublishingCompanywerebythistimegettingintoaveryseriousconditionindeed。Theeffectsofthepanicoftheyearbeforecouldnotbeovercome。Creditorswerepressingtheirclaimsandprofitswerenegligible。InthefollowingletterwegetaMarkTwainestimateofthegreatfinancierwhosocheerfullywaswillingtoundertakethesolvingofMarkTwain”sfinancialproblems。 ToMrs。Clemens，inParis： THEPLAYERS，Feb。15，”94。11。30p。m。 Livydarling，YesterdayItalkedallmyvariousmattersoverwithMr。 Rogersandwedecidedthatitwouldbesafeformetoleaveherethe7thofMarch，intheNewYork。Sohisprivatesecretary，MissHarrison，wroteandorderedaberthformeandthenIlostnotimeincablingyouthatIshouldreachSouthamptonMarch14，andParisthe15th。Land，butitmademypulsesleap，tothinkIwasgoingtoseeyouagain！…… Onethingatatime。IneverfullylaidWebster”sdisastrousconditionbeforeMr。Rogersuntilto-nightafterbilliards。Ididhatetoburdenhisgoodheartandover-workedheadwithit，buthetookholdwithavidityandsaiditwasnoburdentoworkforhisfriends，butapleasure。Wediscusseditfromvariousstandpoints，andfounditasufficientlydifficultproblemtosolve；buthethinksthatafterhehassleptuponitandthoughtitoverhewillknowwhattosuggest。 YoumustnotthinkIameverrudewithMr。Rogers，Iamnot。Heisnotcommonclay，butfine——fineanddelicate——andthatsortdonotcalloutthecoarsenessesthatareinmysort。Iamneverafraidofwoundinghim； Idonotneedtowatchmyselfinthatmatter。Thesightofhimispeace。 HewantstogotoJapan——itishisdream；wantstogowithme——whichmeans，thetwofamilies——andhearnomoreaboutbusinessforawhile，andhavearest。Andheneedsit。Butitislikeallthedreamsofallbusymen——fatedtoremaindreams。 Youperceivethatheisapleasanttextforme。Itiseasytowriteabouthim。WhenIarrivedinSeptember，lordhowblacktheprospectwas——howdesperate，howincurablydesperate！WebsterandCohadtohaveasmallsumofmoneyorgounderatonce。IflewtoHartford——tomyfriends——buttheywerenotmoved，notstronglyinterested，andIwasashamedthatIwent。ItwasfromMr。Rogers，astranger，thatIgotthemoneyandwasbyitsaved。Andthen——whilestillastranger——hesethimselfthetaskofsavingmyfinanciallifewithoutputtinguponme(inhisnativedelicacy)anysensethatIwastherecipientofacharity，abenevolence——andhehasaccomplishedthattask；accomplisheditatacostofthreemonthsofwearinganddifficultlabor。Hegavethattimetome——timewhichcouldnotbeboughtbyanymanatahundredthousanddollarsamonth——no，norforthreetimesthemoney。 Well，inthemidstofthatgreatfight，thatlongandadmirablefight，GeorgeWarnercametomeandsaid： “Thereisasplendidchanceopentoyou。Iknowaman——aprominentman—— whohaswrittenabookthatwillgolikewildfire；abookthatarraignstheStandardOilfiends，andgivesthemunmitigatedhell，individualbyindividual。Itistheverybookforyoutopublish；thereisafortuneinit，andIcanputyouincommunicationwiththeauthor。” Iwantedtosay： “TheonlymanIcareforintheworld；theonlymanIwouldgiveadamnfor；theonlymanwhoislavishinghissweatandbloodtosavemeandminefromstarvationandshame，isaStandardOilfiend。Ifyouknowme，youknowwhetherIwantthebookornot。” ButIdidn”tsaythat。IsaidIdidn”twantanybook；Iwantedtogetoutofthepublishingbusinessandoutofallbusiness，andwashereforthatpurposeandwouldaccomplishitifIcould。 Butthere”senough。Ishallbeasleepby3，andIdon”tneedmuchsleep，becauseIamneverdrowsyortiredthesedays。Dear，dearSusymystrengthreproachesmewhenIthinkofherandyou，mydarling。 SAML。 ButevensoableamanasHenryRogerscouldnotaccomplishtheimpossible。TheaffairsoftheWebsterCompanywerehopeless，thebusinesswasnotworthsaving。ByMr。Rogers”sadviceanassignmentwasmadeApril，18，1894。Afteritsearlyspectacularsuccesslessthantenyearshadbroughtthebusinesstofailure。ThepublicationoftheGrantmemoirshadbeenitsonlygreatachievement。 Clemenswouldseemtohavebelievedthatthebusinesswouldresume，andforatimeRogersappearstohavecomfortedhiminhishope，butwecannotbelievethatitlongsurvived。YoungHall，whohadmadesuchastruggleforitssalvation，waseagertogoon，buthemustpresentlyhaveseenthefutilityofanyeffortinthatdirection。 OfcoursethefailureofMarkTwain”sfirmmadeagreatstirinthecountry，anditiseasytounderstandthatloyalfriendswouldrallyinhisbehalf。 ToMrs。Clemens，inParis： April22，”94。 Dearolddarling，weallthinkthecreditorsaregoingtoallowustoresumebusiness；andiftheydoweshallpullthroughandpaythedebts。 Iamprodigiouslygladwemadeanassignment。Andalsogladthatwedidnotmakeitsooner。Earlierweshouldhavemadeapoorshowing；butnowweshallmakeagoodone。 Imeetflocksofpeople，andtheyallshakemecordiallybythehandandsay“Iwassosorrytohearoftheassignment，butsogladyoudidit。 Itwasaround，thislongtime，thattheconcernwastottering，andallyourfriendswereafraidyouwoulddelaytheassignmenttoolong。” JohnMackaycalledyesterday，andsaid，“Don”tletitdisturbyou，Sam—— weallhavetodoit，atonetimeoranother；it”snothingtobeashamedof。” OnestrangeroutinNewYorkStatesentmeadollarbillandthoughthewouldliketogetupadollar-subscriptionforme。AndPoultneyBigelow”snotecamepromptly，withhischeckfor$1，000。IhadbeenmeetinghimeverydayattheClubandlikinghimbetterandbetterallthetime。Icouldn”ttakehismoney，ofcourse，butIthankedhimcordiallyforhisgoodwill。 NowandthenagoodanddearJoeTwichellorSusyWarnercondoleswithmeandsays“Cheerup——don”tbedownhearted，“andsomeotherfriendsays，“Iamgladandsurprisedtoseehowcheerfulyouareandhowbravelyyoustandit“——andnoneofthemsuspectwhataburdenhasbeenliftedfrommeandhowblitheIaminside。ExceptwhenIthinkofyou，dearheart——thenIamnotblithe；forIseemtoseeyougrievingandashamed，anddreadingtolookpeopleintheface。Forinthethickofthefightthereischeer，butyouarefarawayandcannothearthedrumsnorseethewheelingsquadrons。Youonlyseemtoseerout，retreat，anddishonoredcolorsdragginginthedirt——whereasnoneofthesethingsexist。Thereistemporarydefeat，butnodishonor——andwewillmarchagain。CharleyWarnersaidto-day，“Sho，Livyisn”tworrying。Solongasshe”sgotyouandthechildrenshedoesn”tcarewhathappens。Sheknowsitisn”theraffair。”Whichdidn”tconvinceme。 Goodbyemydarling，Iloveyouandallofthekids——andyoucantellClaraIamnotaspittinggraykitten。 SAML。 ClemenssailedforEuropeassoonashisaffairswouldpermithimtogo。Hemustgetsettledwherehecouldworkcomfortably。Type- setterprospectsseemedpromising，butmeantimetherewasneedoffunds。 Hebeganwritingontheship，aswashishabit，andhadcompletedhisarticleonFenimoreCooperbythetimehereachedLondon。InAugustwefindhimwritingtoMr。RogersfromEtretat，alittleNormanwatering-place。 ToH。H。Rogers，inNewYork： ETRETAT，(NORMANDIE) CHALETDESABRIS) Aug。25，”94。 DEARMR。ROGERS，——IfindtheMadameversomuchbetterinhealthandstrength。Theairissuperbandsoothingandwholesome，andtheChaletisremotefromnoiseandpeople，andjusttheplacetowritein。Ishallbeginworkthisafternoon。 Mrs。Clemensisingreatspiritson，accountofthebenefitwhichshehasreceivedfromtheelectricaltreatmentinParisandisboundtotakeitupagainandcontinueitallthewinter，andofcourseIamperfectlywilling。SherequiresmetodropthelectureplatformoutofmymindandgostraightaheadwithJoanuntilthebookisfinished。IfIshouldhavetogohomeforevenaweekshemeanstogowithme——won”tconsenttobeseparatedagain——butshehopesIwon”tneedtogo。 Itellherallright，“Iwon”tgounlessyousend，andthenImust。” Shekeepstheaccounts；andassheciphersitwecan”tgetcrowdedformoneyforeightmonthsyet。Ididn”tknowthat。ButIdon”tknowmuchanyway。 Sincerelyyours，S。L。CLEMENS。 ThereadermayrememberthatClemenshadwrittenthefirsthalfofhisJoanofArcbookattheVillaViviani，inFlorence，nearlytwoyearsbefore。HehadclosedthemanuscriptthenwiththetakingofOrleans，andwasbynomeanssurethathewouldcontinuethestorybeyondthatpoint。Now，however，hewasdeterminedtoreachthetale”stragicconclusion。 ToH。H。Rogers，inNewYork： ETRETAT，Sunday，Sept。9，”94。 DEARMR。ROGERS，Idrovethequilltoohard，andIbrokedown——inmyhead。IthasnowbeenthreedayssinceIlaidup。WhenIwroteyouaweekagoIhadadded10，000wordsorthereabouttoJoan。NextdayI added1，500whichwasaproperenoughday”sworkthoughnotafullone； butduringTuesdayandWednesdayIstackedupanaggregateof6，000 words——andthatwasaverylargemistake。Myheadhasn”tbeenworthacentsince。 However，there”sacompensation；forinthosetwodaysIreachedandpassed——successfully——apointwhichIwassolicitousaboutbeforeIeverbeganthebook：viz。，thebattleofPatay。Becausethatwouldnaturallybethenexttothelastchapterofaworkconsistingofeithertwobooksorone。Intheonecaseonegoesrightalongfromthatpoint(asIshalldonow)；intheotherhewouldaddawind-upchapterandmakethebookconsistofJoan”schildhoodandmilitarycareeralone。 Ishallresumeworkto-day；andhereafterIwillnotgoatsuchanintemperate”rate。Myheadisprettycobwebbyyet。 IamhopingthatalongaboutthistimeIshallhearthatthemachineisbeginningitstestintheHeraldoffice。Ishallbeverygladindeedtoknowtheresultofit。IwishIcouldbethere。 SincerelyyoursS。L。CLEMENS。 Rouen，whereJoanmethermartyrdom，wasonlyashortdistanceaway，andtheyhaltedthereenroutetoParis，wheretheyhadarrangedtospendthewinter。ThehealthofSusyClemenswasnotgood，andtheylingeredinRouenwhileClemensexploredtheoldcityandincidentallydidsomewritingofanothersort。InanotetoMr。 Rogershesaid：“ToputinmyoddtimeIamwritingsomearticlesaboutPaulBourgetandhisOutre-Merchapters——laughingatthemandatsomeofouroracularowlswhofindthemimportant。Whatthehellmakesthemimportant，Ishouldliketoknow！“ HewasstillatRouentwoweekslaterandhadreceivedencouragingnewsfromRogersconcerningthetype-setter，whichhadbeenplacedfortrialintheofficeoftheChicagoHerald。Clemenswrote：“I canhardlykeepfromsendingahurrahbycable。IwouldcertainlydoitifIwasn”tsuperstitious。”Hisrestraint，thoughwise，waswastedtheendwasnear。 ToH。H。Rogers，inNewYork： 169RUEDEL”UNIVERSITE，PARIS，Dec。22；”94。 DEARMR。ROGERS，——Iseemedtobeentirelyexpectingyourletter，andalsopreparedandresigned；butLord，itshowshowlittleweknowourselvesandhoweasilywecandeceiveourselves。Ithitmelikeathunder-clap。 Itknockedeveryragofsenseoutofmyhead，andIwentflyinghereandthereandyonder，notknowingwhatIwasdoing，andonlyoneclearlydefinedthoughtstandingupvisibleandsubstantialoutofthecrazystorm-driftthatmydreamoftenyearswasindesperateperil，andoutofthe60，000or90，000projectsforitsrescuethatcamefloatingthroughmyskull，notonewouldholdstilllongenoughformetoexamineitandsizeitup。Haveyoueverbeenlikethat？Notsomuchso，Ireckon。 Therewasanotherclearlydefinedidea——Imustbethereandseeitdie。 Thatis，ifitmustdie；andmaybeifIweretherewemighthatchupsomenext-to-impossiblewaytomakeittakeupitsbedandtakeawalk。 So，attheendoffourhoursIstarted，stillwhirlingandwalkedovertotherueScribe——4P。M——andaskedaquestionortwoandwastoldI shouldberunningabigriskifItookthe9P。M。trainforLondonandSouthampton；“bettercomerightalongat6。52perHavrespecialandstepaboardtheNewYorkalleasyandcomfortable。”Very！andIabouttwomilesfromhome，withnopackingdone。 Thenitoccurredtomethatnoneofthesesalvation-notionsthatwerewhirl-windingthroughmyheadcouldbeexaminedormadeavailableunlessatleastamonth”stimecouldbesecured。SoIcabledyou，andsaidtomyselfthatIwouldtaketheFrenchsteamertomorrow(whichwillbeSunday)。 BybedtimeMrs。Clemenshadreasonedmeintoafairlyrationalandcontentedstateofmind；butofcourseitdidn”tlastlong。SoIwentonthinking——mixingitwithasmokeinthedressingroomonceanhour——untildawnthismorning。Result——asaneresolution；nomatterwhatyouranswertomycablemightbe，IwouldholdstillandnotsailuntilIshouldgetananswertothispresentletterwhichIamnowwriting，oracableanswerfromyousaying“Come“or“Remain。” Ihaveslept6hours，mypondhasclarified，andIfindthesedimentofmy70，000projectstobeofthischaracter： [Severalpagesofsuggestionsforreconstructingthemachinefollow。] Don”tsayI”mwild。ForreallyI”msaneagainthismorning…… IamgoingrightalongwithJoan，now，andwaituntroubledtillIhearfromyou。IfyouthinkIcanbeoftheleastuse，cableme“Come。” IcanwriteJoanonboardshipandlosenotime。AlsoIcoulddiscussmyplanwiththepublisherforadeluxeJoan，timebeinganobject，forsomeofthepicturescouldbemadeoverherecheaplyandquickly，butwouldcostmuchtimeandmoneyinAmerica…… IfthemeetingshoulddecidetoquitbusinessJan。4，I”dliketohaveStokerstoppedfrompayinginanymoremoney，ifMissHarrisondoesn”tmindthatdisagreeablejob。AndI”llhavetowritethem，too，ofcourse。 Withlove，S。L。CLEMENS。 The“Stoker“ofthisletterwasBramStoker，longassociatedwithSirHenryIrving。Irvinghimselfhadalsotakenstockinthemachine。Theaddress，169Ruedel”Universite，whencetheselettersarewritten，wasthebeautifulstudiohomeoftheartistPomroywhichtheyhadtakenforthewinter。 ToH。H。Rogers，inNewYork： 169RUEDEL”UNIVERSITE，PARIS，Dec。27，”94。 DEARMR。ROGERS，——Notwithstandingyourheartis“oldandhard，“youmakeabodychokeup。Iknowyou“meaneverywordyousay“andIdotakeit“inthesamespiritinwhichyoutenderit。”Ishallkeepyourregardwhilewetwolive——thatIknow；forIshallalwaysrememberwhatyouhavedoneforme，andthatwillinsuremeagainsteverdoinganythingthatcouldforfeititorimpairit。Iam59yearsold；yetIneverhadafriendbeforewhoputoutahandandtriedtopullmeashorewhenhefoundmeindeepwaters。 ItissixdaysorsevendaysagothatIlivedthroughthatdespairingday，andthenthroughanightwithoutsleep；thensettleddownnextdayintomyrightmind(orthereabouts，)andwroteyou。Iputintherestofthatdaytill7P。M。plentycomfortablyenoughwritingalongchapterofmybook；thenwenttoamaskedballblackedupasUncleRemus，takingClaraalong；andwehadagoodtime。Ihavelostnodaysinceandsufferednodiscomforttospeakof，butdrovemytroublesoutofmymindandhadgoodsuccessinkeepingthemout——throughwatchfulness。Ihavedoneagoodweek”sworkandputthebookagoodwayaheadintheGreatTrial，whichisthedifficultpartwhichrequiresthemostthoughtandcarefulness。IcannotseetheendoftheTrialyet，butIamontheroad。Iamcreepingsurelytowardit。 “Whynotleavethemalltome。”Mybusinessbothers？Itakeyoubythehand！Ijumpatthechance！ IoughttobeashamedandIamtryingmybesttobeashamed——andyetIdojumpatthechanceinspiteofit。Idon”twanttowriteIrvingandI don”twanttowriteStoker。Itdoesn”tseemasifIcould。ButIcansuggestsomethingforyoutowritethem；andthenifyouseethatIamunwise，youcanwritethemsomethingquitedifferent。Nowthisismyidea： 1。ToreturnStoker”s$100tohimandkeephisstock。 2。AndtellIrvingthatwhenluckturnswithmeIwillmakegoodtohimwhatthesalvagefromthedeadCo。failstopayhimofhis$500。 P。S。MadamsaysNo，Imustfacethemusic。SoIenclosemyefforttobeusedifyouapprove，butnototherwise。 There！Nowifyouwillalterittosuityourjudgmentandbangaway，I shallbeeternallyobliged。 WeshalltrytofindatenantforourHartfordhouse；notaneasymatter，foritcostsheavilytolivein。Wecanneverliveinitagain；thoughitwouldbreakthefamily”sheartsiftheycouldbelieveit。 NothingdauntsMrs。Clemensormakestheworldlookblacktoher——whichisthereasonIhaven”tdrownedmyself。 WeallsendourdeepestandwarmestgreetingstoyouandallofyoursandaHappyNewYear！ S。L。CLEMENS。 Enclosure： MYDEARSTOKER，——Iamnotdatingthisbecauseitisnottobemailedatpresent。 Whenitreachesyouitwillmeanthatthereisahitchinmymachine- enterprise——ahitchsoseriousastomakeittaketoitselftheaspectofadissolveddream。Thisletter，then，willcontainchequeforthe$100 whichyouhavepaid。AndwillyoutellIrvingforme——Ican”tgetupcourageenoughtotalkaboutthismisfortunemyself，excepttoyou，whombygoodluckIhaven”tdamagedyetthatwhenthewreckagepresentlyfloatsashorehewillgetagooddealofhis$500back；andadabatatimeIwillmakeuptohimtherest。 I”mnotfeelingasfineasIwaswhenIsawyouthereinyourhome。 PleaseremembermekindlytoMrs。Stoker。IgaveupthatLondonlecture- projectentirely。Hadto——there”sneverbeenachancesincetofindthetime。 Sincerelyyours，S。L。CLEMENS。 XXXV LETTERS，1895-96，TOH。H。ROGERSANDOTHERS。FINISHING“JOANOFARC。” THETRIPAROUNDTHEWORLD。DEATHOFSUSYCLEMENS ToH。H。Rogers，inNewYorkCity： [Nodate。] DEARMR。ROGERS，——YoursofDec。21hasarrived，containingthecirculartostockholdersandIguesstheCo。willreallyquit——theredoesn”tseemtobeanyotherwisecourse。 There”sonethingwhichmakesitdifficultformetosoberlyrealizethatmytenyeardreamisactuallydissolved；andthatis，thatitreveriesmyhoroscope。Theproverbsays，“Bornlucky，alwayslucky，“andIamverysuperstitious。AsasmallboyIwasnotoriouslylucky。Itwasusualforoneortwoofourlads(perannum)togetdrownedintheMississippiorinBearCreek，butIwaspulledoutina2/3drownedcondition9timesbeforeIlearnedtoswim，andwasconsideredtobeacatindisguise。 Whenthe“Pennsylvania“blewupandthetelegraphreportedmybrotherasfatallyinjured(with60others)butmadenomentionofme，myunclesaidtomymother“ItmeansthatSamwassomewhereelse，afterbeingonthatboatayearandahalf——hewasbornlucky。”Yes，Iwassomewhereelse。 IamsosuperstitiousthatIhavealwaysbeenafraidtohavebusinessdealingswithcertainrelativesandfriendsofminebecausetheywereunluckypeople。AllmylifeIhavestumbleduponluckychancesoflargesize，andwhenevertheywerewasteditwasbecauseofmyownstupidityandcarelessness。AndsoIhavefeltentirelycertainthatthatmachinewouldturnuptrumpseventually。Itdisappointedmelotsoftimes，butI couldn”tshakeofftheconfidenceofalife-timeinmyluck。 Well，whateverIgetoutofthewreckagewillbeduetogoodluck——thegoodluckofgettingyouintothescheme——for，butforthat，therewouldn”tbeanywreckage；itwouldbetotalloss。 Iwishyouhadbeeninatthebeginning。Thenweshouldhavehadthegoodlucktosteppromptlyashore。 MissHarrisonhashadadreamwhichpromisesmealargebankaccount，andIwanthertogoaheadanddreamittwicemore，soastomakethepredictionsuretobefulfilled。 I”vegotafirstratesubjectforabook。Itkeptmeawakeallnight，andIbeganitandcompleteditinmymind。TheminuteIfinishJoanIwilltakeitup。 LoveandHappyNewYeartoyouall。 Sincerelyyours，S。L。CLEMENS。 ThiswasabouttheendofthemachineinterestssofarasClemenswasconcerned。Paigesucceededingettingsomenewpeopleinterested，butnothingimportanthappened，orthatinanywayaffectedMarkTwain。Characteristicallyheputthewholematterbehindhimandplungedintohiswork，facingcomparativepovertyandaburdenofdebtswithastoutheart。Thebeginningofthenewyearfoundhimreallypoorerinpursethanhehadeverbeeninhislife，butcertainlynotcrushed，orevendiscouraged——atleast，notpermanently——andnevermoreindustriousorcapable。 ToH。H。Rogers，inNewYorkCity： 169RUEDEL”UNIVERSITE，PARIS，Jan。23，”95。 DEARMR。ROGERS，——AfterIwroteyou，twoorthreedaysagoIthoughtI wouldmakeaholidayoftherestoftheday——theseconddeliberateholidaysinceIhadthegout。OnthefirstholidayIwroteataleofabout6，000words，whichwas3days”workinone；andthistimeIdid8，000beforemidnight。Igotnothingoutofthatfirstholidaybuttherecreationofit，forIcondemnedtheworkaftercarefulreadingandsomerevision；butthistimeIfaredbetter——IfinishedtheHuckFinntalethatliesinyoursafe，andamsatisfiedwithit。 TheBachellersyndicate(117TribuneBuilding)wantastoryof5，000 words(lowestlimitoftheirLondonagent)for$1，000andoffertoplankthecheckondelivery，anditwaspartlytomeetthatdemandthatItookthatotherholiday。SoasIhavenoshortstorythatsuitsme(andcan”tandshan”tmakepromises)，thebestIcandoistoofferthelongeronewhichIfinishedonmysecondholiday”TomSawyer，Detective。” Itmakes27or28，000words，andisreallywrittenforgrownfolks，thoughIexpectyoungfolktoreadit，too。IttransferstothebanksoftheMississippitheincidentsofastrangemurderwhichwascommittedinSwedeninoldtimes。 I”llreferapplicantsforasightofthestorytoyouorMissHarrison—— [SecretarytoMr。Rogers。] Yourssincerely，S。L。CLEMENS。 ToH。H。Rogers，inNewYorkCity： 169RUEDEL”UNIVERSITE，Apr。29，”95。 DEARMR。ROGERS，——Yourfelicitousdelightfulletterofthe15tharrivedthreedaysago，andbroughtgreatpleasureintothehouse。 ThereisonethingthatweighsheavilyonMrs。Clemensandme。ThatisBrusnahan”smoney。IfheissatisfiedtohaveitinvestedintheChicagoenterprise，wellandgood；ifnot，wewouldliketohavethemoneypaidbacktohim。Iwillgivehimasmanymonthstodecideinashepleases—— lethimname6or10or12——andwewillletthemoneystaywhereitisinyourhandstillthetimeisup。WillMissHarrisontellhimso？Imeanifyouapprove。Iwouldlikehimtohaveagoodinvestment，butwouldmeantimeprefertoprotecthimagainstloss。 At6minutespast7，yesterdayevening，JoanofArcwasburnedatthestake。 Withthelongstraingone，Iaminasortofphysicalcollapsetoday，butitwillbegonetomorrow。Ijudgedthatthisendofthebookwouldbehardwork，anditturnedoutso。Ihaveneverdoneanyworkbeforethatcostsomuchthinkingandweighingandmeasuringandplanningandcramming，orsomuchcautiousandpainstakingexecution。ForIwantedthewholeRouentrialin，ifitcouldbegotininsuchawaythatthereader”sinterestwouldnotflag——infactIwantedthereader”sinteresttoincrease；andsoIstucktoitwiththatdeterminationinview——withtheresultthatIhaveleftnothingoutbutunimportantrepetitions。 Althoughitismerehistory——historypureandsimple——historystrippednakedofflowers，embroideries，colorings，exaggerations，invention——thefamilyagreethatIhavesucceeded。Itwasaperilousthingtotryinatale，butIneverbelieveditadoubtfulone——providedIstuckstrictlytobusinessanddidn”tweakenandgiveup：ordidn”tgetlazyandskimpthework。Thefirsttwo-thirdsofthebookwereeasy；forIonlyneededtokeepmyhistoricalroadstraight；thereforeIusedforreferenceonlyoneFrenchhistoryandoneEnglishone——andshoveledinasmuchfancyworkandinventiononbothsidesofthehistoricalroadasIpleased。 ButonthislastthirdIhaveconstantlyusedfiveFrenchsourcesandfiveEnglishonesandIthinknotellinghistoricalnuggetinanyofthemhasescapedme。 Possiblythebookmaynotsell，butthatisnothing——itwaswrittenforlove。 There——I”mcalledtoseecompany。Thefamilyseldomrequirethisofme，buttheyknowIamnotworkingtoday。 Yourssincerely，S。L。CLEMENS。 “Brusnahan，“oftheforegoingletter，wasanemployeeoftheNewYorkHerald，superintendentofthepress-room——whohadinvestedsomeofhissavingsinthetype-setter。 InFebruaryClemensreturnedtoNewYorktolookaftermattersconnectedwithhisfailureandtoclosearrangementsforareading- touraroundtheworld。Hewasnearlysixtyyearsold，andtimehadnotlessenedhisloathingfortheplatform。Morethanonce，however，inearlieryears，hehadturnedtoitasadebt-payer，andneveryethadhisburdenbeensogreatasnow。HeconcludedarrangementswithMajorPondtotakehimasfarasthePacificCoast，andwithR。S。Smythe，ofAustralia，fortherestofthetour。InAprilwefindhimoncemorebackinParispreparingtobringthefamilytoAmerica，HehadreturnedbywayofLondon，wherehehadvisitedStanleytheexplorer——anoldfriend。 ToH。H。Rogers，inNewYorkCity： 169RUEDEL”UNIVERSITE，Sunday，Apr。7”95。 DEARMR。ROGERS，……StanleyismagnificentlyhousedinLondon，inagrandmansioninthemidstoftheofficialworld，rightoffDowningStreetandWhitehall。Hehadanextraordinaryassemblageofbrainsandfametheretomeetme——thirtyorforty(bothsexes)atdinner，andmorethanahundredcamein，afterdinner。Keptituptillaftermidnight。 Therewerecabinetministers，ambassadors，admirals，generals，canons，Oxfordprofessors，novelists，playwrights，poets，andanumberofpeopleequippedwithrankandbrains。Itoldsomeyarnsandmadesomespeeches。 IpromisedtocallonallthosepeoplenexttimeIcometoLondon，andshowthemthewifeandthedaughters。IfIwereyoungerandverystrongIwoulddearlylovetospendaseasoninLondon——providedIhadnoworkonhand，ornoworkmoreexactingthanlecturing。IthinkIwilllecturethereamonthortwowhenIreturnfromAustralia。 Thereweremanydelightfulladiesinthatcompany。OnewasthewifeofHisExcellencyAdmiralBridge，Commander-inChiefoftheAustralianStation，andshesaidherhusbandwasabletothrowwidealldoorstomeinthatpartoftheworldandwouldbegladtodoit，andwouldyachtmeandmypartyaround，andexcursionusinhisflag-shipandmakeushaveagreattime；andshesaidshewouldwritehimwewerecoming，andwewouldfindhimready。IhavealetterfromherthismorningenclosingaletterofintroductiontotheAdmiral。IalreadyknowtheAdmiralcommandingintheChinaSeasandhavepromisedtolookinonhimoutthere。Hesleepswithmybooksunderhispillow。P”rapsitistheonlywayhecansleep。 AccordingtoMrs。Clemens”spresentplans——subjecttomodification，ofcourse——wesailinMay；stayoneday，ortwodaysinNewYork，spendJune，JulyandAugustinElmiraandpreparemylectures；thenlectureinSanFranciscoandthereaboutsduringSeptemberandsailforAustraliabeforethemiddleofOctoberandopentheshowthereaboutthemiddleofNovember。Wedon”ttakethegirlsalong；itwouldbetooexpensiveandtheyarequitewillingtoremainbehindanyway。 Mrs。C。isfeelingsowellthatsheisnotgoingtotrytheNewYorkdoctortillwehavegonearoundtheworldandrobbeditandmadethefinancesalittleeasier。 Withapoweroflovetoyouall，S。L。CLEMENS。 Therewouldcomemomentsofdepression，ofcourse，andaweeklaterhewrote：“Iamtiredtodeathallthetime：“Toamanoflessvitality，lessvigorofmindandbody，itiseasytobelievethatundersuchcircumstancesthisconditionwouldhaveremainedpermanent。Butperhaps，afterall，itwashiscomicoutlookonthingsingeneralthatwashischieflife-saver。 ToH。H。Rogers，inNewYorkCity： 169RUEDEL”UNIVERSITE，Apr。29，”95。 DEARMR。ROGERS，——Ihavebeenhiddenanhourortwo，readingproofofJoanandnowIthinkIamalostchild。Ican”tfindanybodyontheplace。Thebaggagehasalldisappeared，includingthefamily。Ireckonthatinthehurryandbustleofmovingtothehoteltheyforgotme。Butitisnomatter。ItispeacefullernowthanIhaveknownitfordaysanddaysanddays。 IntheseJoanproofswhichIhavebeenreadingfortheSeptemberHarperIfindacoupleoftip-topplatformreadings——andImeantoreadthemonourtrip。Iftheauthorshipisknownbythen；andifitisn”t，Iwillrevealit。Thefactis，thereismoregoodplatform-stuffinJoanthaninanypreviousbookofmine，byalongsight。 Yes，everydangedmemberofthetribehasgonetothehotelandleftmelost。Iwonderhowtheycanbesocarelesswithproperty。Ihavegottotrytogettherebymyselfnow。 Allthetrunksaregoingoverasluggage；thenI”vegottofindsomebodyonthedockwhowillagreetoship6ofthemtotheHartfordCustomhouse。 IfitisdifficultIwilldumpthemintotheriver。ItisverycarelessofMrs。Clemenstotrusttrunksandthingstome。 Sincerelyyours，S。L。CLEMENS。 BythelatterpartofMaytheywereatQuarryFarm，andClemens，laiduptherewithacarbuncle，waspreparingforhislongtour。 Theoutlookwasnotapleasantone。ToMr。Rogershewrote：“I sha”n”tbeabletostandontheplatformbeforewestartwest。I sha”n”tgetasinglechancetopracticemyreading；butwillhavetoappearinClevelandwithouttheessentialpreparation。Nothinginthisworldcansaveitfrombeingashabby，poordisgustingperformance。I”vegottostand；Ican”tdoitandtalktoahouse，andhowinthenationamIgoingtosit？LandofGoshen，it”sthisnightweek！Prayforme。” TheopeningatClevelandJuly15thappearsnottohavebeenmuchofasuccess，thoughfromanotherreason，onethatdoubtlessseemedamusingtohimlater。 ToH。H。Rogers，inNewYorkCity： (Forenoon) CLEVELAND，July16，”95。 DEARMR。ROGERS，——HadaroaringsuccessattheElmirareformatorySundaynight。Buthere，lastnight，Isuffereddefeat——Therewereacoupleofhundredlittleboysbehindmeonthestage，onaloftytierofbencheswhichmadethemthemostconspicuousobjectsinthehouse。Andtherewasnobodytowatchthemorkeepthemquiet。Why，withtheirscufflingsandhorse-playandnoise，itwasjustamenagerie。Besides，aconcertofamateurshadbeensmuggledintotheprogram(toprecedeme，)andtheirfamiliesandfriends(saytenpercentoftheaudience)keptencoringthemandtheyalwaysresponded。Soitwas20minutesto9beforeIgottheplatforminfrontofthose2，600peoplewhohadpaidadollarapieceforachancetogotohellinthisfashion。 Igotstartedmagnificently，butinsideofhalfanhourthescufflingboyshadtheaudience”smaddenedattentionandIsawitwasagonecase； soIskippedathirdofmyprogramandquit。Thenewspapersarekind，butbetweenyouandmeitwasadefeat。Thereain”tgoingtobeanymoreconcertsatmylectures。Icarenothingforthisdefeat，becauseitwasnotmyfault。MyfirsthalfhourshowedthatIhadthehouse，andI couldhavekeptitifIhadn”tbeensohandicapped。 Yourssincerely，S。L。CLEMENS。 P。S。HadasatisfactorytimeatPetoskey。Crammedthehouseandturnedawayacrowd。Wehad$548inthehouse，whichwas$300morethanithadeverhadinitbefore。IbelieveIdon”tcaretohaveatalkgooffbetterthanthatonedid。 MarkTwain，onthislongtour，wasaccompaniedbyhiswifeandhisdaughterClara——SusyandJeanClemensremainingwiththeirauntatQuarryFarm。Thetourwasafinancialsuccessfromthestart。 BythetimetheywerereadytosailfromVancouverfivethousanddollarshadbeenremittedtoMr。RogersagainstthatdayofsettlementwhenthedebtsofWebster&Co。weretobepaid。Perhapsitshouldbestatedherethatalegalsettlementhadbeenarrangedonabasisoffiftycentsonthedollar，butneitherClemensnorhiswifeconsentedtothisasfinal。Theywouldpayinfull。 TheysailedfromVancouverAugust23，1895。AbouttheonlyletterofthistimeisanamusingnotetoRudyardKipling，writtenatthemomentofdeparture。 ToRudyardKipling，inEngland： August，1895。 DEARKIPLING，——ItisreportedthatyouareabouttovisitIndia。ThishasmovedmetojourneytothatfarcountryinorderthatImayunloadfrommyconscienceadebtlongduetoyou。YearsagoyoucamefromIndiatoElmiratovisitme，asyousaidatthetime。Ithasalwaysbeenmypurposetoreturnthatvisitandthatgreatcomplimentsomeday。IshallarrivenextJanuaryandyoumustbeready。Ishallcomeridingmyayahwithhistusksadornedwithsilverbellsandribbonsandescortedbyatroopofnativehowdahsrichlycladandmounteduponaherdofwildbungalows；andyoumustbeonhandwithafewbottlesofghee，forI shallbethirsty。 Affectionately，S。L。CLEMENS。 Clemens，platforminginAustralia，wastoobusytowriteletters。 Everywherehewaswelcomedbygreataudiences，andeverywherelavishlyentertained。Hewasbesetbyothercarbuncles，butwouldseemnottohavebeenseriouslydelayedbythem。AlettertohisoldfriendTwichellcarriesthestory。 ToRev。Jos。H。Twichell，inHartford： FRANKMOELLER”SMASONICHOTEL，NAPIER，NEWZEALAND，November29，”95。 DEARJOE，——Yourwelcomeletteroftwomonthsandfivedaysagohasjustarrived，andfindsmeinbedwithanothercarbuncle。ItisNo。3。Notaseriousonethistime。Ilecturedlastnightwithoutinconvenience，butthedoctorsthoughtbesttoforbidto-night”slecture。MysecondonekeptmeinbedaweekinMelbourne……Weareallgladitisyouwhoistowritethearticle，itdelightsusallthrough。 IthinkitwasagoodstrokeofluckthatknockedmeonmybackhereatNapier，insteadofsomehotelinthecentreofanoisycity。Herewehavethesmoothandplacidly-complainingseaatourdoor，withnothingbetweenusanditbut20yardsofshingle——andhardlyasuggestionoflifeinthatspacetomaritormakeanoise。Awaydownherefifty-fivedegreessouthoftheEquatorthisseaseemstomurmurinanunfamiliartongue——aforeigntongue——tonguebredamongtheice-fieldsoftheAntarctic——amurmurwithanoteofmelancholyinitpropertothevastunvisitedsolitudesithascomefrom。Itwasverydeliciousandsolacingtowakeinthenightandfinditstillpulsingthere。Iwishyouwerehere——land，butitwouldbefine！ LivyandClaraenjoythisnomadiclifeprettywell；certainlybetterthanonecouldhaveexpectedtheywould。Theyhavetoughexperiences，inthewayoffoodandbedsandfranticlittleships，buttheyputupwiththeworstthatbefallswithheroicendurancethatresemblescontentment。 NodoubtIshallbeontheplatformnextMonday。AweeklaterweshallreachWellington；talkthere3nights，thensailbacktoAustralia。WesailedforNewZealandOctober30。 DaybeforeyesterdaywasLivy”sbirthday(underworldtime)，andtomorrowwillbemine。Ishallbe60——nothanksforit。 Iandtheotherssendworldsandworldsoflovetoallyoudearones。 MARK。 ThearticlementionedintheforegoingletterwasonewhichTwichellhadbeenengagedbyHarper”sMagazinetowriteconcerningthehomelifeandcharacteristicsofMarkTwain。BythetimetheClemenspartyhadcompletedtheirtourofIndia——asplendid，triumphanttour，toofullofworkandrecreationforletter-writing——andhadreachedSouthAfrica，thearticlehadappeared，asatisfactoryone，ifwemayjudgebyMarkTwain”snext。 Thisletter，however，hasaspecialinterestintheaccountitgivesofMarkTwain”svisittotheJamesonraiders，thenimprisonedatPretoria。 ToRev。Jos。H。Twichell，inHartford： PRETORIA，SOUTHAFRICANREPUBLIC，TheQueen”sBirthday，”96。 (May24) DEAROLDJOE，——HarperforMaywasgiventomeyesterdayinJohannesburgbyanAmericanladywholivesthere，andIreadyourarticleonmewhilecomingupinthetrainwithherandanoldfriendandfellow-Missourianofmine，Mrs。JohnHaysHammond，thehandsomeandspiritedwifeofthechiefofthe4Reformers，wholiesinprisonhereundera15-yearsentence，alongwith50minorReformerswhoareinfor1and5-yearterms。ThankyouathousandtimesJoe，youhavepraisedmeawayabovemydeserts，butIamnotthemantoquarrelwithyouforthat；andasforLivy，shewilltakeyourveryhardieststatementsatpar，andbegratefultoyoutothebottomofherheart。BetweenyouandPunchandBranderMatthews，Iamliketohavemyopinionofmyselfraisedsufficientlyhigh；andIguessthechildrenwillbeafteryou，foritisthestudyoftheirlivestokeepmyself-appreciationdownsomewherewithinbounds。 IhadanotefromMrs。Rev。Gray(neeTyler)yesterday，andcalledonherto-day。Sheiswell。 YesterdayIwasallowedtoentertheprisonwithMrs。Hammond。ABoerguardwasatmyelbowallthetime，butwascourteousandpolite，onlyhebarredthewayinthecompound(quadrangleorbigopencourt)andwouldn”tletmecrossawhitemarkthatwasontheground——the“death- line“oneoftheprisonerscalledit。Notinearnest，though，Ithink。 IfoundthatIhadmetHammondoncewhenhewasaYaleseniorandaguestofGen。Franklin”s。IalsofoundthatIhadknownCapt。Meinintimately32yearsago。OneoftheEnglishprisonershadheardmelectureinLondon23yearsago。Afterbeingintroducedinturntoalltheprisoners，Iwasallowedtoseesomeofthecellsandexaminetheirfood，beds，etc。IwastoldinJohannesburgthatHammond”ssalaryof$150，000 ayearisnotstopped，andthatthesalariesofsomeoftheothersarestillcontinued。Hammondwaslookingverywellindeed，andIcansaythesameofalltheothers。Whenthetroublefirstfelluponthemithitsomeofthemveryhard；severalfellsick(Hammondamongthem)，twoorthreehadtoberemovedtothehospital，andoneofthefavoriteslosthismindandkilledhimself，poorfellow，lastweek。Hisfuneral，withasorrowingfollowingof10，000，tooktheplaceofthepublicdemonstrationtheAmericansweregettingupforme。 Theseprisonersarestrongmen，prominentmen，andIbelievetheyarealleducatedmen。Theyarewelloff；someofthemarewealthy。Theyhavealotofbookstoread，theyplaygamesandsmoke，andforawhiletheywillbeabletobearupintheircaptivity；butnotforlong，notforverylong，Itakeit。Iamtoldtheyhavetimesofdeadlybroodinganddepression。Imadethemaspeech——sittingdown。Itjusthappenedso。 Idon”tpreferthatattitude。Still，ithasoneadvantage——itisonlyatalk，itdoesn”ttaketheformofaspeech。Ihavetrieditoncebeforeonthistrip。However，ifabodywantstomakesureofhaving“liberty，“ andfeelingathome，hehadbetterstandup，ofcourse。Iadvisedthematconsiderablelengthtostaywheretheywere——theywouldgetusedtoitandlikeitpresently；iftheygotouttheywouldonlygetinagainsomewhereelse，bythelookoftheircountenances；andIpromisedtogoandseethePresidentanddowhatIcouldtogethimtodoubletheirjail-terms。 Wehadaverygoodsociabletimetillthepermittedtimewasupandalittleover，andweoutsidershadtogo。Iwentagainto-day，buttheRev。Mr。Grayhadjustarrived，andthewarden，agenial，elderlyBoernamedDuPlessis——explainedthathisorderswouldn”tallowhimtoadmitsaintandsinneratthesametime，particularlyonaSunday。DuPlessis——descendedfromtheHuguenotfugitives，yousee，of200yearsago—— buthehasn”tanyFrenchleftinhimnow——allDutch。 ItgravelsmetothinkwhatagooseIwastomakeLivyandClararemaininDurban；butIwantedtosavethemthe30-hourrailwaytriptoJohannesburg。AndDurbananditsclimateandopulentfoliageweresolovely，andthefriendsthereweresochoiceandsoheartythatI sacrificedmyselfintheirinterests，asIthought。Itisjustthebeginningofwinter，andalthoughthedaysarehot，thenightsarecool。 Butit”slovelyweatherintheseregions，too；andthefriendsareaslovelyastheweather，andJohannesburgandPretoriaarebrimmingwithinterest。Italkheretwicemore，thenreturntoJohannesburgnextWednesdayforafifthtalkthere；thentotheOrangeFreeStatecapital，thentosometownonthewaytoPortElizabeth，wherethetwowilljoinusbyseafromDurban；thenthegangwillgotoKimberleyandpresentlytotheCape——andso，inthecourseoftime，weshallgetthroughandsailforEngland；andthenwewillhuntupaquietvillageandIwillwriteandLivyedit，forafewmonths，whileClaraandSusyandJeanstudymusicandthingsinLondon。 Wehavehadnoblegoodtimeseverywhereandeveryday，fromCleveland，July15，toPretoria，May24，andneveradulldayeitheronseaorland，notwithstandingthecarbunclesandthings。EvenwhenIwaslaidup10 daysatJeyporeinIndiawehadthecharmingesttimeswithEnglishfriends。AlloverIndiatheEnglishwell，youwillneverknowhowgoodandfinetheyaretillyouseethem。 Midnightandafter！andImustdomanythingsto-day，andlecturetonight。 Aworldofthankstoyou，Joedear，andaworldoflovetoallofyou。 MARK。 PerhapsforreadersofalaterdayawordastowhatconstitutedtheJamesonraidwouldnotbeoutofplacehere。Dr。LeanderStarrJamesonwasanEnglishphysician，locatedatKimberley。PresidentKruger(OomPaul)，headoftheSouthAfricanRepublic，wasoneofhispatients；also，Lobengula，theMatabelechief。FromLobengulaconcessionswereobtainedwhichledtotheformationoftheSouthAfricanCompany。Jamesongaveuphisprofessionandwentinforconquest，associatinghimselfwiththeprojectsofCecilRhodes。 IntimehebecameadministratorofRhodesia。Bytheendof1894。 hewasinhighfeather，andduringavisittoEnglandwasfetedasasortofromanticconqueroroftheoldentime。Perhapsthisturnedhishead；atalleventsattheendof1895camethestartlingnewsthat“Dr。Jim，“ashewascalled，attheheadofsixhundredmen，hadriddenintotheTransvaalinsupportofaRhodesschemeforanuprisingatJohannesburg。Theraidwasafailure。Jameson，andthoseotherknightsofadventure，werecapturedbytheforcesof“OomPaul，“andsomeofthembarelyescapedexecution。TheBoerpresidenthandedthemovertotheEnglishGovernmentforpunishment，andtheyreceivedvaryingsentences，butallwereeventuallyreleased。Jameson，later，becameagainprominentinSouth-Africanpolitics，butthereisnorecordofanyfurtherraids…… TheClemenspartysailedfromSouthAfricathemiddleofJuly，1896，andonthelastdayofthemonthreachedEngland。TheyhadnotplannedtoreturntoAmerica，buttospendthewinterinornearLondoninsomequietplacewhereClemenscouldwritethebookofhistravels。 ThetwodaughtersinAmerica，SusyandJean，wereexpectedtoarriveAugust12th，butonthatdaytherecame，instead，alettersayingthatSusyClemenswasnotwellenoughtosail。Acableinquirywasimmediatelysent，butthereplywhenitcamewasnotsatisfactory，andMrs。ClemensandClarasailedforAmericawithoutfurtherdelay。 ThiswasonAugust15th。Threedayslater，intheoldhomeatHartford，SusyClemensdiedofcerebralfever。ShehadbeenvisitingMrs。CharlesDudleyWarner，butbythephysician”sadvicehadbeenremovedtothecomfortandquietofherownhome，onlyafewstepsaway。 MarkTwain，returningfromhistriumphanttouroftheworldinthehopethatsoon，now，hemightbefreefromdebt，withhisfamilyhappilygatheredabouthim，hadtofacealonethiscruelblow。 TherewasnopurposeinhisgoingtoAmerica；Susywouldbeburiedlongbeforehisarrival。HeawaitedinEnglandthereturnofhisbrokenfamily。TheylivedthatwinterinaquietcornerofChelsea，No。23TedworthSquare。 ToRev。JosephH。Twichell，inHartford，Conn。： Permanentaddress： %CHATTO&WINDUS 111T。MARTIN”SLANE，LONDON，Sept。27，”96。 ThroughLivyandKatyIhavelearned，dearoldJoe，howloyallyyoustoodpoorSusy”sfriend，andmine，andLivy”s：howyoucameallthewaydown，twice，fromyoursummerrefugeonyourmercifulerrandstobringthepeaceandcomfortofyourbelovedpresence，firsttothatpoorchild，andagaintothebrokenheartofherpoordesolatemother。Itwaslikeyou； likeyourgoodgreatheart，likeyourmatchlessandunmatchableself。 ItwasnosurprisetometolearnthatyoustayedbySusylonghours，carelessoffatigueandheat，itwasnosurprisetometolearnthatyoucouldstillthestormsthatsweptherspiritwhennoothercould；forshelovedyou，reveredyou，trustedyou，and“UncleJoe“wasnoemptyphraseuponherlips！Iamgratefultoyou，Joe，gratefultothebottomofmyheart，whichhasalwaysbeenfilledwithloveforyou，andrespectandadmiration；andIwouldhavechosenyououtofalltheworldtotakemyplaceatSusy”ssideandLivy”sinthoseblackhours。 Susywasararecreature；therarestthathasbeenrearedinHartfordinthisgeneration。AndLivyknewit，andyouknewit，andCharleyWarnerandGeorge，andHarmony，andtheHillyersandtheDunhamsandtheCheneys，andSusyandLilly，andtheBunces，andHenryRobinsonandDickBurton，andperhapsothers。AndIalsowasofthenumber，butnotinthesamedegree——forshewasabovemydullercomprehension。Imerelyknewthatshewasmysuperiorinfinenessofmind，inthedelicacyandsubtletyofherintellect，buttofullymeasureherIwasnotcompetent。 Iknowherbetternow；forIhavereadherprivatewritingsandsoundedthedeepsofhermind；andIknowbetter，now，thetreasurethatwasminethanIknewitwhenIhadit。ButIhavethisconsolation：thatdullasIwas，Ialwaysknewenoughtobeproudwhenshecommendedmeormywork——asproudasifLivyhaddoneitherself——andItookitastheaccoladefromthehandofgenius。Iseenow——asLivyalwayssaw——thatshehadgreatnessinher；andthatsheherselfwasdimlyconsciousofit。 Andnowsheisdead——andIcannevertellher。 GodblessyouJoe——andallofyourhouse。 S。L。C。 ToMr。HenryC。Robinson，Hartford，Conn。： LONDON，Sept。28，”96。 Itisasyousay，dearoldfriend，“thepathosofit“yes，itwasapiteousthing——aspiteousatragedyasanytheyearcanfurnish。Whenwestartedwestwarduponourlongtripathalfpasttenatnight，July14，1895，atElmira，Susystoodontheplatformintheblazeoftheelectriclightwavinghergood-byestousasthetrainglidedaway，hermotherthrowingbackkissesandwatchingherthroughhertears。Oneyear，onemonth，andoneweeklater，Claraandhermotherhavingexactlycompletedthecircuitoftheglobe，drewupatthatplatformatthesamehourofthenight，inthesametrainandthesamecar——andagainSusyhadcomeajourneyandwasnearathandtomeetthem。Shewaswaitinginthehouseshewasbornin，inhercoffin。 Allthecircumstancesofthisdeathwerepathetic——mybrainisworntoragsrehearsingthem。Themeredeathwouldhavebeencrueltyenough，withoutoverloadingitandemphasizingitwiththatscoreofharshandwantondetails。Thechildwastakenawaywhenhermotherwaswithinthreedaysofher，andwouldhavegiventhreedecadesforsightofher。 InmydespairandunassuageablemiseryIupbraidmyselfforeverpartingwithher。Butthereisnouseinthat。Sinceitwastohappenitwouldhavehappened。 WithloveS。L。C。 ThelifeatTedworthSquarethatwinterwasoneofalmostcompleteprivacy。OfthehundredsoffriendswhichMarkTwainhadinLondonscarcelyhalfadozenknewhisaddress。Heworkedsteadilyonhisbookoftravels，”FollowingtheEquator”，andwrotefewlettersbeyondbusinesscommunicationstoMr。Rogers。Inoneofthesehesaid，“Iamappalled！HereIamtryingtoloadyouupwithworkagainafteryouhavebeendray-horsingoverthesametiresomegroundforayear。It”stoobad，andIamashamedofit。” ButlateinNovemberhesentaletterofadifferentsort——onethatwastohaveanimportantbearingonthelifeofagirltodayofuniqueandworld-widedistinction。 ToMrs。H。H。Rogers，inNewYorkCity： ForandinbehalfofHelenKeller，stoneblindanddeaf，andformerlydumb。 DEARMRS。ROGERS，——Experiencehasconvincedmethatwhenonewishestosetahard-workedmanatsomethingwhichhemightn”tprefertobebotheredwith，itisbesttomoveuponhimbehindhiswife。Ifshecan”tconvincehimitisn”tworthwhileforotherpeopletotry。 Mr。RogerswillrememberourvisitwiththatastonishinggirlatLawrenceHutton”shousewhenshewasfourteenyearsold。LastJuly，inBoston，whenshewas16sheunderwenttheHarvardexaminationforadmissiontoRadcliffeCollege。Shepassedwithoutasinglecondition。Shewasallowedthesameamountoftimethatisgrantedtootherapplicants，andthiswasshortenedinhercasebythefactthatthequestionpapershadtobereadtoher。Yetshescoredanaverageof90asagainstanaverageof78onthepartoftheotherapplicants。 Itwon”tdoforAmericatoallowthismarvelouschildtoretirefromherstudiesbecauseofpoverty。Ifshecangoonwiththemshewillmakeafamethatwillendureinhistoryforcenturies。Alongherspeciallinessheisthemostextraordinaryproductofalltheages。 ThereisdangerthatshemustretirefromthestruggleforaCollegedegreeforlackofsupportforherselfandforMissSullivan，(theteacherwhohasbeenwithherfromthestart——Mr。Rogerswillrememberher。)Mrs。HuttonwritestoaskmetointerestrichEnglishmeninhercase，andIwouldgladlytry，butmysecludedlifewillnotpermitit。 Iseenobody。Nobodyknowsmyaddress。Nothingbutthestrictesthidingcanenablemetowritemylongbookintime。 SoIthoughtofthisscheme：BegyoutolaysiegetoyourhusbandandgethimtointeresthimselfandMess。JohnD。andWilliamRockefellerandtheotherStandardOilchiefsinHelen”scase；getthemtosubscribeanannualaggregateofsixorsevenhundredorathousanddollars——andagreetocontinuethisforthreeorfouryears，untilshehascompletedhercollegecourse。I”mnottryingtolimittheirgenerosity——indeedno，theymaypilethatStandardOil，HelenKellerCollegeFundashighastheyplease，theyhavemyconsent。 Mrs。Hutton”sideaistoraiseapermanentfundtheinterestuponwhichshallsupportHelenandherteacherandputthemoutofthefearofwant。 Ishan”tsayawordagainstit，butshewillfinditadifficultanddishearteningjob，andmeanwhilewhatistobecomeofthatmiraculousgirl？ No，forimmediateandsoundeffectiveness，thethingisforyoutopleadwithMr。Rogersforthishamperedwonderofyoursex，andsendhimclothedwithplenarypowerstopleadwiththeotherchiefs——theyhavespentmountainsofmoneyupontheworthiestbenevolences，andIthinkthatthesamespiritwhichmovedthemtoputtheirhandsdownthroughtheirheartsintotheirpocketsinthosecaseswillanswer“Here！“whenitsnameiscalledinthisone。638 There——Idon”tneedtoapologizetoyouortoH。H。forthisappealthatIammaking；Iknowyoutoowellforthat。 Good-byewithlovetoallofyouS。L。CLEMENS。 LaurenceHuttonisonthestaffofHarper”sMonthly——closeby，andhandywhenwanted。 Thepleawasnotmadeinvain。Mr。andMrs。RogersinterestedthemselvesmostliberallyinHelenKeller”sfortune，andcertainlynoonecansaythatanyofthosewhocontributedtohersuccesseverhadreasonfordisappointment。 Inhisletterofgratefulacknowledgment，whichfollows，ClemensalsotakesoccasiontothankMr。Rogersforhisfurthereffortsinthematterofhisowndifficulties。Thisparticularreferenceconcernsthepublishing，complicationswhichbythistimehadarisenbetweentheAmericanPublishingCompany，ofHartford，andthehouseinFranklinSquare。 LONDON，Dec。22，”96。 DEARMRS。ROGERS，——Itissuperb！AndIambeyondmeasuregratefultoyouboth。Iknewyouwouldbeinterestedinthatwonderfulgirl，andthatMr。Rogerswasalreadyinterestedinherandtouchedbyher；andIwassurethatifnobodyelsehelpedheryoutwowould；butyouhavegonefarandawaybeyondthesumIexpected——mayyourlinesfallinpleasantplaceshereandHereafterforit！ TheHuttonsareasgladandgratefulastheycanbe，andIamgladfortheirsakesaswellasforHelen”s。 IwanttothankMr。RogersforcrucifyinghimselfagainonthesameoldcrossbetweenBlissandHarper；andgoodnessknowsIhopehewillcometoenjoyitaboveallotherdissipationsyet，seeingthatithasaboutittheelementsofstabilityandpermanency。However，atanytimethathesayssign，we”regoingtodoit。 EversincerelyYoursS。L。CLEMENS。 XXXVI LETTERS1897。LONDON，SWITZERLAND，VIENNA MarkTwainworkedsteadilyonhisbookthatsadwinterandmanagedtokeepthegloomoutofhischapters，thoughitisnoticeablethat”FollowingtheEquator”ismoreseriousthanhisotherbooksoftravel。 Hewrotefewletters，andtheseonlytohisthreeclosestfriends，Howells，Twichell，andRogers。InthelettertoTwichell，whichfollows，thereismentionoftwounfinishedmanuscriptswhichheexpectstoresume。Oneofthesewasadreamstory，enthusiasticallybegun，butperhapswithinsufficientplottocarryitthrough，foritneverreachedconclusion。Hehadalreadytrieditinoneortwoformsandwouldbeginitagainpresently。Theidentityoftheothertaleisuncertain。 ToRev。J。H。Twichell，inHartford： LONDON，Jan。19，”97。 DEARJOE，——DoIwantyoutowritetome？IndeedIdo。Idonotwantmostpeopletowrite，butIdowantyoutodoit。Theothersbreakmyheart，butyouwillnot。Youhaveasomethingdivineinyouthatisnotinothermen，。Youhavethetouchthatheals，notlacerates。Andyouknowthesecretplacesofourhearts。Youknowourlife——theoutsideofit——astheothersdo——andtheinsideofit——whichtheydonot。Youhaveseenourwholevoyage。Youhaveseenusgotosea，acloudofsail——andtheflagatthepeak；andyouseeusnow，chartless，adrift——derelicts； battered，water-logged，oursailsaruckofrags，ourpridegone。Foritisgone。Andthereisnothinginitsplace。Thevanityoflifewasallwehad，andthereisnomorevanityleftinus。Weareevenashamedofthatwehad；ashamedthatwetrustedthepromisesoflifeandbuildedhigh——tocometothis！ IdidknowthatSusywaspartofus；Ididnotknowthatshecouldgoaway；Ididnotknowthatshecouldgoaway，andtakeourliveswithher，yetleaveourdullbodiesbehind。AndIdidnotknowwhatshewas。Tomeshewasbuttreasureinthebank；theamountknown，theneedtolookatitdaily，handleit，weighit，countit，realizeit，notnecessary； andnowthatIwoulddoit，itistoolate；theytellmeitisnotthere，hasvanishedawayinanight，thebankisbroken，myfortuneisgone，I amapauper。HowamItocomprehendthis？HowamItohaveit？WhyamIrobbed，andwhoisbenefited？ Ah，well，Susydiedathome。Shehadthatprivilege。Herdyingeyesresteduponnothingthatwasstrangetothem，butonlyuponthingswhichtheyhadknownandlovedalwaysandwhichhadmadeheryoungyearsglad； andshehadyou，andSue，andKaty，andJohn，andEllen。Thiswashappyfortune——Iamthankfulthatitwasvouchsafedtoher。Ifshehaddiedinanotherhouse-well，IthinkIcouldnothavebornethat。Tous，ourhousewasnotunsentientmatter——ithadaheart，andasoul，andeyestoseeuswith；andapprovals，andsolicitudes，anddeepsympathies；itwasofus，andwewereinitsconfidence，andlivedinitsgraceandinthepeaceofitsbenediction。Wenevercamehomefromanabsencethatitsfacedidnotlightupandspeakoutitseloquentwelcome——andwecouldnotenteritunmoved。Andcouldwenow，oh，now，inspiritweshouldenteritunshod。 Iamtryingtoaddtothe“assets“whichyouestimatesogenerously。 No，Iamnot。Thethoughtisnotinmymind。Mypurposeisother。Iamworking，butitisforthesakeofthework——the“surceaseofsorrow“ thatisfoundthere。Iworkallthedays，andtroublevanishesawaywhenIusethatmagic。Thisbookwillnotlongstandbetweenitandme，now； butthatisnomatter，Ihavemanyunwrittenbookstoflytoformypreservation；theintervalbetweenthefinishingofthisoneandthebeginningofthenextwillnotbemorethananhour，atmost。 Continuances，Imean；fortwoofthemarealreadywellalong——infacthavereachedexactlythesamestageintheirjourney：19，000wordseach。 Thepresentonewillcontain180，000words——130，000aredone。Iamwellprotected；butLivy！Shehasnothingintheworldtoturnto；nothingbuthousekeeping，anddoingthingsforthechildrenandme。Shedoesnotseepeople，andcannot；bookshavelosttheirinterestforher。Shesitssolitary；andalltheday，andallthedays，wondershowitallhappened，andwhy。Weotherswerealwaysbusywithouraffairs，butSusywashercomrade——hadtobedrivenfromherlovingpersecutions——sometimesat1inthemorning。ToLivythepersecutionswerewelcome。Itwasheaventohertobeplaguedlikethat。Butitisendednow。Livystandssoinneedofhelp；andnoneamongusallcouldhelpherlikeyou。 SomedayyouandIwillwalkagain，Joe，andtalk。Ihopeso。Wecouldhavesuchtalks！WeareallgratefultoyouandHarmony——howgratefulitisnotgiventoustosayinwords。Wepayaswecan，inlove；andinthiscoinpracticingnoeconomy。 Goodbye，dearoldJoe！