Vol 3 Section 0950
The International Yacht Races were postponed due to gale winds and the safety of the sailors [NY Times, Aug. 30, p.10]. Sam “was at hand at all the races” and so did not go [Sept. 1 to Twichell].
August 30 Sunday – The New York Herald ran a self-interview, “Mark Twain, Able Yachtsman, on Why Lipton Failed to Lift the Cup” [Budd, Collected 2: 1008].
August 31 Monday – Sam returned to Elmira, either this day or the next. In his account to Twichell of Sept. 1 he complained of being in N.Y. the whole month for business.
September – At Quarry Farm in Elmira, N.Y. Sam gave daughter five bird and animial-related books.
He inscribed Olive Thorne Miller’s True Bird Stories from my Note-Books: “To / Jean Clemens / with her
Father’s love / Sept. 1903. / It is never too late to mend. There’s plenty of time. / M.T.” [Christie’s Auction, June 24,
2009, Sale 2272. lot 16].
Sam also gave Jean the following each inscribed slightly different:
Frank Chapman’s Handbook of Birds of Eastern North America: “To Jean Clemens / with her Father’s love / Sept. 1903” [Gribben 139].
Sir Charles G.D. Roberts’s The Kindred of the Wild; A Book of Animal Life: “To Jean Clemens / from her Father / Sept. ’03” [Gribben 582].
Mrs. Mabel Wright’s Birdcraft: A Field Book of Two Hundred Song, Game, and Water Birds:
“To Jean Clemens / with the love of / her Father / Sept. ‘03” [Gribben 788].
Mrs. Mabel Wright ’s Four-Footed Americans and Their Kin; inscribed from Sam to his daughter, not quoted by Gribben [ibid].
Mrs. Fanny Eckstorm’s The Woodpeckers (1901) [Gribben 211].
See also Nov. 18, 1902 entry for another similar book gift to Jean.
The September issue of The Pilgrim magazine ran a feature on Mark Twain, discussing his books and political stances. It ran an autographed photo of him dated Aug. 12, 1895 as well as a facsimile of his 1897 letter to Robert Barr [MTP; not in Tenney].
September 1 Tuesday – At Quarry Farm in Elmira, N.Y. Sam wrote to Mark Bennett of the World’s Fair offices, St. Louis.
Your kind favor of August 18 brings a weight of years down upon my head. Those two names carry me back thirty-two years—Hank Monk and Yerington. I think I was present when the watch was given to Monk, but one cannot be very sure of things that happened in such ancient times. I am only sure that I knew Monk a little, & that I knew Mr. Yerington’s father well. I made one trip with Monk in that old stage; I wish I could be in St. Louis on my day next June & make one with his ghost [MTP]. Note: See Sept. 17 entry, containing an article by the Washington Times which includes this portion and the rest of Sam’s letter. For Hank Monk references, see Vol. I.
Sam also wrote to Edward W. Bok.
There is a precision, a vividness & a brilliancy about these photographs which I have not encountered in any photographs before—certainly not in so remarkable a degree. Surely Mr. Marr works with a camera of his own invention.
You have sent Mrs. Clemens such a generous supply of examples that I supposed I could borrow a couple for friends of mine, but I have not succeeded. So I turn to you. And I beg that you will send a copy of Lewis & me standing in front of the porch steps to each of these young ladies: [Sam then listed Miss Muriel
SLC used mourning border for most letters from Susy’s death on, then from Livy’s death on.