Vol 3 Section 0998
Also, describes MT and Olivia visiting Stratford-on- Avon, MT’s amusement to London when shown a mechanical “leaping frog,” which he followed around the room on hands and knees. Describes MT reading aloud from the MS of TA in Paris in 1879, ‘and the tact and insight displayed by his wife in her comments were admirable.’ Much of this is reprinted in Twainian, XII (September-October, November-December, 1953); XIII (January-February, 1954)” [Tenney 39].
Mrs. James T. Fields’ Charles Dudley Warner, a contemporary memoir of Warner by the wife of the pubisher of Atlantic Monthly contains several references to Mark Twain . Tenney: “On MT, pp. 38-40 calls GA ‘not a literary success,’ and quotes an MT note after Warner’s death, in which he says that because they were next-door neighbors there was little correspondence; however, MT describes ‘the sunshine shed by his personality. One day a young friend of ours came in with a fine light in his eye, and said: “I’ve just had a good morning from Mr. Warner, and I’m a happy girl for the day!”’” [Tenney 39; “A Reference Guide Seventh Annual Supplement,” American Literary Realism, Autumn 1983 p. 169].
Frederick Moy Thomas’ Fifty Years of Fleet Street. Being the Life and Recollections of Sir John R. Robinson, p. 157-8: Tenney: “Far from joking all the time, ‘As a matter of fact he is, or was some ten years ago, a sad, slow, somewhat ponderous man. He spoke with a deliberation that was almost irritating. He was greatly interested to labour questions, and would tell in a deliberate, matter-of-fact way the story of the Knights of Labour and similar organizations in the United States. Of humour there was none in his conversation….His hair some years ago was wild and bushy, his eyes had a
kindly but plaintive expression.’ When MT dined at a London club, all the waiters found pretexts to come to his table and he recognized one of them and chatted with him” [Tenney 40].
William P. Trent’s A Brief History of American Literature contained a section, “Mark Twain” p.235-6. Tenney: “TS raised MT to a place ‘as one of the greatest living writers of the fiction of blended humour, adventure, and realistic description of characters and places….So thoroughly American a career and two such masterpieces as TS and HF seem to assure…an abiding reputation not surpassed by that of any of his fellow writers of the modern period’” [Tenney 40].
Alexander Nicholas DeMenil’s The Literature of the Louisiana Territory contained a section, “Samuel L. Clemens,” p. 197-202. Tenney: “MT’s literary career was ‘a puzzle to me. It had always seemed to me impossible that a writer who violated nearly all the canons of literary art, and whose themes were so thoroughly commonplace, should become so extensively known and so widely popular as Mr. Clemens has become. Of course, his fame is only to-day, but it is wonderful that it is so widespread and hearty, even if it is merely ephemeral.’ MT ‘deals of the everyday and commonplace— he is often coarse’ (as in HF); he is ‘irreverent, if not blasphemous’ (as in IA); and he is ‘unnatural and straining after effect’ (as in TS). ‘As a humorist, he paints no typical characters,’ and ‘as a novelist, what could possibly be more wretchedly untrue
to history and human nature than his ,Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc—a twentieth century Joan, labeled fifteenth century? Mark Twain lacks th education absolutely necessary to a great writer; he lacks the refinement which would render it impossible for him to create such coarse characters as Huckleberry Finn’; but he is popular because he makes people laugh” [Tenney: “A Reference Guide First Annual Supplement,” American Literary Realism, Autumn 1977 p. 333].
Harry Furniss’ book Harry Furniss At Home on p. 168 contained a caricature, “Mark Twain and Max O’Rell,” in front of Max O’Rell’s house in London [Tenney: “A Reference Guide First Annual Supplement,”
American Literary Realism, Autumn 1977 p. 333].
H.W. Boynton’s book Journalism and Literature, and Other Essays (Boston) included a section “American Humor,” p. 87-102. Tenney: “On MT, pp. 89-92, arguing that he is uneven, more a jester than a humorist, and that his later writing is notable for ‘ingenuity rather than power.’ Readers cannot always be sure whether he is in earnest, and when he tried to break away in JA, ‘the anonymity of his historical romance was rendered nominal by the frequency with which his French followers of Jeanne deliver themselves of excellent American jokes, and seem to feel better for it’” [Tenney: “A Reference Guide Seventh Annual Supplement,” American Literary Realism, Autumn 1983 p. 169].
Albert Bigelow Paine’s biography of Thomas Nast contained several Mark Twain references: Tenney: “Passim on MT (indexed), with several letters. On p. 263, two undated letters, the first praising Nast for helping in the second election of Grant as president. In the other MT tells Nast ‘I wish you could go to England with us in May,’ and adds: ‘I do hope my publishers can make it pay you to illustrate my English book. Then I should have good pictures. They’ve got to
SLC used mourning border for most letters from Susy’s death on, then from Livy’s death on.