Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1882-08-05
EASTERN CALIFORNIANS.
TEE IRNRR HISTORY OF MARK TwAIRs
"INuoCEHfs ABROAD"
q Valiant and warm-Hesrted Forty-Siner
A Versatile and Eccentric Argo-
naut-Pacinc slopers.
Correspondence Of the RECORD USIos.l

~@~~~~~AS3
known as Mark Twain, is one of number
of now popular humorists who, having
gained their first reputation in California,
came East to strengthen and extend it.
His change Of base from the Pacific to the
Atlantic happened, through circumstances,
to benefit his fame, though it is quite likely
that, if he had stayed longer and published
more in San Francisco, he would have
drawn nearly as much attention there as in
the East Clemens had
THE OPPOSITE OF BRET HARTE's ExPERI.
ENCE
In crossing the continent, as in nearly
everything else. No two men who have
been classed as humorists could be more
unlike. Har.e's intellect is distinctively
fine; Clemens is robust, but rather coarse,
like his taste AID his work generally.
Harte liz a poet Clemens represents prose-
The one Is an artist the other kind of
mountebank. Harte is visionary, ideal.
istic, wholly impractical Clemens is
shrewd, calculating, business-like. Harte
is blind to opportunities, however golden ;
Clemens twists circumstance into occasion,
and turns it to profit. The result is that,
while the poet is deeply in debt, with no
prospect OF getting out, the astute man of
the world enjoys an easy independence,
and is steadily lettering his coalition
Harte's mind is infinitely superior to Glenn
ems mind, though Clemens principles as
well as practices are obviously superior to
those OF Harte.
1t is well nigh fifteen years since Mark
Twain turned his back on San Francisco,
after making local name by writing drol
sketches for the newspapers there, to seek
here broader field and larger recompense
He heralded his advent by contributing to
a journal OF this city, now deceased. the
Saturday Press, believe, "The Jumping
Frog OF Calaveras County" which intro
duced his now familiar sobriquet to this
public, and made people laugh by its gro
tesque extravaganza. After arriving here
he published the " Jumping Frog" with
other sketches, in little volume. Another
Californian, Charles Z. Webb, was the
amateur publisher, but it attracted hardly
any notice, and had but small sale. Twain
was greatly disappointed and discouraged,
for he had, it seems, expected to rise into
sudden renown by this single venture.
When the summer came, he decided to
go to Europe and the Holy Land on the
Quaker City, as the excursion was adver.
tIsed as one of pleasure, and promised to be
cheap. He had no definite idea of book,
though he arranged with the Tribune to
send at low rate few letters describing
the special features of his travels. He was
absent six months, and found ample mate.
rial for the exercise of his talents but he
wrote only an occasional letter for the Jour.
nal mentioned, and what he wrote was not
remarkable. Returning from his voyage,
the Herald offered him $500 for general
account, in two or three columns, of his
observations and experiences, and he
promptly furnished it. 1t was
VERY FUNNY;
Its drollery and satire were heartily en-.
ioyed it was widely copied it gave him
his first extended reputation, and revealed
his mental timber. He had secured, he
thought, recognition at last he was de.
lighted, and began straightway to prepare
copy for a good.sized volume. He worked
faithfully for months, and fattered him.
self that there would be active competi.
ton for his hundreds of sheets of fair,
open Ms. The announcement was made
that he had finished his work but nobody
appeared anxious to take it. He was cha.
grined, though he waited and waited, all
IN vain. Since the publishers would not
come TO him, he would go to the pub.
fishers and he went to them and
at them most actively and energetically.
How his vanity was crucifed (! One
house after another declined with thanks,
until his copy had fairly been tine rounds
Many reasons were assigned for not accept
ing it. and they were often contradictory.
One firm thought it too dull another too
lively; third said it would wound the
orthodox fourth, that there was too
much religion in it; fifth, that it was
TOO rhetorical; sixth, that it was too
coarse. They were unanimous on one
point-nobody wanted it. The author,
who felt tempted to have his MS. copied
on parchment to resist wear and tear, sent
it both TO Boston and Philadelphia, to every
respectable house in those cities, without
getting nibble. He was enraged. Hav-
ing received it back for the hundredth time,
he had threatened to burn up the cursed
thing, when he CHANGED to meet the late
Albert d. Richardson, to whom he un-
burdened his ranking woes. Richardson
took the copy !; ran it over, and was so
tickled with it that he sent it promptly to
the American Publishing Company, who
had published two books for him. They
actually accepted it.
The extraordinary success of the book,
entitled "Innocents Abroad" is we'll
known. 1t sold more than 200, 900 copies,
independent of pirated editions and ia ole
of the most laughter provoking volumes of
the time. Almost everybody has read it,
and roarsd over it. Often coarse. generally
extravagant, sometimes weak and puerile,
1t has all the elements of popularity, as
any one, except regular publisher, would
perceive at glance. Twain has never
done, nor is he likely to do, anything half
SO good since. "Roughing 1t, and other
of his writings are comical and clever but
'acnocents" sounded all his notes. He
retains his popularity, however; for those
who try to make us laugh are apt to be
welcome, though they may bave become
mere echoes of their earlier selves. Twain
could draw as lecturer, and draw largely,
even at this, the poorest of all lecturing
points but he refuses to appear any more
on the platform, and his circumstances,
since he married rich wife, are too easy
to render
THE MONEY QUESTION
Vital, as it is with most of the members OF
his guild. His home is still at Hartford
really suburb of the metropolis, to which
he pays frequent visits. He is often in
vitsd to public dinners and festivals, where
ne is always welcome, from his reputation
as humorist, which has not declined, and
which he nourishes with Jealous solicitude.
Now in his Attn year, he does not look
much older than he dida decade since
He still has much of the appearance of a
Western trader-natural enough to a ma
tive rural Missourian-added to the gravity
of Methodist exhorter. His serious,
even solemn semblance and manner, make