Helena weekly herald. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1867-1900, 1882-03-09
No. rs.
SAGEBRUSH SKETCH.
How Mark TWain's Brightest Effort
was BlOtted from Print.
San Francisco Call.

San Francisco Call
! When Mark Twain was doing local work
oD the Virginia New Enterprise, Dennis
Mccarthy was managing editor and part
owner OF the paper. One night new saloon
was opened-one OF those gorgeous affairs of
polished woods, mirrors, fine cut glass, silver
ware and wines and liquors that would do
for the sidebOard of fashionable metrOpoli-
tan club-one Of those surprises that cause
equal wonder and delight to strange travel
ers in sagebrush lands. 1t was an important
occasion, as its elegance and two faro games
were evidences OF prosperous times, which
every invester i'll mining property had al
ready learned to believe. 1t was an event,
the knowledge of which in San Francisco
was worth more as an advertisement to this
young camp than q strike OF $500 rock. 1t
reflected dignity and stability upon the camp,
and in more ways than one gave its mer-
chants courage in asking credit in San Fran
cisco. Thus it was that Mccarthy said to
Mark Twain: Sam, we must notice this
opening tonight, and as | had rather do an
editorial OH the Precision of the EquinOxes
than write a business notice, you will have
to do it, The ethics of journalism some
times so lapse i'll mining camps that the
managing and city editors do, upon times,
/ talk in this friendly, easy way with each
other: There is box Of assorted wines
and liquors in the other room" Mccarthy
added, and perhaps you may get some in
spiraton from that" In those days Clemens
never wrote anything that was not funny, or
alleged to be so, and he determined, after
viewing the box of assorted inspiration, to
write funny business notice. The idea in
itself struck him as something funny and he
lit his pipe in Just the right mood to do good
work.
HIS PREPARATIONS.
He took out OF the box all the bottles and
arranged them in a long row, with the wines
of simple names first, and the more difficult
ones following in order to the last bottle
which was wine of complicated, mixed and
impossible to be pronounced name. Sam
thought he would do rather neat thing by
describing each bottle as though he were
sampling from each, and in such a manner
that the reader would be wildly impressed
with the belief that the writer had started
in sober and continued writing and sampling
and describing until he was i'll state OF dla-
gonal inebrity. The progressing complexity
of names would assist the effect very much,
and with the work all planned out in adj
vance Clemens sat down smoking 1nduStn-
ously, and only referring 20 the labels OF the
bottles. He wrote well, in peculiar cOncelt
with the idea, and in order to keep strictly
to his work till through, he never uncOrked
q single bottle. Mccarthy, who went into
the local room just as Clemens finished, and
heard the article read, told me a short time
ago that Mark Twain never before Or since
did a more artistically grotesque piece OF
work than that same Star Notice, The copy
was passed in, and about / o'clock in the
To {I,a off 4n
read the proof of the article He had only
read little while before his eyes began to
bulge out, and next he clutched his hair in
desperate rage. His pet idea, his quaint con-
ceit, read straight and matter Of-fact like any
ordinary business notice. He gasped and
called for the copy. The foreman brought it,
and to him the now speechless and llvld
humorist pointed out what had been done
The foreman took both copy and proof into
the composing room, and yelled out, What
inspired idiot set this saloon notice OF Mr..
Clemens'?'
AN ASTUTE COMPOSITOE
The man who had set the article the En-
te,prise locals were not read by copy them
advanced to the foreman, took him to one
side, and, with knowing smile, said: Il set
that thing. but as soon as | got through few
pages l saw plainly enough that Clemens
was drunk-awful drunk-when he wrote 1t,
so I Strengthened the whole thing out. |
wouldn't have taken the trouble, only L
heard Mccarthy swear the other day that the
next time Clemens got drunk he'd let him
out When this was told to Clemens he took
out his blue pencil and crossed the proof, re-
marking in strained, hard voice: when
printer does set out to be humcrst he beats
HI"