Morris tribune. [volume] (Morris, Minn.) 1880-2000, 1884-02-27
A JOKER PLAYED ON.
How Mark Twain Was Fooled by
His Printing Office Associates.

@AS A@1AAcAlS S1hS0 fAoSSCltbC6Ss
a Time When the STAR Got Even
With the Famous Hum0rist
--.S0mething which Mark
Never FOrgave.
"About twenty years ago." said tho mana
ger of theatrical troupe to a Cleveland
reporter, 81 was printer ON The Virginia
City Enterprise, and Mark Twain was on the
local staff Mark and I roomed together
across the divide, in q place known
as Gold Hill, about mile from Virginia
! City. In those days the divide was con-
sidered one of the most dangerous places
for miles around, and scarcely night
! passed but what some poor devil was waylaid,
robbed, and murdered. But the boys on The
Enterprise were never molested by highway
men, and would think nothing of walking
from town to Gold Hill after the paper had
gone to press, generally about 2 or
s o'clock in the morning. Mark Twain and
l would frequently go home together, but
occasionally he left for home earlier, for, as
l said before, he was doing local work and
was setting type. He was a very droll, dry
sort of fellow, delighted in practical jokes,
and the boys had to be constantly on the
lookout for fear of some new scheme that
Mark would spring on them. He never wore
a white shirt only ON certain occasions when
he could forage on the printers because the
intellectual department of the paper could
not afford such luxury, as they received
salary of $50 week, while the printers re-
ceived S1.25 per 1000 ems, thereby enabling
them to earn about sos per week. A man
named Dan or Mike Mccarthy, I don't ex-
actly recollect, was foreman of the compos-
ing-room.
"One fine evening, determined to get even
with Mark, we, in company with the staff,
held a secret meeting and unanimously con-
cluded to get even with Mark in the shape
of an immense practical joke, which the boys
were getting ready to play on him at the first
favorable opportunity. Sure enough, the
long-looked-for opportunity arrived; we held
another secret meeting during Marks tenn
porary absence, appointed committee of
four to act as full-fedged highwaymen,
dressed them up in the regulation outfit,
masks and all, and instructed them to lay in
wait on the divide, and when they saw the
gentle Twain approaching, ask him to stand
and deliver. Everything worked to perfection.
1 left the Office on some pretence or other, and
told Twain that would not be able to &C
company him home that morning. We fixed
| things up with Foreman Mccarthy, who was
| chosen as his companion and was instructed to
show no resistance, but throw up his hands
Immediately upon the appearance of the
| typo banditti. The two victims left the Office
at about o'clock in the morning. Mark was
unusually happy, as it was a bright moon
| light night, and said he was just in the right
mood to enjoy good walk. But what was
his astonishment when completing one-haf
| of the distance the two travellers were con-
| fronted by the four highwaymen, masked
and armed to the teeth with cooked revol-
vers pointing at their heads, kindly request
| ing them to halt and deliver their valuables.
Mccarthy was the first to throw up his
hands. Mark, evidently filled with terror,
followed his friends example, keeping his
arms in that position while the ceremony of
going through McCarthy's pockets was in
progress. For the sake of appearances Nc
Carthy was relieved of his valuables; then
the fun began with the unfortunate humorist,
whom we robbed of everything but the clothes
| on his back, including his watch, jewelry and
sum of money. Glad to escape with his life,
he hurried home, terribly annoyed and badly
frightened. The day following the plumber
was examined by the boys who were in the
secret; all the trinkets and money were
NSANS w
await further developments. Well, Mark
made disappearance in the Office, all out of
sorts, and worked his mad off by writing
two-column article on the terrible outrage
committed in the divide by four highway
men. can still remember the comments of
the typos, especially those of the highway
men, as they were setting up the article, CIV
ing graphic account of the great robbery
by moonlight.
ga short time after the robbery Twain
| was invitedsto deliver lecture at San Fran
cisco. As that was to be his maiden effort in
the lecture field the, boys thought that the
| opportunity to carry the practical joke to a
successful termination was too good to be
lost, held another meeting and resolved to
| presentMark with his own stolen valuables.
| The day for the departure arrived, the stage
drove up in front of the Office, Twain as big
as life, walked out of the Office with all the
| boys, about twenty in number, wishing him
good luck, and allthat sort of thing, close
behind him. As.he was about to step into
the coach he was confronted by one
of the crowd, who carried Marks
| valuables nicely done up in
case, and with an earnest expression of coun-
tenance, told him how much the boys in the
| Office thought of him as friend and COM
banion, and now that he was about to seek
| fame and fortune in an entirely new field,
they had concluded to present him with a
small token of their regard and esteem, and
they hoped that he would prize it to remind
him of the boys on The Virginia City Enter
prise. believe, at the conclusion of that
| speech, the recipient of the alleged gift was
the proudest man on earth He made
splendid speech of thanks in reply; said
how much he thought of all the boys,
and was quite overcome with emotion,
but as the driver of the stage was in the Sc
cret, and was told not to give him chance
to open the box, he hurried him off by saying
that he was late and the coach could not
wait a moment longer. Mark jumped aboard
with a last farewell, the stage disappeared
and that was the last have ever seen of
Mark Twain would like to have watched
his face when he opened that case, but from
all could gather he did not take the joke in
the light we imagined he would; he was quite
angry and never forgave us for this little