The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1899-06-07
MARK TWAIN TALKS.
Says He Will Write No More Books
to Be Published in His Lifetime

London, June MARK Twain" who
is now in London, coming here from
Vienna, said in the course of an inter-
view today:
Il m not expecting to write any more
for publication. You naturally ask why
Well, have been writing diligently for
80 years, and I had arranged to stop
some time ago. However, L was so sit
uated that l was obliged to keep that
pot-bolling pen going, but a man is
entitled to a holiday for the rest of his
life who has written for % years, or
been a soldier that long. or made him.
self useful or ornamental in any capac-
ity for such a period.
My holiday will consist in writing
two books simply for the private pleas
ure of writing. One of them will not
he published at all; the other is writ
ten for a remote posterity of a hun
dred years hence.
Although the critics think I am GO
ing to write harsh things about peo-
pie, that is an error 1 said originally
there would be no malice. and that is
the truth. l want to set down the facts
about people, and in some cases the
facts may not be pleasant, but they
will at least be void of malice. I do
not contend that the idea is original,
for there has not been an original idea
in the world from Adams time until
our own.
ADAM WAS NOT ORIGINAL.
duces an idea out of his own head. The
idea first comes from the outside. You
cannot grow an idea Why, Adam
could not invent the idea of modesty.
He went naked until he learned from
the outside that to be naked was i'm
modest. I'm not attaching any large
Importance to this, for I have a sense
of modesty, although Adam hadn't. I
got it from Adam. did not invent
it,
What is the real story? 1t was ask
ed of that German speech of yours.
which was to be delivered to the En-
peror Francis Joseph, but which you
forgot?''
Mr. Clemens replied:
Anybody would prepare for an au
dience with an emperor, because it is
essentially formal. You prepare your
self to say the right thing in the best
words. L made that preparation, and
there were only 18 words in the SEN
tence. That was very short for Ger
man sentence, which generally covers
a good deal of ground. Mine was
compressed sentence.
THE EMPEROR JUST CHATTED.
But you see" continued Mr. Glenn
ems, the emperor at once began to
talk in an entirely informal way, and
didn't remember until some little per
iod after that L had a speech in stock.
We were INDUCING in a pleasant talk,
no ceremony about it. Then L recollect-
ed and L blurted out to the emperor
that 1 had memorized very good
speech, but that it had gone clean out
of my head.
:. oh. he said agreeably. it isn't
necessary. Strangely enough, L can't
recall Is words, yet a minute ago
fancied I had them
1.-The emperor" continued Mr.. Glenn
ems. struck me as a very fine fellow
altogether. Necessarily, he must have
a great deal of good plain attractive
human nature in him, or he could not
have unbent in the easy manner which
I have described to you. Francis JOS
eph is just a natural man, although an
emperor He has a sense of humor;
one is incomplete without that. The
emperor of Austria's sense of humor is
easily discernible by the sparkle in his
ewes"