Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1905-12-06
MARK twain
Assists in Celebrating 10th
Birthday Anniversary
And C0nvuIseS His Friends With
His Witty Remarks.
Famous HumOIist in His Best--My He
Live for Many Years.

New York, Dec. 5.-Mark Twain was
the guest of honor, tonight at dinner
at Delmonico's. given by Col. George
Harvey in honor of the humorist' s
seventeen birthday The guests were
confined to writer's of imaginative lit
erature only and about 10 authors
were present, nearly half of them
women. During the dinner a congratu-
latory cable message was received from
England signed by 40 of the most dis
tinguished writers.
President Roosevelt and Joel Chand-
Ter Harris sent letters regretting their
inability to be present and expressing
their warm admiration for the guest of
the evening.
When Mark Twain arose to speak he
could not proceed for several minutes
on account of the cheers that were
siven in greeting. He said in part:
The seventeen birthday; it Is the
lime of life when you arrive at a new
and awful dignity; when you may
throw aside the decent reserves which
have oppressed you for a generation.
and stand unafraid and unabashed un-
on your seventh terraced summit and
look down and teach-unrebukcd You
can tell the world how you got there.
1t is what they all do. You shall never
get tired of telling By what delicate
arts and deep mor2liti"s YOU climbed
up to that great piacr. You will OK
plain the process ard dwell on the
particulars with scnic rapture | have
been anxious to explain my own sys-
TEN this long time and now at last |
have the right.
Il have achieved my 20 years in the
usual way-by sticking strictly to a
scheme of life which would kill any
body else. 1t sounds like an exaggera-
ton, but that is really the common
rule for attaining to old age. We have
no Prepayment habits until we are 40.
Then they begin to harden, presently
they petrify, then business begins
Since 40, l have been regular about
going to bed and getting up-and that
is one of the main things. / have made
il a rule to go to bed when there was
not anybody left to sit up with, and
| have made it rule to get up when
| had to. This has resulted in an un-
swerving regularity of irregularity.
In the matter of diet-which is an
other main thing-I have been persis-
tently strict in sticking to the things
which didn't agree with me until one
or the other of us go he best of it. I'm
i'll lately l got the best of it myself.
But last spring | stopped frollcking
with mince pie after midnight; up to
then | had always believed it was not
loaded.
Il have made it rdle never to
smoke moro than one cigar at time.
have no other restriction as regards
smoking. | do not know just when l
began to smoke. l only know that it
was in my fathers lifetime and that l
was discreet. He passed from this life
early in 1S49. when | was a shade past
IL ever since then l have smoked pub
licly. AS an example to others and
not that | care for moderation myself,
it has always been my rule never to
smoke when asleep, and never to re-
frain when awake.
AS for drinking, I have no rule
about that. When the others drink |
like to help; otherwise | remain dry.
by habit and preference This dryness
does not hurt me, but it could easily
hurt you. because you are different
You let ii alone.
Since l was seven years old l have
seluoH taken Il uoSe OF medlclne, ana
have still schooner needed one. But
up to seven l lived exclusively on all
opathic medicines. Not that needed
them, for | don't think l did: it was
for economy: my father took drug
store for a debt and it made cod liver
Gil cheaper than the other breakfast
foods. | was the first Standard Oil
rust. I had it all. BY the time the
drug store was exhausted my health |
was established and there has never
been much the matter with me since. !
Il have never taken any exercise, ex-
cept sleeping and resting and | never !
intend to take any. Exercise is lodth- /
some And it cannot be any benefit !
when you are tired; l was always !
tired"