The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-09-30
MARK TWAIN TELLS STORY OF HIS LIFE Some Abstracts Made from His
 Autobiography HAS GLORIOUS ANCESTRY Makes Him Feel chesty, and Once He Waxed Sarcastic About It-Did
 Not Invent Famous Colo
 mel Sellers.
HAS GLORIOUS ANCESTRY
manager. Charles Hackenschmldt.

It is joyful news that Mark Twain has decided to publish at once extracts from his autobiography. The first instalment appears in the current North American Review.
 According to the editor, MT. Clemens began to write his autobiography many years ago. and he continues to add to it day by day It was his original intention to permit no publication of his memoirs until after his death, but after leaving Pier No. 70 he concluded that consid- erable portion might now suitably be giv- en to the public"
 He has written about a quarter of million words at present He expects 10 complete the million before he finishes his story, no portion of which will be pub lished in book form during the author lifetime
 He begins at the beginning. though he announces that he does not propose to be consecutive, but to hop. skip and jump as much as ever he pleases. Back of the Virginia Clemenses," he says lis a dim procession of ancestors stretching back to Noahs time. According to tradition, some of them were pirates and slavers in Elizabeth's time Also according to tradi- ton one of them-Geoffrey Clement by name-helped to sentence Charles l. to death.
 "I have not examined into these tradi- tions myself. partly because I was indo- lent and partly because I was busy pol ishing up this end of the line, trying to make 1t showy. But the other Clemenses claim to have made the examination. Therefore I have always taken for grant, ed that did help Charles out of his trou- bles, by ancestral proxy
 Made Him Vain.
 This has not had a good effect upon me, for 1t has made me vain, and that is a fault. It has made me set myself above people who were less fortunate in their ancestry than I. and has moved me to take them down a peg upon occasion and say things to them which hurt them be- fore company.
 "A case of the kind happened in Berlin several years ago. William Walter Phelps was our minister at the emperor's court then. and one evening he had me to dn- ner to meet Count S., cabinet minister. This nobleman was of long and illustri- ous descent.
 "Of course I wanted to let out the fact that I had some ancestors. too, but did not want to pull them out of their graves by the ears, and I never could seem to get the chance to work them in in a way that would look sufficiently casual.
 'I suppose Phelps was In the same diff flculty In fact, he looked distraught now and then-just as person looks who wants to uncover an ancestor purely by accident and cannot think of a way that will seem accidental enough.
 But at last after dinner. he made a try. He took us about hfs drawing room, showing us the pictures. and finally he stopped before rude and ancient en- graving.
 "It was picture of the court that tried Charles I. There was a pyramid of judges in Puritan slouch hats and below them three bareheaded secretaries seated at a table MT. Phelps put his finger upon one of the three and said. with exulting in- difference:
 An ancestor of mine.'
 q put my finger on a judge. and retort- ed with scathing languidness:
 Ancestor of mine. But it is a small matter. I have others
 Fixed Him All Right.
 "It was not noble In me to do 1t. I have always regretted it since. But 1t landed him. I wonder how he felt! However. it made no difference in our friendship, which shows that he was fine and high.