The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1917-06-11
MARK TWAIN'S BROTHER
Clemens His Residence


"You must put him in book or a
play right away! You are the only
man capable of doing it," So Mark
Twain wrote, concerning his brother
Orion, to William Dean Howells. A
series of letters written by Mark
Twain to Mr.. Howells and others is
now given to the American public in
Harper's Magazine In the letter al
ready quoted from he went on to ex-
hort Mr.. Howells: You might die at
lany mment. and your very greatest
any moment be lost to the world.
could write Orion's simple biography,
to, by merely stating the bald facts
but you must put him into ro-
nance
Orion was one of the most human
creatures that ever lived, remarks Al
bert Bigelow Paine, who edits the let
tiers: his humanity excluded every
form or artificiality. To such close
friend as Howells, Mark Twain evi.
IDENTIFY could not resist telling the
amusing truth about this all-too-hu
man brother. In one letter he is led
into penning an elaborate portrait OF
the childlike Orion. Could any novel
have made him more living and plaus
ible9
observe Orion's career-that is. a
little of it: He has belonged to as
many as FIVE different religious de,
nominations: last March he withdrew
from the deaconship in Congrega
tional church and the superintendency
of its Sunday school, in speech in
which he said that for many months
Git runs in my mind that he said thir-
teen years. he had been confirmed
inhdel. and so felt it to be his duty to
retire from the flock.
80. After being a republican for
years. he wanted me to buy him a
democratic newspaper. A few days
before the presidential election, he
came out in speech and publicly
went over to the democrats: he pru-
identity .hedged' by voting for six state
republicans. also.
The new convert was made one of
the secretaries of the democratic
meeting, and placed in the list of
speakers. He wrote me jubiantly of
what q Ien-strike he was going to
make with that speech. All right
but this OF his innocent and pathetic
candor in writing me something like
this a week later:
q was more diffdent than had
expected 10 De, ana IpiS was lHCEedS-
ed by the silence with which I was
received when came forward; so
seemed unable to get the fire into my
speech which ! had calculated upon.
and presently they began to ge- up
and go out: and in few minutes they
all rose up and went away
How could a man uncover such a
sore as that and show it to another?
Not a word of complaint. you see
only patient, sad surprise.
'3. His next project was to write
"a burlesque upon Paradise Lost
~ Then, learning that the Times
was paying Harte 800 a column for
stories, he concluded 10 write some
for the same price. read his first
one and persuaded him not to write
any more.
"5. Then he read proof on the New
York Evening Post at $40 week and
meek1y observed that the foreman
swore at him and ordered him around
like steamboat mate
So Being discharged from the
Post. ne wanted to try agriculture
was sure he could make a fortune out
OF chicken farm. gave him 5000
and he went to ten-house village
two miles above Keokuk on the river
bank-tfnis place was railway sta
ton. He soon asked for money 10 buy
a horse and light wagon-because the