To Elisha Bliss, Jr.
23 February 1870 • Buffalo, N.Y.
(MS: CU-MARK, UCCL 00431)

At Home Feb. 23.

Friend Bliss—

Why bless your soul, I never have time to write letters these days—takes all my time to carry on the honey-moon.1 I would like to talk to Mrs Bliss2 two or three or four hours about my wife now, if she could stand it——she used to stand it very well when I was [at ] your house.

Express gets along well. I have a strong notion to write a——

Well, never mind, I’ll [ w ] tell you about it another time.3

I am glad Mrs. Barstow has retrieved her credit—I was about to write you to charge her $150″ to me, when your second letter came. I am very glad, more f simply for her own sake, that she has kept up her credit.4

6,000 & upwards, in 16 days, is splendid—Splendid, isn’t it?5

I don’t go near the Express office more than twice a week—& then only for an hour. I am just as good [as] other men—& other men take honey-moons I reckon.

Hello!—there’s the bell—my wife is taking a nap & I am receiving calls.

Yrs Ever,

Mark

[letter docketed:] auth Mark Twain | Feb 23/70

Explanatory Notes | Textual Commentary

Editorial Signs

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1 Clemens was replying to two recent letters from Bliss, only the first of which survives (CU-MARK):

UCLC31954

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Four days after this letter, the Hartford Courant reported: “The American Publishing company are now printing the sixtieth thousand of Mark Twain’s new book. They have already sold over fifty-five thousand, and have orders ahead faster than they can supply them” (“Brief Mention,” 19 Feb 70, 2).

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2 Amelia Bliss (L3, 15 n. 4).

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3 Clemens’s “strong notion” was probably to write for the Galaxy, an undertaking he suspected Bliss might not approve (see 11 Mar 70 to Bliss).

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4 In September 1869 Clemens had persuaded Bliss to award the Virginia agency for Innocents to Kate D. Barstow, a Nevada friend in financial straits. Ultimately she was not able to pay for all of the books she received, and Clemens had to reimburse Bliss (L3, 339–41, 345). Barstow was so chagrined by her failure that she did not write to Clemens for ten years. On 16 October 1881 she apologized, and asked Clemens to finance her study of medicine at Howard University, in Washington, D.C., promising to “repay you the total indebtedness when I get into practice!” (CU-MARK). Clemens agreed and Barstow received her medical degree in 1884. It is not known if she repaid him (Barstow to SLC, various letters 1881–84, CU-MARK).

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5 Bliss evidently updated the sales report on Innocents to 16 February, indicating that he wrote his now missing second letter only a day or two after his first. This “splendid” showing brought the total number of books sold (as distinct from printed) to about 45,000.

Description of Texts and Provenance

Source text(s):

MS, Mark Twain Papers, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley (CU-MARK).

Previous publication: L4, 77–78; MTLP, 32–33.

Provenance:See Mendoza Collection in Description of Provenance.

Emendations and textual notes:

at • at | at

w • [partly formed]