To Orion Clemens
17 May 1862 • Aurora, Calif./Nev. Terr.
(MS: NPV, UCCL 00049)
(SUPERSEDED)

Esmeralda, May 17.

My Dear Bro:

If you can’t get the whole of the second story at Kinkead’s, why, Gov. Johnson’s seems pretty [good.—]except in the matter of binding yourself to take it for a year. I would not like to do that, for when the Capital buildings are erected, you will probably have rooms in them. The suggestion is worthy of attention. Wherever you go, fit up the office superbly. I don’t like [ J Gov.] J.’s as well as Harrington’s, because the former is not on the principal business street.1

I thought it was a blank deed which Sam Montgomery [ c sent] me.

Send those Spanish spurs that hang in the office, out to “Thomas Messersmith,2 care of Billy Clagett,” by some safe person. I wore them in from Humboldt.

Yes, I have received the $100—much obliged. Stand by, now, for we shall let a contract on the Flyaway to-morrow, which will cost about $200—sink a shaft 25 feet deep.

No, let the Humboldt ground alone, but keep yourself posted about the rise of property in Dayton, so that you may know what you are about when you start in to sell those lots. And post yourself about Carson property, too—so that you can sell your town lot for all it is worth. The cards are the Flyaway and the Monitor—and we will stake the whole pile on them. If they win, we are all right—if they lose, I am busted.

That is well. Let Mollie stay where she is, for the present.

Perhaps you had better send me your note to Teall.3

Never send anything by that d—d stage again, that can come by MAIL, as I have said before. The pkg envelops cost me 50 cents.

You don’t understand. A letter from here, by Express, must be enclosed in a W. F. envelop, and be additionally prepaid in cash and cash only.

I hope Barstow will leave the “S.L.C.” off my Gate City letters, in case he publishes them. Put my Enterprise letters in the scrap book—but send no extracts from them East.4

You perceive that I am not in a high good humor. For several reasons. One—Raish came home from the mill this morning, after working the whole night, and [ rea found] a letter from Bob, in which he learned that no sale had been effected.5 This reduced his spirits to the lowest possible notch, for he is out of money, [ and or] nearly so, and he was making large calculations on Bob’s replenishing his purse. Another thing is, two or three of the old “Salina” company entered our hole on the Monitor yesterday morning, before our men got there, and took possession, armed with revolvers. And according to the d—d laws of this forever d—d country, nothing but the District Court (and there ain’t any) can touch the matter, unless it assumes the shape of an infernal humbug which they call “forcible entry and detainer,” and in order to bring that about, you must compel the jumpers to use personal violence toward you! We went up and demanded possession, and they refused. Said they were in the hole, armed, and meant to die in it, if necessary. I got in it with them, and again demanded possession. They said I might stay in it as long as I pleased, and work—but they would do the same. I asked one of our company to take my place in the hole, while I went to [ cul consult] a lawyer. He did so. The lawyer said it was no go. They must offer some “force.” Our boys will try to be there first in the morning—in which case they may get possession and keep it. Now you understand the shooting scrape in which Gephart was killed the other day.6 The Clemens Company—all of us—hate to resort [ too to] arms in this matter, and [ t it] will not be done until it becomes a forced hand—but I think that will be the end of it, nevertheless.

Remember me cordially to Capt. Nye, and ask the old cuss how “Bill” is. If I wasn’t so glad to hear that the “old man” is back again, and if I hadn’t been swearing so much to-day that I am about run out, I would give him a dose of slang just because I am at a safe distance and can do so with impunity. He be d—d anyhow—just for a starter.7

Ask Tom to give my dear love to Miss P.—she with the long curls, out there under the hill.8

Yr. Bro.

Sam.

Explanatory Notes | Textual Commentary

Editorial Signs

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1 Territorial treasurer John H. Kinkead and William P. Harrington, Jr. (1826–1903), a representative in the House of the first Territorial Legislature, were partners in Kinkead, Harrington and Company, Carson City “importers and jobbers” of groceries, dry goods, and mining tools. Their establishment was centrally located on Carson Street, at the corner of the plaza. John Neely Johnson (1825–72), born in Indiana, practiced law in Keokuk, Iowa, before moving to California in 1849, subsequently serving as that state’s fourth governor (1856–58). He was now a lawyer in Carson City and evidently had his office in his residence on Curry Street (Andrew J. Marsh, 667 n. 18, 690 n. 253; Marsh, Clemens, and Bowman, 465 n. 18; Kelly 1862, 76, 82; Kelly 1863, 105).

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2 Possibly the Humboldt acquaintance Clemens previously referred to as Tom Smith (see 28 Feb 62 to Clagett).

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3 The note was for Orion’s purchase of shares in the Live Yankee lode (see 13 Apr 62 to OC, n. 5).

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4 William H. Barstow of the Virginia City Territorial Enterprise, impressed with Clemens’s “Josh” letters, was interested in reprinting his letters about Nevada which had appeared in the Keokuk Gate City (26 Oct 61, 30 Jan 62, 20 Mar 62, all to JLC). Clemens was nettled by his mother’s and sister’s negative reactions to the second of these (see 28 Apr 62 to OC) and apparently anticipated that his Enterprise pieces would provoke a similar response. Neither Orion’s scrapbook, containing clippings of the “Josh” letters, nor the Enterprise for this period is extant. It is not known whether Barstow actually reprinted Clemens’s Gate City letters.

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5 Horatio Phillips was learning the quartz-milling process in use at Clayton’s Mill. Phillips’s Aurora cabinmate Robert Howland had gone to California with Governor Nye’s party in March in order to “sell some ground in San Francisco” (8 and 9 Mar 62 to Clagett).

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6 This shooting took place on 11 April (see 13 Apr 62 to OC, n. 7).

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7 Captain John Nye, the governor’s brother, achieved an enduring notoriety as “one of the fiercest and most vehement talkers that is to be found anywhere. His anathemas would annihilate any man by their force, if sound and fury are good for anything” (“Jorkins at Washington,” San Francisco Evening Bulletin, 14 Mar 68, 5). “Bill” has not been identified.

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8 The message was to be delivered by John Nye’s son Thomas. “Miss P.” was Carrie Pixley, the daughter of Carson City carpenter Seymour Pixley (Kelly 1862, 86). On 8 May 1907, then Mrs. Edward Headrick, she wrote to Clemens, requesting permission to make her reminiscences of their friendship available to Albert Bigelow Paine. She cautioned Clemens to “remember, in those days you were not a Chesterfield in deportment . . . being at that time—just Sam—the name that all ways makes one think of a big hearted, restless, lazy, good natured chap, that every one loved” (CU-MARK). For the information she sent to Paine, see Davis 1956, 1–2, and MTB, 1:246.

Description of Texts and Provenance

Source text(s):

MS, Jean Webster McKinney Family Papers, Vassar College Library (NPV).

Previous publication: L1, 213–216; MTL, 1:78–79, excerpts; MTBus, 67–69, omitting MTL text.

Provenance:see McKinney Family Papers, pp. 459–61.

Emendations and textual notes:

good.— • [dash over period]

J Gov. • [‘G’ over ‘J’]

c sent • [‘s’ over ‘c’]

rea found • [‘fou’ over ‘rea’ or possibly ‘rec’]

and or • [‘or’ over ‘and’]

cul consult • c‸onsult‸ ul [‘on’ over doubtful ‘ul’]

too to • to oo [‘o’ over ‘oo’]

t it • [‘i’ over ‘t’]