Private.
Hartford, May 13.
slc
Dear Sir: I remember you well, & most pleasantly, too. Do you remember the night journey in the stage coach? I ask because last year, in an out-of-the-way place in Germany, I came across a particularly seedy old fellow of about sixty, [MS page 2] who said he was along, that night, ‸(he was on the box,)‸ & that the horses ran away & were making for a precipice when he seized the reins & saved our lives—then he struck me for ten dollars. I paid him, though I intimated that I thought he charged rather high. The truth is, I did not believe that old man. I did not believe there were any precipices on the road; I did not believe the horses ran away; [MS page 3] I did not believe there were any passengers along but you & me. Do you remember that man? I told him that if he was with [us], we probably saved his life. Then [MS page 4] I tried to collect——but this was a failure. Do you remember him? I can’t call him to mind.
Truly Yours
S. L. Clemens
