Memories of Mark Twain Intimate Memoir by Henry Watterson
Henry Watterson recounts Mark Twain’s whimsical humor in London and Geneva. An anecdote describes Twain mistaking a workhouse for a neighbor’s house and a corrective dinner invitation follows. A later letter to Susie Clemens references her death in a telegram.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Mark Twain
Henry Watterson
Watterson
London
Mount Street
Geneva
Switzerland
Susie
Mrs. Clemens
Turkish Women in Constantinople Utterly Fastidious
A critic cites Turkish women in Constantinople as exceedingly fastidious. They wash hands only if a servant shuts the tap, avoid touching doors, recoil at a Paris doll, and require servants to break seals or read letters. Their handkerchiefs are destroyed if dropped.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Constantinople
Paris
A Romance In Sight From Boarding House Tales
A New York Press note describes a shabby romance in a boarding house, a young woman tired of isolation and the man who never goes out. They confess in a twenty five cent restaurant and admit they have been dining with friends though they are frauds.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
New York Press
London Tramcar Exchange Sparks with Floral Barbs
In a London tramcar a bold woman with a discolored eye provokes a gray haired man with a top hat. She quips about penny rides and urban beauty, then jokes about her husband choosing a cemetery wreath over hospital visitors.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Tom
Harry
London
Defoe and the Rise of Savings Banks
The London Chronicle recalls Daniel Defoe and Duncan of Duthwell as early figures in savings banks. Defoe, hiding from bailiffs in a Bristol inn, wrote Essay on Projects on savings banks, friendly societies, insurance, academies and bankrupts, noted for its modern ring.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Defoe
Duncan of Duthwell
Daniel Defoe
Bristol
London Chronicle
Grocer Sells By Cupful In Tight Neighborhood
A New York Sun excerpt describes a grocer filling a large china cup with sugar and charging two cents. He explains locals buy by measure, not weight, and the shop measures to suit trade before weighing to satisfy customers and the weights and measures inspector.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
New York Sun
His Trick and the Pearl in the Lace
A man, claiming a trick to disentangle a pearl from a collar lace, speaks with the woman who fears the danger of the operation. He assures her the skill separates pearls from laces, not people, in a tense exchange reported by the New York Press.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
New York Press
Old Gent Checks Santa Claus Over Betting Wager
In a London Punch style gag a mischievous exchange has an old gent paying up five sovereigns to Bocky after a wager on 4 to 1. The elder man probes to ensure he did not pass off a false bet, addressing Santa Claus with a sly hint of tallying losses.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Bocky
Santa Claus
Laddy
London
A Poultry Fable From Lippincott's
A hen returns to her nest and finds it empty and laments misplacing her things. The brief fable portrays irony in the hen’s remark about not finding what she lays.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Lippinrott’s
Quote by Carlyle on Prosperity and Adversity
A compact quotation attributes strength to character in adversity, noting that many resist prosperity while steadfastness in hardship defines true resolve. It emphasizes endurance over comfort as a measure of fortitude, attributed to Thomas Carlyle.
Weary Celebrity Visits Stir University Circle
Mrs. Roger A Pryor recalls Charlotteville Virginia days when authors rarely visited. Frederika Bremer stayed only briefly with Baron Schele de Vere and fellow faculty guests before leaving for the south. Bremer’s work was popular among the university circle though she did not appear. The evening turnout surprised everyone as Bremer sent word she was exhausted and must sleep.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Roger A. Pryor
Charlotteville
Funeral bills and pomp in Victorian England decline
A writer in the Undertakers Journal laments thinner ceremonial funerals for nobility during Queen Victoria's era. He cites London cases showing funeral costs shrinking from about £1250 to under £75 over generations, highlighting changing customs and business impact.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
England
Queen Victoria
Undertakers’ Journal
West End
Origin of a Famous Saying from Euclid
Euclid, famed as father of mathematics, taught in Alexandria. When Ptolemy Soter asked for a shorter road to learning, Euclid reportedly replied there is no royal road to learning. The remark has endured for over two millennia.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Euclid
Alexandria
Egypt
Ptolemy Soter
Luck and Opportunity Define a Song Worth a Buy
A reflective note quotes a Philadelphia Record line: luck is what comes to a man who can buy something for a mere song but cannot sing. The remark frames value as chance and personal merit in a witty consumer context.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Tommy
Philadelphia
A Bird In the Hand
A Galveston News quips a woman prefers her husband at home on nights to the Hall of Fame. The item reflects light commentary on domestic life and celebrity status with a humorous local tone.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Galveston News
Also Mentioned on This Page
I. H.C
I.H.C
International Harvester Company of America (Incorporated
Chicago
Humorist
Joel E.cagwin
AMES
Geo. E. Baker
Ames, Iowa
Sorenson & Sorenson
Fish and Game
M. H. Kelso
Hamilton
Asnes
F. H. Waters
Bakers Jewelry Store
Carlyle
Edison
C. E. Holmes
Ames, Ia
Iowa
Drak
KR. F. D. No
Benson
Kelly
Bosworth
Iowa State College
City
Holland
Olson’s Seed and Flower Store
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