Search Results: autograph letter signed by clemens samuel l

Buffalo,, September 26, [1871].. Ms. notes in ink at head of text in another hand: "Sam Clemens [twice] and the date Sept. 26, 1871." Lightly creased where previously folded; otherwise fine. . 8vo.. 38 lines; approx. 160 words. An early Twin letter; "Excuse the pencil." The Clemenses are moving to Hartford and Twain is uncertain whether he can attend a "gathering of the pilgrims." If not he will be present in spirit and make a mute speech. He is preparing for the lecture circuit.

Vancouver, CA: np, 1895. First edition. Matted and framed. Very Good. LONG HISTORICALLY IMPORTANT SIGNED LETTER WRITTEN BY S.L. CLEMENS (A.K.A. MARK TWAIN). The impact of the Paige typesetting machine on Mark Twain's life cannot be overstated. Awed by the prospect of the biggest revolution in textual history since the Gutenburg Press, Twain held faith in the machine's potential despite many warning signs, notably persistent breakdowns of Paige's machine and the advent of Linotype. Why did Twain refuse to let go of this dream? "[P]erhaps, in the end, the Paige typesetting machine was simply the best tall tale he'd ever heard," writes critic Ron Powers, arguing that the financial decline in Twain's life resulting from his misjudged investment of his own wealth and his wife Olivia's inheritance (along with a series of personal tragedies including the loss of his wife and two of his daughters in the decade following 1895) correspond directly with a diminution in his characteristic wit and levity… Read More