A long time afterward, thirty-four year, he came across this letter. He said:
“It seems curious now that I should have been dreaming dreams of a future monarchy and never suspect that the monarchy was already present and the Republic a thing of the past.”
What he meant, was the political succession that had fostered those commercial trusts which, in turn, had established party dominion.
To Howells, on his return, Clemens wrote his acknowledgments, and added:
Mrs. Clemens gets upon the verge of swearing, and goes tearing
around in an unseemly fury when I enlarge upon the delightful time
we had in Boston, and she not there to have her share. I have tried
hard to reproduce Mrs. Howells to her, and have probably not made a
shining success of it.
XCVIII. “OLD TIMES ON THE MISSISSIPPI”
Howells had been urging Clemens to do something more for the Atlantic, specifically something for the January number. Clemens cudgeled his brains, but finally declared he must give it up:
Mrs. Clemens has diligently persecuted me day by day with urgings to
go to work and do that something, but it's no use. I find I can't.
We are in such a state of worry and endless confusion that my head
won't go.
Two hours later he sent another hasty line: