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The Boys' Life of Mark Twain

Chapter 8 THE OPEN ROAD

Word Count: 2046    |    Released on: 06/12/2017

er, of staying there. His purpose was to earn money enough to take him to New York City. The railroad had by this time reached St. Louis, and he mean

a wonderful journey. All day he sat looking out of the window, eating when he chose from the food he carried, curling up in his s

cond Street and Sixth Avenue-the present site of Bryant Park. All the world's newest wonders were to be seen there-a dazzling exhibition. A fragment of the let

ountries represented, the lofty dome, glittering jewelry, gaudy tapestry, etc., with th

verything on exhibition, and I was only in a little over two hours to-night. I only glanced at about one-third of the articles; and, having a poor memory, I have enumerated scarcely a

atest wonder yet. Immense pipes are laid across the bed of the Harlem River, and pass through the country to Westchester County, where a whole river is turned from its course and brought to New York. Fro

he would be another boy entirely. Four times every day I walk a little over a mile; and working hard all day and walking four miles is exercise. I am used to it now, though, and

re I spend my evenings. Where would you suppose, with a free printers' library containing

e to Ella soo

your

AM

y a light so dim that you n

turned from its course to supply New York City with water; the water comes thirty-eight miles, and each family could use a hundred barrels a day! The letter reveals his personal side-his kindly interest in those left behind, his anxiety for Henry, his assurance that the promise to his mother was being kept, his memory of her longin

ssued by private banks-rather poor money, being generally at a discount and sometimes worth less. But if wages were low, living was cheap in those days, an

ummer of 1853, never expecting to remain long. His letters of that period were few. In October he said, in a letter to Pamela,

r the last two weeks," he adds, which sounds like the Mark Twain of fifty years later. Fa

e last act. . . the man's whole soul seems absorbed in the part he is playing; and it is real startling to see him. I am sorry I

arther alo

if you have a brother nearly eighteen years old who is not able to take care

cy for him to fill, he put in the time visiting the Philadelphia libraries, art galleries, and historic landmarks. After all, his chief business was sight-seeing. Work was only a means to this end. Chilly evenings, when he returne

eived with approval" was

se a line with a hook on it baited with a piece of red flannel. They never got tired of this joke, and Frog never failed to get figh

all amounts, but welcome. Once he inclosed a gold dollar, "to serve as a specimen of the kind of stuff

nt to, I can get subbing every night of the week. I go to work at seven in the evening and work till three the next morning. . . . The type

ough the iron railing of the locked inclosure. Probably it did not occur to him that there might be points of similarity between Franklin's career and his own. Yet in time these would be rather striking: each learned the printer's trade; each w

realized the value of his brother as a contributor, for Sam, in a letter to Orion, says, "I will try to write for the pape

and the first attack of homesickness was due. "One only has to leave home to learn how to write interesting l

e may guess there was a stronger reason, which perhaps he did not entirely realize. The novelt

for the "Ledger" and "North American." Eventually he went back to New York, and from there took ticket to St. Louis. This

stopped only long enough to see Pamela, then went aboard and, flinging himself into hi

ctures of the English rulers with the brief facts of their reigns. Sam Clemens entertained himself learning these data by heart. He had a fine memory for such things, and in an hour or two had those detai

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1 Chapter 1 THE FAMILY OF JOHN CLEMENS2 Chapter 2 THE NEW HOME, AND UNCLE JOHN QUARLES'S FARM3 Chapter 3 EDUCATION OUT OF SCHOOL4 Chapter 4 TOM SAWYER AND HIS BAND5 Chapter 5 CLOSING SCHOOL-DAYS6 Chapter 6 THE APPRENTICE7 Chapter 7 ORION'S PAPER8 Chapter 8 THE OPEN ROAD9 Chapter 9 A WIND OF CHANCE10 Chapter 10 THE LONG WAY TO THE AMAZON11 Chapter 11 RENEWING AN OLD AMBITION12 Chapter 12 LEARNING THE RIVER13 Chapter 13 RIVER DAYS14 Chapter 14 THE WRECK OF THE PENNSYLVANIA 15 Chapter 15 THE PILOT16 Chapter 16 THE END OF PILOTING17 Chapter 17 THE SOLDIER18 Chapter 18 THE PIONEER19 Chapter 19 THE MINER20 Chapter 20 THE TERRITORIAL ENTERPRISE21 Chapter 21 MARK TWAIN 22 Chapter 22 ARTEMUS WARD AND LITERARY SAN FRANCISCO23 Chapter 23 THE DISCOVERY OF THE JUMPING FROG 24 Chapter 24 HAWAII AND ANSON BURLINGAME25 Chapter 25 MARK TWAIN, LECTURER26 Chapter 26 AN INNOCENT ABROAD, AND HOME AGAIN27 Chapter 27 OLIVIA LANGDON. WORK ON THE INNOCENTS 28 Chapter 28 THE VISIT TO ELMIRA AND ITS CONSEQUENCES29 Chapter 29 THE NEW BOOK AND A WEDDING30 Chapter 30 MARK TWAIN IN BUFFALO31 Chapter 31 AT WORK ON ROUGHING IT 32 Chapter 32 IN ENGLAND33 Chapter 33 A NEW BOOK AND NEW ENGLISH TRIUMPHS34 Chapter 34 BEGINNING TOM SAWYER 35 Chapter 35 THE NEW HOME36 Chapter 36 OLD TIMES, SKETCHES, AND TOM SAWYER 37 Chapter 37 HOME PICTURES38 Chapter 38 TRAMPING ABROAD39 Chapter 39 THE PRINCE AND THE PAUPER 40 Chapter 40 GENERAL GRANT AT HARTFORD41 Chapter 41 MANY INVESTMENTS42 Chapter 42 BACK TO THE RIVER, WITH BIXBY43 Chapter 43 A READING-TOUR WITH CABLE44 Chapter 44 THE ADVENTURES OF HUCKLEBERRY FINN 45 Chapter 45 PUBLISHER TO GENERAL GRANT46 Chapter 46 THE HIGH-TIDE OF FORTUNE47 Chapter 47 BUSINESS DIFFICULTIES. PLEASANTER THINGS48 Chapter 48 KIPLING AT ELMIRA. ELSIE LESLIE. THE YANKEE 49 Chapter 49 THE MACHINE. GOOD-BY TO HARTFORD. JOAN IS BEGUN50 Chapter 50 THE FAILURE OF WEBSTER & CO. AROUND THE WORLD. SORROW51 Chapter 51 EUROPEAN ECONOMIES52 Chapter 52 MARK TWAIN PAYS HIS DEBTS53 Chapter 53 RETURN AFTER EXILE54 Chapter 54 A PROPHET AT HOME55 Chapter 55 HONORED BY MISSOURI56 Chapter 56 THE CLOSE OF A BEAUTIFUL LIFE57 Chapter 57 MARK TWAIN AT SEVENTY58 Chapter 58 MARK TWAIN ARRANGES FOR HIS BIOGRAPHY59 Chapter 59 WORKING WITH MARK TWAIN60 Chapter 60 DICTATIONS AT DUBLIN, N. H.61 Chapter 61 A NEW ERA OF BILLIARDS62 Chapter 62 LIVING WITH MARK TWAIN63 Chapter 63 A DEGREE FROM OXFORD64 Chapter 64 THE REMOVAL TO REDDING65 Chapter 65 LIFE AT STORMFIELD66 Chapter 66 THE DEATH OF JEAN67 Chapter 67 DAYS IN BERMUDA68 Chapter 68 THE RETURN TO REDDING69 Chapter 69 THE CLOSE OF A GREAT LIFE