What Barb said!

I'll add that the forthcoming Mark Twain Project edition of *Pudd'nhead
Wilson* (April 30, 2024) contains detailed discussion of publishers' and
printers' changes to Clemens's spelling. But the executive summary is:
printers were generally expected to impose house style and "correct" and
regularize spelling. So, even for the first printings -- and even for the
books Clemens published himself (as Charles L. Webster and Co.) -- the
spelling (and punctuation, and paragraphing) can't be assumed to be his.

When Clemens read proofs, he aimed to undo editorial/compositorial changes.
And he wrote very colorful letters to the publishers on the subject, making
it very clear that he had been a professional printer himself, and he
wanted the details of his inscription respected! But, with limited time and
energy, he settled for what he could live with; or less. Sometimes (e.g.
*Pudd'nhead* and* Following the Equator*) he didn't even get to read proof
and comment on the publishers' orthography.

Ben Griffin
Mark Twain Project



On Mon, Feb 12, 2024 at 4:02 PM Barbara Schmidt <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:

> Philip,
>
> You might be interested in my history of the uniform editions  -- online at
>
> http://www.twainquotes.com/UniformEds/toc.html
>
> Forrest Morgan was the proofreader hired by Bliss to help put together the
> later editions and there is little evidence Clemens took an active interest
> in the revisions for the 1899 and later volumes.
>
> Barb
>
> On Mon, Feb 12, 2024 at 5:39 PM Philip Trauring <[log in to unmask]>
> wrote:
>
> > I’ve been comparing the spelling between the first edition (1869) of The
> > Innocents Abroad, and the Author’s National Edition (which is copyright
> > 1897 and 1899).
> >
> > I’m curious if the changes in spelling were approved by Twain, in this
> > edition, or other uniform editions (which I have not yet looked at). Has
> > there been anything written about the changes between editions and how
> they
> > came about?
> >
> > Here are some of the changes I’ve noticed so far:
> >
> > Spelling changes:
> >
> > amphitheatre    amphitheater
> > ancle           ankle
> > centre          center
> > ecstacy         ecstasy
> > irruption               eruption
> > lettred         lettered
> > lustre          luster
> > meagre          meager
> > ploughed                plowed
> > pretence                pretense
> > spectre         specter
> > sceptre         scepter
> > staid           stayed
> > theatre         theater
> > woollen         woolen
> >
> > Words combined:
> >
> > any thing               anything
> > any body                anybody
> > any where       anywhere
> > every thing     everything
> > every body      everybody
> > every where     everywhere
> >
> > While these were not combined:
> >
> > any one
> > every one
> > near by
> >
> > Also, pic-nic was changed to picnic, but to-day, to-morrow, and to-night
> > were not changed.
> >
> > Looking at some of the words in Google Books Ngram Viewer shows when
> > certain spellings overtook others, which is kind of neat to see visually.
> > In most cases these map pretty well to what was changed. If the spelling
> > didn’t switch until after 1899, it wasn’t changed in the Author’s
> National
> > Edition. For example, ‘everywhere' overtook 'every where’ already in the
> > 1840s, and it is changed in the uniform edition. However, ‘everyone’
> didn’t
> > overtake ‘every one’ until the late 1920s, so it isn’t changed in the
> > uniform edition.
> >
> > Any other types of spelling changes I should be looking out for?
> >
> > Thanks.
> >
> > Philip
> >
>