I've seen it, and what I saw was a bound typescript. It's in three volumes, 
but I've only seen the first volume, which had some autograph insertions and 
markings in the text. If I recall correctly, it opens quite easily and lays 
flat. But I don't know who typed it or whether it was prepared for the US or 
English editions (which makes a big difference). I doubt it was a first 
draft, although it could have been typed up by somebody from Twain's 
manuscript notes and drafts, the same way Life on the Mississippi was put 
together by a typist under Twain's direction (I have two letters from Twain 
to that typist spelling out specific directions). My guess is that it's 
something prepared late in the creative process for a type-setter and/or 
illustrator to follow.

I own two large photo mounting boards that Twain used to outline his ideas 
and make notes from his readings for FTE. He made lists of words, events, 
people, places, and a few phrases.  Vic Fischer (at MTP) and I made 
typescripts of both of these boards a few years ago and MTP has copies. Why 
did Twain use these large stiff cardboards for making his notes? My best 
guess is that while traveling he found it easy to outline or make notes on 
these boards and then use them as a sort of portable desk when he wrote out 
his manuscript. It allowed him to check off an idea when he incorporated it 
into his book.  He may have made more than two, but I only know of these two 
that survive, and I don't know of similar boards for any of his other books. 
They seem to capture the genesis of the book, the first scratchings in his 
creative process, showing how he assembled his thoughts and organized his 
words. Annotations in books from his library often show Twain noting an idea 
or theme, or reacting to a text, but they don't reflect how he assembled 
those notes into his own literary art.

Kevin
@
Mac Donnell Rare Books
9307 Glenlake Drive
Austin TX 78730
512-345-4139
Member: ABAA, ILAB
*************************
You may browse our books at
www.macdonnellrarebooks.com

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Ron Hohenhaus" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Sunday, October 09, 2011 6:59 AM
Subject: Following the Equator at New York Public Library?


>
> Kevin Mac Donnell historical insights into the different versions of FTE 
> are
> fascinating (see below).
>
> Has anyone seen the FTE manuscript held in the Berg Collection of the New
> York Public Library? Manuscript is such a broad term. What sort of 
> document
> are we talking about here? Is it Twain's first/last draft, a corrected 
> first
> draft, a printer's proof. Is it typed, hand written, etc.
>
> A few months back, I made some enquiries about obtaining copies of 
> specific
> sections of the New York MS but I was told I needed to specify page 
> numbers
> of the original manuscript (as opposed to page numbers in the published
> book) before copies could be made. This is clearly impossible without
> viewing the manuscript.
>
> I was also informed that "because this material is bound, it may not be
> photocopied for conservation reasons. Only a digital photograph of each 
> page
> must be made." It all started to sound very awkward from this distance.
> Which is a shame.
>
> I was tempted to point out to the curator that this was a bit like the 
> Chico
> and Harpo's scam to sell enough code books to bet on Sun-Up in "A Day at 
> the
> Races"  ... but thought better of it. I'll leave the humour to the
> professionals.
>
> Ron Hohenhaus
> Sunnybank Hills, Qld
> Australia
>
> ________________________________
>
> From: Mark Twain Forum on behalf of Kevin Mac Donnell
> Sent: Fri 27/08/2010 2:48 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: Following the Equator
>
>
>
> Regarding the best reading edition of  FOLLOWING THE EQUATOR--
>
> The English edition, MORE TRAMPS ABROAD, contains 6,000 words deleted = 
> from
> the American edition. On the other hand, the American edition includes =
> 1,400 words not in the English edition. So, neither is entirely 
> satisfactory
> = as a reading edition.
>
> Is there an edition that provides the full text? I reckon I dunno. I'm = 
> not
> sure an edition with the "full text" could be considered authorial in = 
> the
> sense that it would reflect Twain's final intentions, but so long as the
> altered texts were designated as such, it would make for good reading. I
> don't know if the 1899 collected edition of FTE was revised by Twain. I =
> have marked proof copies for two works from that edition, but not FTE, and 
> I
> = have not compared the 1899 text to the 1897 English and American 
> editions.
> Perhaps the MTP knows to what extent Twain was aware of those textual
> differences and whether he revised the 1899 setting.
>
> If he did revise the text, then any FTE odd volumes from the 1899 = 
> edition
> would do. That setting was used to print several later editions. BUT, =
> you'd miss out on the original illustrations that appeared in the 1897 =
> American edition (they are not present in the 1897 English edition). The
> Oxford edition simply reproduces the American edition, and not the 
> English,
> but = has a good essay on the illustrations by Beverly David.
>
> Then, of course, there's the first Canadian edition (Vancouver, 1899)...
>
> Kevin
> @
> Mac Donnell Rare Books
> 9307 Glenlake Drive
> Austin TX 78730
> 512-345-4139
> Member: ABAA, ILAB
> *************************
> You may browse our books at
> www.macdonnellrarebooks.com
>
>
> =
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