There's always a bit/lot of unknown in the past. I'm not familiar with your copy of Elbow Room, or the Innocents at Home. My copy's title page is Elbow-Room/ a novel without a plot/ Philadelphia/ J.M. Stoddart & Co. Back page shows 1876. I think Elbow Room was remaindered and new title pages pasted in (one explanation for the subtitle you indicate). My memory (always a leaky vessel) recalls seeing a book with the title page Elbow Room with Mark Twain as the author. I saw this copy at U of Wisc. library (1971?) It was still cataloged with a Cutter number--hadn't been redone into LC.Horst Kruse's article in MTJ (1991) shows the animosity between Twain and Clark goes back to 1869 and publication of Twain's "Bad Boy" sketch. Twain's hostility to Clark may have changed his pseudonym from John Quill to Max Adeler. Anyway, the question remains-- was the Butterwick's Little Gas Bill" sketch included in MTLH as anonymous because the editors didn't know the author (Clark/Adeler was very well known in the 1880's), or because Twain wanted Clark/Adeler's name suppressed, or because Clark had renounced his humor in 1882 to become an editor and writer for business periodicals and refused permission, or for some other reason. There are good reasons to support each theory. Forthcoming facts are even more convincing.
david dussere
-----Original Message-----
From: Mac Donnell Rare Books <[log in to unmask]>
To: TWAIN-L <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Mon, Jul 22, 2019 8:19 am
Subject: Re: Mark Twain's Library of Humor a mystery
The plot thickens. Yes, Adeler accused Twain of stealing the plot for CY
from him. Makes you wonder if the publication of Adeler's novel, Elbow
Room (1876), with a fake title-page substituted reading Elbow Room, or
the Innocents at Home, might have had something to do with all of this.
The date is unknown but ca. 1890, so the timing is right.
Kevin
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Mac Donnell Rare Books
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------ Original Message ------
From: "David Dussere" <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: 7/22/2019 12:13:21 AM
Subject: Re: Mark Twain's Library of Humor a mystery
>Thanks Kevin for your (as always) informative reply. Your guess that the editors of the MTLH didn't know the source because it had been reprinted with no author indicated is probably what happened. But I have two theories, both based on the contentious relationship between Clark and Twain. (The MTJ in 1991 has two essays--one by Horst Kruse and the other by David Ketterman) illustrating the friction.) Perhaps Twain wanted Clark's/Adeler's name suppressed. Or Clark refused to grant permission to publish a possibly copyright piece. (The almost exact sketch ("Butterwick's Little Gas Bill") is in Clark/Adeler's ELBOW ROOM.) By 1888 ( the publishing of MTLH) Clark was trying to get rid of his reputation as a "mere" humorist. I look forward to the Clemens conference and welcome any further discussion about Clark/Adeler and his place as a humorist.
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Mac Donnell Rare Books <[log in to unmask]>
>To: TWAIN-L <[log in to unmask]>
>Sent: Sun, Jul 21, 2019 11:59 am
>Subject: Re: Mark Twain's Library of Humor a mystery
>
>Just speculating here:
>
>I've found Max Adler's sketches on Mr Butterwick's gas bill and Mr.
>Butterwick counting sheep published in newspapers anonymously (and in
>some papers where it is credited to Adler). Editors sometimes played
>fast and loose with items they plucked from the exchange. Things get
>credited to Twain that he did not write, and snippets from Twain's
>published books often got reprinted under spurious titles, with and
>without sourcing. Texts get altered to suit local readershiops and
>authorships get misattributed or ignored.
>
>So, the text used in MTLB may have been taken from a newspaper, comic
>anthology, or magazine where it appeared without the authorship
>credited. I'm pretty certain Twain would have recognized Adler's
>authorship of any sketch having to do with Mr Butterwick, but he did not
>edit MTLB and may not have noticed the lack of attribution.
>
>I'd want to look at Gribben (MT's Library), MTP's online letters,
>N&J1-3, AMT1-3, Fears Day-by-Day online (but double-check his citations,
>and you may have to look under both the Ms and As in the index to find
>references to Adler), as well as a few other places.
>
>Kevin
>@
>Mac Donnell Rare Books
>9307 Glenlake Drive
>Austin TX 78730
>512-345-4139
>Member: ABAA, ILAB, BSA
>
>You can browse our books at:
>www.macdonnellrarebooks.com
>
>
>------ Original Message ------
>From: "David Dussere" <[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Sent: 7/20/2019 9:37:20 PM
>Subject: Mark Twain's Library of Humor a mystery
>
>>Only one selection "Butterwick's Little Gas Bill" in MTLH is attributed to anonymous. Why and what exactly was its source? Charles Heber Clark (Max Adeler/John Quill) wrote the sketch, but the where and why are only a speculation to me. I haven't done the needed research and would welcome any comments on the Forum or at the conference in Hannibal.David Dussere
>>
>
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