Forum members, I want to apologize with an explanation for not providing the history I told you would be forthcoming on events in Hannibal in 1861. I have been sidetracked by another project. I provided Vic Doyno with a partial chapter from the book I am writing. He asked me to write is as a free-standing article and is including it in the cd-rom he has coming out. The article deals with dialect stories in Clemens' childhood. Anyway, I promise to provide the 1861 article via the forum just as soon as I can pull it together. I have finished the chapter on 1849 and now am going to skip ahead twelve years. I think it will be of interest to all of you who study the "campaign." I have a modest goal and that is to lay to rest the use of the word "Confederate" when people talk about Clemens. Frankly, like everyone, my heart has been too heavy to write since the attack. I am hoping that by Monday I can live up to the president's request that we all try to get back to a normal life. I hope each of you has been spared personal tragedy. God bless all of us. Terrell