I can't confirm that Twain said it, but it sounds like something that Henry Hazlitt would have said. You might recommend Hazlitt's "Economics in One Lesson" to the questioner. There Hazlitt discusses the common but fallacious thinking that natural disasters like hurricanes are good for the economy because on the surface they seem to create jobs. I think Twain would have appreciated Hazlitt's stance on a number of issues. Scott Dalrymple Southwestern College Winfield, Kansas