How unfortunate that Robert Stewart chooses to use the term “nonsense” to characterize my research, the good work of the US Reclamation Service, and the opinion of a professional geologist with the US Geological Survey. The Lake Tahoe beach where Stewart says Twain camped was formed in the mid-20th century is the result of human created high-water levels eroding the shoreline. This was proven again by a recently discovered 1918 land survey and peer review of scientific conclusions. In 1918, the Reclamation Service did a detailed 1”=200’ topographic and bathymetric survey of the shoreline segment where Stewart proposed that Clemens camped in 1861. The survey showed that no beach existed there in 1918. A peer review by a US Geological Survey geologist confirmed that if no beach existed there in 1918, no such beach could have existed physically in 1861. This evidence is incontrovertible and conclusive proof that the Stewart-proposed campsite is inaccurate. Stewart says that a surveyor recorded in his 1861 notes that he found a beach in the area, but this is misleading and physically impossible. The USGS agreed that no littoral process exists that could have created a beach in 1861, removed it by 1918, and reestablished exactly the same beach in the early 21st century, when Stewart “discovered” it. Stewart’s reliance on history and text from old documents takes advantage of the vagueness, omissions and exaggeration associated with such information that allow for free-wheeling speculation and subjective interpretation. The USGS determination relies on empirical data and proven natural science. To quote the renowned scientist Neil deGrasse Tyson, “The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe it.” We will cite again what we have said in response to past posts by Stewart. Twain scholars and aficionados should carefully examine all relevant and proven information about the location of the 1861 Clemens campsite and use critical-thinking skills to reach their own conclusion. David C. Antonucci Author of Fairest Picture – Mark Twain at Lake Tahoe