I would like to determine the first solid evidence of where Sam Clemens was after departing New York in 1854. Is there any real proof that he arrived in St. Louis before taking a steamboat to Muscatine? What is the first known date for Sam in Muscatine? What evidence did Paine have that Sam visited Pamela in St. Louis before departing for Muscatine? I'd like to continue to believe Sam's recollection if only for its poetry but I'm at a loss as to how he got to St. Louis by train.