Hi, 1) "Mark Twain" basically means "safe water" since it indicates two marks or twelve feet. Right so far? 2) Another Mississippi riverboat pilot (or was it a captain?) had used that name earlier, and Clemens knowingly appropriated it. Correct? 3) And did I not read, in the last year or two, a second and different explanation of the source of the name? What was that? Thanks! Frank Henninger