"One night early in 1866 he put a pistol to his head." "The most explicit of SLC's several references to the episode is a marginal comment, Apr. 21, 1909, in his copy of J. R. Lowell's _Letters_, quoted in Los Angeles _Times_, Apr. 15, 1951." (Kaplan, _Mr. Clemens and M.T._, pp. 15, 391) Yes, we have discussed this before on the Forum. Check the archives from about a year ago. larry marshburne [log in to unmask]