Mark, that Twain passage gave me a good laugh this afternoon! But I didn't know that Twain felt his Innocents Abroad was less than perfect. True, it takes a lot of effort sometimes to get through the descriptive passages, but some of Twain's best humor is in this book. Too bad he didn't appreciate it over time, but I'd still say--even after several readings--that it's all still very good. Cordially, Vern