A MARK TWAIN YARN.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume L, Issue 60, 17 August 1907, Page 4

A MARK TWAIN YARN.

HOW HE TACKLED A NEW YOElt IRISHMAN. (Douglas Story, in the London Daily

Mark Twain looked younger, healthier, and happier when he arrived in London yesterday than he has done any time these dozen years past. The drawn look has passed from his iinely-chiselleil features, the merry twinkle lias come hack to the deep blue eye. and the - tleness lias crept again into the lazy, drawling voice which slowly purrs drolleries that defy the pen to produce. Mark 'I wain lias entered upon the wholehearted eujoymeut of a hard-earned peace.

It has happened to the writer in the course of a vivid journalistic life to lie told oil on only three occasions to inlerview a man. On each occasion it lias lien the same man. Oil each occasion it has Iju.'u .Mark Twain. Ihe first occasion was in Johannesburg one Sunday evening in the month of May, 1801). Mark Twain, then a man of (il, was facing the world a second time, lighting to make good debts lie never personally had incurred. Gentle and com tcous, and tired, he had come oIF a long railway journey. I sat silent while a pushful colleague asked questions about his opinion of the Jameson liaid, of the prospects of the gold mines, ami the grievances of the Uitlaiiders. For a time Mark Twain rang the changes on a polite refusal to be drawn into controversial exposition. Then he pushed his chair back, and in the studied accents of the citizen of that State which demands to see things before giving expression to an opinion, said:—

"ISay, boy, it seems to me you forget I lauded in tho railway depot an hour aud a half ago—and it was dark. Well, the amount 1 don't know about South Anitau politics would liU a book, ana I'm uoi writing it just now. Now, you were seut here, 1 understand, to interview me, and you're trying io uo your duty. Well, you won't do it that way, nohow. You can't bully a man into mi interview. You can lei him talk—and, sooujr or later, he'll talk upon the subject that's uppermost in ins lufna, and, soou's he's on thai, you have him." Mark Twain became reflective. "Souie years ago 1 was in N York an' I wanted to see Daly—Daly, the theatreman, corner of i'itth Avenue aud Broadway. He wrote me a note and told me to couie round and call on him. He sent the most minute detail of the route down a side street, through a cigar shop, along a little lane into the backdoor of the theatre, it was easy. "As I lode down town in the street cat I read an account of the bench-show ■it -Newhaven—all aoout a great St. Bernard, the prize dog of the United Stales. 1 knew mighty little about dogs and no tiling at all about bench-shows—had never oeen at one—but tiiis seemed an extraordinary animal, it was about the height of the table, and weighed 130 pounds.

I thought about thai dog as i WGti! down the side street, through the cigar shop, along the little lane un to where 1 pushed open the dingy back-door of lUj theatre. A mighty big Irishman "•as just inside. He didn't move, but he said 'Stop!' "1 stoj)j)ed." He looked me over carefully, and said: „ llat - uu want, anyway "1 said 1 had come to see' ilr Daly." ""lou can't.' "Hut he invited me, sent me a letter to come."

" 'To this door V " "To this door." '"Well, you can't see him—and, see here, put out that cigar!'" I put out the cigar, and took out my letter He handled it, looked at-it upside down, and gave me it back." '"Ye might just read it will ye? 3lv sights bad.'" J J read it to him. lie wasn't impress

| What name did yc'sav' /,,, ".Mark." " Whole of it?"' "N'o. -Mark Twain." "_'W bat's yer business?'" "I'm in the show business"—l thought that would get him, , '.''? ll,nv business! What line?'" "Now 1 hadn't just thought out what »»:• 1 was in, but a great dog tame galloping out of the darkness—a St. Bernard— and so I said: 'Running a benchshow!'"' "He was interested." » o '' A bench-show? \\ here V "

, "Uown at Xewhaven, Connecticut." | ""What? the big bench-show down to Xcwhaveur Where the champion St. Bernard is?"' "That's so!" "lieen in the business long I'" "Most of my time." "■"Well! Say, look at this one. Wliat uo y<> think o' him?"'

1 sized him up. Ik* looked a jtowerful lng animal— about the height of a table. So I said 'Ge,', he's great! lies about the linest I ever saw.'" Hie Irishman approved, and came out into the light. • e "' w ' Jat Ju . you reckon his weight

[ 1 didn't ijuite like that. You see 1 didn t want to overweigh that dog, and t wasn't going to underweigh him. i looked him over carefully. I guessed 1 d take 31b oil' the Newhaven eha.nipiou. *' "1271b!' Unit irishman came right out at me. He held out his hand.

| "Mail, you've beat it! He weighs i You're a judge of a dog! Just over!-—and he may have found a bone. Well! i say, light your cigar; here * a match. And it's 3ir Daly you are wanting to bee't (Joane away, up this way. .Mind y-ur head. These stairs are mighty pesky.'" "lie showed me into Daly's room. Daly turned round."

" *oli, by the way, about that man—l forgot to tell you about him. However did you manage to get in?'" "Jiy the back way.* By the back way? Well, you're the urst man that's got past that Irisiih-.m in eighteen year;-;. I thought General (irant and a battery of artillery would have Jailed to get past that hall-keep-

I Mr Clemens turned to my pushful colI league: "Ye see, boy, i let him drift away from the subject that interested MM! to the .subject that interested him—and it saved we some trouble, that's all. I lie second time the writer sought to interview Mark Twain was iu Lundou in 1808. He was in bed. He was ill. lie had become au old, old man. His good-bye had the sense of linality. -Many times since then hava I seen him in -Vow York—at dinners, in the club, at tlie billiard table, in Harper's offices iltid each time he was younger that the day before.

I The third lime tjic writer sought to [interview Murk Twain was recently in liis hotel, Imt there was no chance to let him tell his tale o£ a dog, and the amenities of the Anglo-American relationship seemed amply accounted for by the fervor of Uio hand-grasp. -WAIIK TWAIN'S ADVICE. j young imin~once applied to .Mark (Twain for advice as to the conduct of I lite, .mil received th;> following characteristic reply: "Huw can J advice any man wisely out of -null a capital a* a life filled with mistakes? Advise him liow to avoid the like; No; for the opportunities fo makj l Ihe same mistakes do not happen to any two men Your own experiences n:uy possibly teach you, but another man's can't. Ido not know anything for a man to do, but just peg alonj;. tin* tliinps Unit otter and regretTTug tln'iu tin? next day. It U mv way, anil everybody's."