# Friday, March 23, 1906 explained — The Autobiography of Mark Twain

> Chapter companion for The Autobiography of Mark Twain by Mark Twain.

## What happens

Mark Twain reflects on the absurdities of the U.S. postal system under Postmaster-General Key, recounting how letters with odd superscriptions—such as 'Mark Twain, God Knows Where' and 'Mark Twain, Somewhere, (Try Satan)'—were mishandled or delayed. He then shares tender and humorous memories of his neighbor Harriet Beecher Stowe, whose mental decline led her to wander into his home unannounced, and of her husband, Professor Stowe, whom his daughter Susy mistook for Santa Claus.

## Themes in this chapter

### Hypocrisy and Human Nature

Twain criticizes the postal system's rigid rules that thwarted common sense, highlighting bureaucratic absurdity.

### Memory and Autobiography

Twain recalls past letters and personal memories of Harriet Beecher Stowe, weaving autobiography with anecdote.

### Family and Domestic Life

Domestic scenes in Hartford with open doors, Mrs. Stowe's visits, and young Susy's innocent observation.

## Character check-ins

### Mark Twain

Narrator and recipient of oddly addressed letters; reminisces about Harriet Beecher Stowe and her husband.

### Livy Clemens

Mrs. Clemens kept a collection of odd letter superscriptions and a diary mentioning Harriet Beecher Stowe.

### Susy Clemens

Young Susy mistook Professor Stowe for Santa Claus upon seeing him on the street.

### Harriet Beecher Stowe

Near neighbor in Hartford with decaying mind; wandered into Twain's home and played pranks or sang melancholy songs.

### Dr. John Brown

Wrote a letter with a comically incorrect address; his letter was mishandled by the U.S. postal system.

### Theodore Roosevelt

Mentioned as the addressee in a letter superscription from a young English girl.

## Key lines

> Mr. Key was soon brought to a more rational frame of mind.

Postmaster-General Key eventually abandoned his rigid postal rules.

_Twain notes that Key's strict policies were short-lived._

> Her mind had decayed and she was a pathetic figure.

Harriet Beecher Stowe's mental faculties had deteriorated, making her a sad sight.

_Twain describes Stowe's mental decline in her later years._

> She would slip up behind a person who was deep in dreams and musings and fetch a war whoop that would jump that person out of his clothes.

She would sneak up on someone lost in thought and let out a loud yell that would startle them intensely.

_Twain recounts Stowe's playful but startling pranks._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_autobiography_of_mark_twain_se/chapters/volume-ii-friday-march-23-1906
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_autobiography_of_mark_twain_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_autobiography_of_mark_twain_se/chapters