ALS signed “Truly yours, S. L. Clemens, Mark Twain,” one page, 5.75 x 9, Charles L. Webster & Co., Publisher letterhead, March 26, 1886. Letter to Mrs. Henry G. Allen, in full: "Dear Madam: The outside of your kind letter had such a businesslike aspect that I handed it (without opening it) to a clerk to be answered. But there are some things which even the ablest clerk can't do: & this turned out to be one of them." Double-matted and framed with a portrait and the original mailing envelope (addressed in Clemens's hand) to an overall size of 19 x 17.5. In very good to fine condition, with a few light stains, and two small tears the the blank area above the salutation. In 1884, Clemens founded the subscription publishing firm Charles L. Webster and Company, named for his niece's husband, who he appointed as its business director. The firm's first two publications—Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and the Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant—were both highly successful, but its later releases did not find the same popularity. A desirable handwritten letter signed with both Clemens's given name and iconic pseudonym.
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