I know you hate Clubs—at least they are an unpleasant suggestion to you, & doubtless they are borous to you—still I have been urged to ask you to consent to join a Club—the easiest way to disburden myself of the matter is to unload it onto you, & leave you to consent or refuse, & shallⒶemendation seem best. I wish to hold myself purely neutral & say nothing to influence you, one way or the other. The Club would be proud to have your name; that goes without saying; the membership is consonant with yourself, for it is refined, cultured, more than ordinarily talented, & of exceptionally high character. These facts are in its favor; but I think I ought not to conceal a fact of another sort—one which I must ask you to treat as confidential: the intent of the Club is, to by superior weight, charcacter & influence, to impair & eventually destroy the influence of the Canadian ‸Ⓐemendation—not from any base feeling, but from a belief that this is a thing required in the interest of the public good. At present, I am the The name of the new organization is peculiar—The Modest Club—& the first & main qualification for membership is modesty. At present, I am the only member; & as the modesty required must be of a quite aggravated type, the enterprize did seem for a time doomed to stop dead still with myself, for lack of further material; but upon reflection I have come to the conclusion that you are eligible. ThereforeⒶemendation I have held a meeting & voted to offer you the distinction of membership. I do not know that we can find any others, though I have had some thought of Hay, Warner, Twichell, Aldrich, Osgood, Fields, Higginson, & a few more—together with Mrs. Howells, Mrs. Clemens, & certain others of the sex.

But I will append the “Laws,” & you just drop me a line & say whether you & Mrs. Howells would care to belong—& John Hay. I have long felt that there ought to be an organized gang of our kind.

Laws.

The organization shall be sue & be sued, persecute & be persecuted, & eat, drink, & be merry, under the name & style, of The Modest Club of the United States of America.

        over.
   The object of the Club shall be, to eat & talk.
                               over again.

Qualification for membership shall be, aggravated modesty, unobtrusiveness, native humility; learning, talent, intelligence; and unassailable character.

Both sexes admitted.

Two adverse votes shall destroy the applicant.

Any member may call a meeting, when & where he or she may choose.

Two members shall constitute a quorum; & a meeting thus inaugurated shall be competent to eat & talk. —but there shall never

There shall be no fees or dues. There shall be no regular place of meeting.

There Shall be no permanent officers, except a President; & any member who has anything to eat & talk about, may constitute himself President for the time being, & call in any member or members he pleases, to help him devour & expatiate.

At all Club gatherings the membership shall wear the official symbol of the order, a single violet.

Any brother or sister of the order finding a brother or sister in imminent deadly peril, shall forsake his own concerns, no matter at what cost, & call the police.

Any member knowing anything scandalous about himself, shall immediately inform the Club, so that they may call a meeting & have the first chance to talk about it.

Any member who shall

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