Dictated July 16, 1908. Thirty-five years ago inⒶtextual note a letter to my wife ostensibly, but really to Mr. HowellsⒺexplanatory note,Ⓐtextual note I amused myself—and endeavored to amuse him—with forecasting the [begin page 259] Monarchy and imagining what the country would be like when the Monarchy should replace the RepublicⒺexplanatory note. That letter interests me now. Not because of anything it says—for there are no serious sentences in it—but because it refreshes my memory and enables me to recallⒶtextual note the substance of a letter which preceded it and which treated the coming Monarchy seriouslyⒺexplanatory note.

I was not expecting the Monarchy to come in my own time, nor in my children’s time, nor at any periodⒶtextual note which one might forecast with anything approaching definiteness. It might come soon, it might come late; it might come in a century, it might be delayed two centuries, even three. But it would come.

Because of a special and particular reason? Yes. Two special reasons and one condition.

1.Ⓐtextual note It is the nature of man to want a definite something to love, honor, reverently look up to, and obey: God and King, for example.

2.Ⓐtextual note Little Republics have lasted long,Ⓐtextual note protected by their poverty and insignificance, but great onesⒶtextual note have not.

3.Ⓐtextual note The Condition: vast power and wealth,Ⓐtextual note which breed commercial and political corruption, and incite public favoritesⒶtextual note to dangerous ambitions.

The idea was, Republics are impermanent;Ⓐtextual note in time they perish, and in most cases stay under the sod, but the overthrown MonarchyⒶtextual note gets back in the saddle again by and by. The idea was—in other and familiar words,—history repeats itself: whatever has been the rule in history may be depended upon to remain the rule. Not because, in the case under present consideration, men would deliberatelyⒶtextual note desire the destruction of their Republic and plan it out, but because circumstances which they create without suspecting what they are doing will by and by compel that destruction—to their grief and dismay. My notion was, that in some near or some distant day, circumstances would so shape themselves, unnoticed by the people, as to make it possible for some ambitious idol of the nation to upset the Republic and build his throne out of itsⒶtextual note ruins; and that then history would stand ready to back him.

But all this was thirty-five years ago. It seems curious, now, that I should have been dreaming dreams about a Future Monarchy, and never suspectingⒶtextual note that the Monarchy was already present and the Republic a thing of the past. Yet that was the case. The Republic in name remained, but the Republic in fact was gone.

For fifty years our country has been a constitutional monarchy, with the Republican party sitting on the throne. Mr. Cleveland’s couple of brief interruptionsⒺexplanatory note do not count; they were accidents, and temporary, they made no permanent inroad upon Republican supremacy. Ours is not only a monarchy, but a hereditary monarchy—in the one political family. It passes from heir to heir as regularly and as surely and as unpreventablyⒶtextual note as does any throne in Europe. Our Monarch is more powerful, more arbitrary, more autocraticⒶtextual note than any in Europe, its White House commands are not under restraint of law or customⒶtextual note or the Constitution, it can ride down the Congress as the Czar cannot ride down the Duma. It can concentrate and augment power at the Capital by despoiling the States of their reserved rights, andⒶtextual note by the voice of a Secretary of StateⒶtextual note it has indicated its purpose to do this. It can pack the Supreme Court with judges friendly to its ambitionsⒺexplanatory note, [begin page 260] and it has threatened—by the voice of a Secretary of State—to do this. In many and admirably conceived ways it has so formidably intrenched itself and so tightened its grip uponⒶtextual note the throne that I think it is there for good. By a system of extraordinary tariffs it has created a number of giant corporations, in the interest of a few rich men, and by most ingenious and persuasive reasoning has convinced the multitudinous and grateful unrich that the tariffs were instituted in their interest! Next, the Monarchy proclaims itself the enemy of its child the monopoly, and lets on that it wants to destroy that child. But it is wary and judicious, and never says anything about attacking the monopolies at their life-source—the tariffs. It thoughtfully puts off that assault till “after election.”Ⓔexplanatory note A thousand years after, is quite plainly what it means, but the people do not know that. Our Monarchy takes no backward step; it moves always forward, always toward its ultimate and nowⒶtextual note assured goal, the real thing.

I was not expecting to live to see it reach it, but a recent step—the newest advance-step and the startlingest—has encouraged me. It is this: formerly ourⒶtextual note Monarchy went through the form of electing its Shadow by the voice of the people; but now the Shadow has gone and appointed the succession-ShadowⒺexplanatory note!

I judge that that strips off about the last rag that was left upon our dissolvingⒶtextual note wax-figure Republic. It was the last one in the case of the Roman Republic.

Dictated Ⓐtextual note September 12. I shall vote for the continuance of the Monarchy. That is to say, I shall vote for Mr. Taft. If the Monarchy could be permanently abolishedⒶtextual note and the Republic restored to us by electing Mr. Bryan, I would vote the Democratic ticket; but it could not happen. The Monarchy is here to stay. Nothing can ever unseat it. From now on, the new policy will be continued and perpetuated: the outgoing President will appoint his successor, and the Party will go through the form of ratifying the appointment. Things will go on well enough under this arrangement, so long as a Titus succeeds a Vespasian, and we shall best not trouble about a DomitianⒺexplanatory note until we get him. All in good time he will arrive. The Lord will provide—as heretofore. My humble vote is for Titus Taft, inherited insane Policies and all, and may it elect him! I do not believe he will appoint a Domitian to succeed him; I only know that if he shall disappoint us andⒶtextual note appoint Domitian, Domitian will be elected. But I am not personally concerned in the matter; I shall not be here to grieve about it.

Evidently the spirit of prophecy is upon me again. It was upon me when, thirty-five years ago, I wrote the letter to Mr. Howells, while ostensibly writing it to my wifeⒺexplanatory note. Its date—1935Ⓐtextual note—projects me into a still distant day, and makes some of the persons mentioned in it pretty old: for instance, theⒶtextual note Earl of Hartford (myself,) 100;Ⓐtextual note his grace the Duke of Cambridge,Ⓐtextual note (Howells), 98Ⓐtextual note; the Lord Archbishop of DublinⒶtextual note (ReverendⒶtextual note Joseph H. Twichell) 96Ⓐtextual note; John Howells (the Lord High Admiral) 65;Ⓐtextual note Lady Hartford, (Mrs. Clemens—on whom be peace!) 90Ⓐtextual note; and the Rt. Hon. the Marquis of Ponkapog (Thomas Bailey Aldrich—on whom be peace!)Ⓔexplanatory note 98Ⓐtextual note.

Here followeth the said letter:Ⓐtextual note

BostonⒶtextual note, Nov. 16, 1935.

Dear Livy:

You observe I still call this beloved old place by the name it had when I was young. Limerick! It is enough to make a body sick.

The gentlemen-in-waitingⒶtextual note stare to see me sit here telegraphing this letter to you, and no doubt they are smiling in their sleeves. But let them! The slow old fashions are good enough for me, thank God, and I will none other. When I see one of these modern fools sit absorbed, holding the end of a telegraph wire in his hand, and reflect that a thousand miles away there is another fool hitchedⒶtextual note to the other end of it, it makes me frantic with rage; and then am I moreⒶtextual note implacably fixed and resolved than ever, to continue takingⒶtextual note twenty minutes to telegraph you what I might communicate in tenⒶtextual note seconds by the new way if I would so debase myself. And when I see a whole silent,Ⓐtextual note solemn drawing-room full of idiots sitting with their hands on each other’s foreheads “communing,” I tug the white hairs from my head and curse till my asthma brings me the blessed relief of suffocation. In our old dayⒶtextual note such a gathering talked pureⒶtextual note drivel and “rot,Ⓐtextual note” mostly, but better that, a thousand times, than these dreary conversational funerals that oppress our spirits in this mad generation.

It is sixty years since I was here before. I walked hither, then, with my precious old friendⒺexplanatory note. It seems incredible, now, that we did it in two days, but such is my recollection. I no longer mention that we walked back in a single day, it makes me so furious to see doubt in the face of the hearer. Men were men in those old times. Think of one of the puerile organisms in this effeminate age attempting such a feat.

My air-ship was delayed by a collision with a fellow from China loaded with the usual cargo of jabbering, copper-colored missionaries, and so I was nearly an hour on my journey. But by the goodness of God thirteen of the missionaries were crippled and several killed, so I was content to lose the time. I love to lose time, anyway, because it brings soothing reminiscences of the creeping railroad days of old, now lost to us forever.

Our game was neatly played, and successfully.Ⓐtextual note None expected us, of course. You should have seen the guardsⒶtextual note at the ducal palace stare when I said, “Announce hisⒶtextual note grace the Archbishop of Dublin and the Rt. Hon. the Earl of Hartford.” Arrived within, we were all eyes to see the Duke of Cambridge and his DuchessⒶtextual note Ⓔexplanatory note, wondering if we might remember their faces,Ⓐtextual note and they ours. In a moment, theyⒶtextual note came tottering in; he, bentⒶtextual note and withered and bald; she blooming with wholesome old age. He peered through his glasses a moment, then screeched in a reedy voice: “Come to my arms! Away with titles—I’ll know ye by no names but Twain and Twichell!”Ⓐtextual note Then fell he on our necks and jammed his trumpet in his ear, the which we filled with shoutings to this effect: “God bless you, old Howells, what is left of youⒶtextual note!”

We talked late that night—none of your silent idiot “communings” for usⒶtextual note of the olden time. We rolled a stream of ancient anecdotes over ourⒶtextual note tongues and drank till the LordⒶtextual note Archbishop grew so mellow in the mellow past that Dublin ceased to be Dublin to himⒶtextual note and resumed its sweeter forgotten name of New York. In truth he almost got back into [begin page 262] his ancient religion, too,Ⓐtextual note good Jesuit as he has always been since O’Mulligan the First established that faith in the Empire.

And we canvassed everybody. Bailey Aldrich, Marquis of Ponkapog, came in, got noblyⒶtextual note mellow,Ⓐtextual note and told usⒶtextual note all about how poor OsgoodⒺexplanatory note lost his earldom and was hanged for conspiring against the SecondⒶtextual note Emperor—but he didn’t mention how near he himselfⒶtextual note came to being hanged, too, for engaging in the same enterprise. He was as chaffy as he was sixty years ago, too, and swore the Archbishop and I never walked to Boston—but there was neverⒶtextual note a day that Ponkapog wouldn’t lie, so he doesⒶtextual note it wheneverⒶtextual note by the grace of God he getsⒶtextual note the opportunity.Ⓐtextual note

The Lord High Admiral came in, a hale gentleman close upon seventy and bronzed by the suns and storms of many climes and scarred with the wounds got in many battles, and I told him how I had seen him sit in a high chair and eat fruit and cakes and answer to the name of JohnnyⒶtextual note. His granddaughterⒶtextual note (the eldest) is but lately married to the youngest of the Grand Dukes, and so who knows but a day may come when the blood of the HowellsesⒶtextual note may reign in the land? I must not forget to say, while I think of it, that your new false teeth are done, my dear, and your wig. KeepⒶtextual note your head well bundled with a shawl till the latter comes, and so cheat your persecuting neuralgias and rheumatisms. Would you believe it?—the Duchess of Cambridge is deafer than you—deafer than her husband. They call her to breakfast with a park of artillery; and usually when it thunders she looks up expectantly and says “Come in.” But she has become subduedⒶtextual note and gentle with age and never destroys the furniture, now, except when uncommonly vexed. God knows, my dear, it would a happy thing if you and old LadyⒶtextual note HarmonyⒺexplanatory note would imitate thisⒶtextual note spirit. But indeed the older you grow the less secure becomes the furniture. When I throw chairs through the window I have a sufficient reason to back it. But you—you are but a creature of passion.

The monument to the author of “GloversonⒶtextual note and His Silent Partners”Ⓐtextual note Ⓔexplanatory note is finished. It is the stateliest and the costliest ever erected to the memory of any man. This noble classic has now been translated into all the languages of the earth and is adored by all nations and known to all creatures. Yet I have conversed as familiarly with the author of it as I do with my own great-grandchildren.

I wish you could see old Cambridge and Ponkapog. I love them as dearly as ever, but privately, my dear, they are not much improvement on idiots. It is melancholy to hear them jabber over the same pointless anecdotes three andⒶtextual note four times of an evening, forgetting that they had jabbered them over three or fourⒶtextual note times the evening before. Ponkapog still writes poetry, but the old-time fire has mostly gone out of it.Ⓐtextual note Perhaps his best effort of late years is this:

This he goes about repeating to everybody, daily and nightly, insomuch that he is become a sore affliction to all that know him.

[begin page 263] But I must desist. There are drafts here, everywhereⒶtextual note and my gout is something frightful. My left foot hath resemblance to a snuff-bladderⒶtextual note. God be with you.

Hartford Ⓐtextual note.

These to Lady Hartford, in the city and earldom of Hartford, in the upper portion of the city of Dublin. Ⓐtextual note

1. That first paragraph is bad prophecy—very bad, indeed. But it is full of interest, for it calls sharp attention to an astonishing political change—astonishing when we reflect that it has taken only the brief space of thirty-five years to bring it about. Thirty-five or forty years ago the Irishman had been with us only about thirty yearsⒺexplanatory note, yet had already become a formidable power, and was increasing his power by such leaps and bounds that a person prophetically inclined might with some sort of show of reason predict political supremacy for him after a further interval of a couple of generations, allowing him to remove the Papacy to New York and distribute Irish names about the country—Dublin, Limerick, etc.

It has not happened. No, the probabilities of thirty-five years ago have failed—and signally. In that day the Irishman was at the top of our foreign element, and the German came nextⒺexplanatory note. The other foreigners were few and unimportant. There were lots and lots of Americans in the city of New York, thenⒶtextual note—a thing unthinkable to-day! To-day we have to go around with an interpreter. To-day 85Ⓐtextual note per cent of GreaterⒶtextual note New York’s four-and-odd millionsⒶtextual note are foreign, half-foreign, and foreign by one remove. The citizen with American great-grandparents—when found—is stuffed and put in the great museum in the park, along with the Brontosaur and the other impressive fossils. The Irishman still rules the city—like hell, so to speak!—but it is by grace of native genius, not by authority of numbers.

2. My second paragraph foresees a day when the telegraph is to be too slow, and we shall correspond by thought-transference—Ⓐtextual notestraight from brain to brain. That forecast has still twenty-sevenⒶtextual note years in which to make good. I repeat that forecast, and stand by it. Before 1935 it will cease to be a dream and become a fact. Wireless telegraphy has arrived; from sending thought on the wings of the air out of a batteryⒶtextual note made of metal to sending it out of a batteryⒶtextual note made of brain-cells is but a trifling step, and the MarconiⒺexplanatory note is already born who will show us how to do it. The temper exhibited in paragraph No. 2 is another bad prophecy. I shall let fly no such outbursts when I am a hundred years old. I shall be a very quiet prophet thenⒶtextual note, and an example to the whole cemetery.

3. Paragraph No. 3 is good enough prophecy. If I live to be a hundred I know very well I shall verify it;Ⓐtextual note for by that time I shall be sure to think I did walk from HartfordⒶtextual note to BostonⒶtextual note with Twichell, and that we did walk back in a single day—a hundred miles and moreⒺexplanatory note! Even now, when I tell about that walk I find it difficult to keep its marvels within bounds. That was a memorable excursion. ItⒶtextual note was a wretched idea. Twichell proposed it, and I thoughtlessly said yes to it, which shows that there was more than one ass in Hartford in those days. We walked twenty miles the first day, and I went to bed that night a physical wreck, though Twichell was as fresh as a new-blown flower, for he had been chaplain of [begin page 264] a marching regiment all through the warⒺexplanatory note and by practice had acquired the endurance of a steel machine. The next morning we resumed the pedestrian exploit—on the train, not on foot. The Associated PressⒶtextual note had informed the country about our start. Aldrich and Howells and Osgood and the others were full of enthusiastic interest in the matter and were on the lookout. When next day’s telegrams informed the world that we should reach Boston by nightfall, those boys were proud of us and astonished, for they had not supposed we could walk the whole distance in two days, but would require three. So they got up a banquet for us at Young’s HotelⒶtextual note Ⓔexplanatory note, and when we entered the place on foot (from the station) they were insane with admiration of us and pride in us. I suppose we would have told them about the train if we had thought of it.

4. Paragraph No. 4 is good prophecy. Day before yesterday the air-ship of the brothers Wright broke the world’s recordⒺexplanatory note. It did another thing, too: it demonstrated—for the first time in history—that aⒶtextual note competent air-ship can be devised. For several years, now, the newspapers of the whole civilized world have daily been filled with the encouraging doings of the air-ship inventors, and now at last we perceive that the long-hoped-forⒶtextual note day has come, and that we shall presently be flying about the skies with ease and confidence and comfort. No. 4 has another prophecy: that by 1935 we shall have Chinamen coming to us as missionaries. But I think that that was not really intended as a prediction, I think it merely embodied a hope; a hope that some day those excellent people wouldⒶtextual note come here and teach us how to be at peace and bloodless for thousands of years without the brutal help of armies and navies. But that gentle dream is dead: we have taught them to adopt our sham civilization and add armies and navies to such other rotten assets as they may possess.

Paragraph No. 8 refers to poor Ralph Keeler—on whom be peace! He was a dear good young fellow, and we all loved him. He sailed for Cuba as correspondent for the New York Tribune Ⓐtextual note, and never reached there. There was some evidence that he talked too freely in the hearing of some royalist Spaniards and was assassinated and his body flung into the sea. His novel, “Gloverson and His Silent Partners,”Ⓐtextual note isⒶtextual note probably long ago forgotten, for Keeler’s removal left only one person to remember it. I judge so, for he told me himself that only one copy was soldⒺexplanatory note.