It seems I'm not the only one interested in separating fact from fiction surrounding Twain's visit to Hawaii. Just like Twain beat me to Hawaii, Walter Francis Frear beat me to writing about Twain's visit to Hawaii--by almost 70 years.
I first discovered Frear's book Mark Twain and Hawaii at the Hawaiian Historical Society two or three years ago. Now, I hold in one hand my very own copy; the other hand is empty after parting with $105.50 to retrieve the rare and fine book. It's signed by the author and numbered 37 out of a mere 1,000 printed in 1947, and it's taken a journey similar to Twain's. From Hawaii, it's traveled east, after a stop in California.
Tucked inside the book's front cover is a personal note dated Nov. 14, 1947 from the author to one Miss Marion O. Mitchell--address Alameda, California. It was a gift. That gift-giving tradition did not last; I parted with my $100 on June 15th of this year. By then the book had traveled to Kennett Square, Pennsylvania and the shelves of Thomas Macaluso Rare & Fine Books. Of course, I was curious as to how the book ended up in Pennsylvania, but, alas, Thomas does not retain any information about exactly where their books come from.
There is, however, an interesting curiosity to pursue. The author's note was written on personalized letterhead--with a Punahou Street address in Honolulu. Hmm, I feel a visit coming on.
The book is a dream. Big. Heavy. Thick pages. Musty, dusty smell. All I have to do is close my eyes, and I'm in the library of my youth, an old Victorian home with wide staircases, window seats, and hidden alcoves. Thomas Macaluso's website listed the book as such: Brown cloth boards have a black label with gilt lettering on the spine. Extremities are a little rubbed, rear cover has minimal soiling. Spine is a little sunned and cocked, bumped and rubbed at head and foot. #37 of 1000 copies, signed. Signed letter and signed presentation card laid in. Also signed on the limitation p. Much of Twain's work on Hawaii is published for the first time in this book. [Oops. That's not true; a collection of his letters on Hawaii was published about 10 years previous to this.] A very clean, tight copy.
And, so, instead of dog-earing, underlining and writing in this book, I put little Post-It notes on pages and transcribe my comments in a separate journal. Maybe it's the librarian from that old Victorian speaking to me. Instead, there are quite a few yellow tags sticking out of the book. I'd like to share just one sentence I would have underlined, highlighted and starred had this been a newer, more available, less expensive book--one not so rare and not so fine. It reads: "Mark Twain was not given much to factual details; what he cared for most was the picture, the story, the humor, the philosophy."
Even when it comes to his days as a journalist.
