Let us have peace.

For the Non-Twainiacs reading my blog, you may be wondering why I chose to include Grant’s tomb on my itinerary in New York. The short answer is Ulysses S. Grant was Clemens’s idol. After all my reading, Grant is the only person who left Clemens speechless and totally star-struck. During one of their first meetings, after a few awkward moments of silence Clemens finally said, “Mr. President, I am embarrassed… are you?” The most quoted man in history had nothing to say!

Clemens is also responsible for ensuring that Grant’s family was not left penniless after his death by publishing Grant’s memoirs. When Grant died there was a question of whether he should be buried in Washington instead of New York and this was Clemens response:

“We should select a grave which will not merely be in the right place now but will still be in the right place 500 years from now. How does Washington promise as to that? You only have to hit it in one place to kill it…But as long as American civilization lasts New York will last” 

The memorial was much bigger than what I was expecting! Being from Washington, it looks like everything in and around the mall but in New York it looked much more picturesque. Visiting the memorial was a nice peaceful way to start the day, but now I am off again for my Mark Twain walking tour in lower Manhattan!

*This information can be found on pages 286 and 504 of Mark Twain: A Life by Ron Powers.