ns did very little literary work that
summer, but he planned a trip to Europe, and he invented what is still
known and sold as the "Mark Twain Scrap-Book."

He wrote to Orion of his proposed trip to England, and dilated upon his
scrap-book with considerable enthusiasm. The idea had grown out of
the inconvenience of finding a paste-jar, and the general mussiness of
scrap-book keeping. His new plan was a self-pasting scrap-book with
the gum laid on in narrow strips, requiring only to be dampened with a
sponge or other moist substance to be ready for the clipping. He states
that he intends to put the invention into the hands of Slote, Woodman
& Co., of whom Dan Slote, his old Quaker City room-mate, was the senior
partner, and have it manufactured for the trade.

About this time began Mark Twain's long and active interest in
copyright. Previously he had not much considered the subject; he
had taken it for granted there was no step that he could take, while
international piracy was a recognized institution. On both sides of
the water books were appropriated, often without profit, sometimes even
without credit, to the author. To tell the truth, Clemens had at first
regarded it rather in the nature of a compliment that his books should
be thought worth pirating in England, but as time passed he realized
that he was paying heavily for this recognition. Furthermore, he decided
that he was forfeiting a right; rather that he was being deprived of it:
something which it was in his nature to resent.

When 'Roughing It' had been ready for issue he agreed with Bliss that
they should try the experiment of copyrighting it in England, and
see how far the law would protect them against the voracious little
publisher, who thus far had not only snapped up everything bearing Mark
Twain's signature, but had included in a volume of Mark Twain sketches
certain examples of very weak humor with which Mark Twain had been
previously unfamiliar.

Whatever the English pirate's opinion of the copyright protection of
'Roughing It' may have been, he did not attempt to violate it. This
was gratifying. Clemens came to regard England as a friendly power. He
decided to visit it and spy out the land. He would make the acquaintance
of its people and institutions and write a book, which would do these
things justice.

He gave out no word of his real purpose. He merely said that he was
going over to see his English publishers, and perhaps to arrange for a