The Gilded Age

THE consulting-rooms of Dr Orion Hood, the eminent criminologist and specialist in certain moral disorders, lay along the sea-front at Scarborough, in a series of very large and well-lighted french windows, which showed the North Sea like one endless outer wall of blue-green marble. In such a place the sea had something of the monotony of a blue-green dado: for the chambers themselves were ruled throughout by a terrible tidiness not unlike the terrible tidiness of the sea. It must not be supposed that Dr Hood's apartments excluded luxury, or even poetry. These things were there, in their place; but one felt that they were never allowed out of their place. Luxury was there: there stood upon a special table eight or ten boxes of the best cigars; but they were built upon a plan so that the strongest were always nearest the wall and the mildest nearest the window. A tantalus containing three kinds of spirit, all of a liqueur excellence, stood always on this table of luxury; but the fanciful have asserted that the whisky, brandy, and rum seemed always to stand at the same level. Poetry was there: the left-hand corner of the room was lined with as complete a set of English classics as the right hand could show of English and foreign physiologists.

Samuel Langhorne Clemens, known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, and essayist, born on November 30, 1835, in Florida, Missouri. Twain is widely regarded as the greatest humorist the United States has produced, with renowned author William Faulkner calling him "the father of American literature." Twain's works, such as "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" and "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn," have earned him international acclaim, and his unique blend of humor, social criticism, and storytelling left an indelible mark on American literature. He was also known for his wit and satirical commentary on society, race, and human nature. Twain married Olivia Langdon in 1870, and together they had four children: Clara, Jean, Susy, and Langdon. He passed away on April 21, 1910, at the age of 74 in Stormfield, Redding, Connecticut. Twain's legacy continues to influence writers and humorists around the world, and his works remain central to American literary studies.