Mark Twain and the Colonel: Samuel L. Clemens, Theodore Roosevelt, and the Arrival of a New Century

by Philip McFarland

For most of a decade Mark Twain lived in Europe, returning at last to America and a joyous welcome on an October night in 1900. Ten years later, in the spring of 1910, he returned once more, only days before his death, carried down the gangway as reporters on the New York piers waited, yet again, to welcome him home a final time. In those two decades last of the nineteenth and first of the twentieth our modern nation was formed. Men whose names have become legendary Rockefeller, Carnegie, Edison, Wright, Ford exemplified the great changes taking place in America at the time. But only one name rivaled Mark Twain s in the love of his countrymen. Theodore Roosevelt dominated the politics of the era just as the author of Huckleberry Finn dominated its culture. The celebrities were well acquainted, and in public neither spoke ill of the other. But Roosevelt once commented in private that he would like to skin Mark Twain alive, and the humorist recorded his own opinion (although not for public consumption until later) that Roosevelt was far and away the worst President we have ever had. Philip McFarland s Mark Twain and the Colonel describes the prickly relationship between these beloved figures by focusing on two tumultuous decades of abiding relevance, decades to which no Americans were more responsive than Colonel Roosevelt of San Juan Hill and the humorist Mark Twain.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Biography

520 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Philip McFarland was born in Birmingham, Alabama, where he attended public schools before entering Phillips Exeter Academy. After graduating from Exeter, he majored in history at Oberlin College, served for 3 1/2 years in the U.S. Navy, then took a degree in English at Cambridge University. He now lives in Lexington, Massachusetts and is the father of two grown sons.

Reviews

[Tony · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mark Twain and Theodore Roosevelt remain two fascinating characters. Quotable and accomplished, the most popular men of their time. But why a dual biography? I've finished it and I'm not entirely sure. They didn't travel in the same circles and barely met each other. They had opinions of each other, and not very flattering ones; but then, these two men had opinions about everyone and everything. Twain thought TR "far and away the worst president we have ever had." Even if you repeat that line ad nauseum, as our author does here, that's hardly enough to carry a 426-page book. And McFarland repeats a lot. By my count, he killed off Twain's wife Livy three times and shared their daughter Suzy's death at least that many tellings.

It is clear McFarland prefers Twain over Roosevelt. But I thought he cherry-picked his facts to reach that result. The 'water cure' (now called waterboarding), used as torture in the Philipines, was morally abhorrent enough without McFarland saying "Sometimes the prisoner drowned." Having recently read the brilliant and meticulously researched Honor in the Dust by Gregg Jones, I found this startling. I looked for sources in the endnotes and, of course, found none. And yes, TR believed in racial stereotyping, prevalent in his day, with some horrible results. But it was never that simple for TR. Nothing ever was. McFarland ignores TR's enlightened moments, I felt.

I learned something very creepy (and timely so) about Twain. The father of three daughters, Twain late in life began to befriend prepubescent girls. He wrote to them, very personal, affectionate letters. Arranged for them to come stay with him without their parents. Went on trips with them. He called them, collectively, his 'Angelfish'. The whole thing made his daughter Clara uneasy. Twain wrote, "As for me, I collect pets: young girls -- girls from ten to sixteen years old; girls who are pretty and sweet and naive and innocent -- dear young creatures to whom life is a perfect joy and to whom it has brought no wounds, no bitterness, and few tears." He called this collection his 'Aquarium'. The members were forbidden to divulge the secrets of the group. There is no evidence that any abuse occurred. Indeed, he seems to have been a purely avuncular presence. But, here in 2012, it seems very Jerry Sandusky-ish.

Two other observations in particular for Goodreaders.

First, for the pedants out there, there is a sentence that begins: For, for... Think about that.

Second, it's a pretty cool cover, but it doesn't show up on the Goodreads page. Can I get a little help from a Goodreads Librarian?

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have long been a big fan of books about Theodore Roosevelt. Its not a question of hero worship but more of my fascination with the complexity of TR's life force and his varied interest. And of course its difficult not to be interested in Samuel Clemens - one of America's premier writers. But for me the two halves didn't hang together very well. The author tried to use these two larger than life personalities to illustrate America at the turn of the century. The book contains lots of interesting information but it just didn't hang together very well. And it felt like two half books rather than one whole one. One of the interesting parts shows how Clemens was, despite his writing and anti-imperialist stance, was quite close with leading capitalists of his day. For example he condemned TR for inviting Booker T Washington to lunch saying that a president needs to consider the feelings of others in who he invites into his home.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Usually I am not fond of biographies, but Philip Mc Farland captivated my attention with his clever juxtaposition of Twain and Roosevelt. His manner of contrasting their very different lives, their ups, their downs, their styles, their influences within the same time and space fascinated me. Not being too knowledgeable in American history, scattered elements of that period were dancing in my mind. The book brought them to life and organized them through main themes. It was a course on U.S. History "fun, up close and personal". Mark Twain and The Colonel is elegantly written, a pleasure to read and easy to absorb. I hope I can retain what I've learned as I traveled through the book. .. and will probably reread it soon.

In the meantime I have Huckleberry Finn packed in my suitcase, ready to go.

[Mark Fallon · Rating 1 out of 5]

A great concept that needed a better writer and an even better editor. McFarland should’ve titled the book, “A Fawning Biography of Mark Twain; With a Few Chapters Criticizing Theodore Roosevelt “. Oh, plus an unnecessary chapter nominating Andrew Carnegie for sainthood, some anachronistic comments on teaching "Huck Finn" in modern America, and somehow drawing a direct line from Roosevelt to the War on Terror.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've read many books about Mark Twain, and a couple about TR, so not much new here, but still an enjoyable read. Part of that category of books that juxtaposes two historical figures, and this one does it well enough. McFarland has a readable style and seems to have done his research well.

[William DuFour · Rating 4 out of 5]

This a decent enough book on the two men. Polar opposites in some ways and similar in others. Even though I think TR got a little short shifted in the authors appraisal of him.

[Gef · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a genre hound, I don't tend to read nonfiction all that often. When I do, it needs to be on a topic I find of some particular interest. In the case of this book, it came down to the name Mark Twain. And it was seeing that name on this book's cover that piqued my interest enough to review my first nonfiction book in a good long while.

The book highlights the lives and lessons of both Samuel Clemons (aka Mark Twain) and Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt. It's not quite a biography of either man, rather using each man and those closest to them to view the shift from the nineteenth century to the next. While McFarland highlights these two legendary men as they bear witness to the twentieth century, I couldn't help but wonder if a book of this sort could be accomplished for modern times. Unfortunately, the coming of the twenty-first century would have likely been viewed through the lens of President Bill Clinton and some beloved wordsmith of our age--though a suitable counterpart to Mark Twain does not spring to mind.

Another interesting note is that Clemons and Roosevelt rarely had any direct interactions, though each man was imminently aware of the talents--and temerity--of the other. But, in some sense, they wound up being good counter-balances in this book, as aspects of America's maturity was wrought out. What really stood out for me, however, was the accessibility of the book for a dullard like me. While I appreciate history, I find it hard to digest at times thanks to the scarring effects of a high school education, as it relates to history lessons. While Mark Twain and the Colonel can feel a bit textbookish at times, with bone dry passages and some repetition of facts and events, a humanizing effect on both men is well achieved. Considering how much both of these historical figures have been mythologized (deified and vilified in equal strokes, I'm sure), adding the frailties and shortcomings of each man--not to mention the candid ruminations on each other--gives this book the kind of verisimilitude it needs.

I did find myself gravitating more towards the Twain passages more than the Roosevelt, though I came to appreciate just how fascinating a character he really is in the annals of American history. Canadian history, even in politics, seems to lack the kind of bombastic and grandiose figures like these two men. Oh, we've got them, but I wonder if they could provide the kind of fodder that Twain and Roosevelt do.

I'm not sure if this is the kind of book I'd recommend for someone looking for a straight-up biography of either man, but there's an interesting intersection of philosophies from both men relating to America's emergence during such tumultuous times, with the specter of a new century ready to pass them by. For history buffs though, I think there is likely something new, at least in the approach if not in the material. If the book has accomplished anything, it's prompted this twentieth century boy to go look for a copy of "Huck" and "Finn."

[Joe Stack · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a well-written, engaging account of the U.S. at the end of the 19th Century and the beginning of the 20th Century as seen through the lives of Mark Twain and Theodore Roosevelt. While plenty of books have been written on each of these two men, this is one of the few - perhaps the only one - that uses both figures to explore aspects of culture, economics, and politics in post-Civil War & pre-WWI America. Samuel Clemens is the cultural icon whose business ventures bankrupt him; TR is the well-to-do political icon who transforms American politics and business practices. Twain is the anti-imperialist; TR is the ardent opposite. But the book doesn't focus strictly on these two men. The lives of other personalities, such as Andrew Carnegie and H.H. Rogers of Standard Oil, are briefly covered. The pages covering the gap between the wealthy and the American laboring class mirrors the issues of today's widening gap. The author is fair in his analysis of the pros and cons of American issues of the period covered by the lives of these two men, and the author doesn't whitewash the warts of these two individuals, particularly the impact of race.

The author's format is unusual. This history book is not strictly linear. In many chapters the author goes back to previous points, or jumps back further in time, catches up, and goes further. The author also uniquely makes the past as if it is the present. This format can seem disconcerting, but it works - at least for this reader who appreciated some of the revisiting of incidents. The reader can feel as if you are there as events unfold.

It might be interesting to compare this book with THE STATESMAN AND THE STORYTELLER by Mark Zwonintzer which has recently been published. Zwonintzer weaves the personal and public lives of Mark Twain and John Hay much as McFarland has done with Twain and TR. Whether or not one pursues a comparison, the reader can appreciate McFarland's vibrant study of the lives & times of Samuel Clement and Colonel Theodore Roosevelt.

[Mercedes Rochelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

In that time of great change, both our protagonists impressed America and the world with their unstoppable personalities. Samuel Clemens predated Roosevelt by a generation, and this may well have contributed to his old-fashioned approach to the president's style. Apparently these two figures liked each other personally to an extent (although they didn't seem to meet very often), but Twain's opinion of Roosevelt's foreign policy was so acerbic that you can imagine there would not possibly be a meeting of the minds. Throughout the book McFarland jumps back and forth between the two men and their worlds, and sometimes it's difficult picking up the new thread; the chapters were not necessarily in a contiguous timeline. Although I enjoyed the book, there were moments I wondered why he put those two disparate people together in the same volume; perhaps two separate books might have given each character a chance to shine. Trying to link them together did not feel natural to me, as their separate lives were much more interesting than their interactions. Nonetheless, I found the book a good read and have no difficulty recommending it.

[Beth Cato · Rating 3 out of 5]

McFarland juxtaposes the lives of two important men at the turn of the 20th century in this fascinating read. I read in search of more knowledge on Theodore Roosevelt in particular, for research purposes, but the sections on Mark Twain were equally riveting. McFarland did a good job, I think, of showing how complicated they were: Roosevelt with all his good to conserve land and establish peace, even as he believed firmly in the science of the time that elevated Anglo-Saxons as the superior species; and Mark Twain, a showman who grew increasingly taciturn as he aged and liked to play grandfather in a way that now seems suspicious. The downsides to the book came down to organization; the material was sometimes frustratingly redundant and it constantly hop-skipped.

This was both a good and useful book, however, and one I will be keeping for future reference.

[Andrei · Rating 5 out of 5]

Between work, chores and other activities it took me nearly three months to finish this book. The somewhat convoluted phrasing was cumbersome at times but said convolution was only meant to properly convey the story of these two outstanding men. And this book make a great job of painting an unbiased portrait with both the good and not so good aspects of Mark Twain and The Colonel. We see larger than life characters but we're also made to understand that they were, after all, humans. Humans with a lot to teach the world that in my view will continue to leave their mark on many admirers.
All in all, an excellent and inspiring story of humanity, idealism that also manages to tie in the apparently loose ends of history, politics and sociology. I warmly recommend this.

[David Carlson]

I am learning a lot about Clemons/Twain. The Author moved back and forth In time following themes. I find that somewhat repetitive. He does a bit of moralizing in the course of writing, with a sense of the moral superiority of the present.
One very interesting chapter was on Andrew Carnegie.
I'd like a more chronological approach and more on Twain's view of TR which was published 30 years after his death.

[Krystal · Rating 3 out of 5]

The content of this book is wonderful but I think the author tries to cover too much. Between a biography for both its headlines, McFarland also covers the history of the era in which the two men lived. A lot to cover and the organization of the book suffers for it.

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ever read a book that you did not want to end? This is such a book, I dragged to finish it because I loved it so much. Bear in mind, many books we read and our opinions have a lot to do with out mind set, in what ever is going on with life as we know it. This is a stellar book.

[Linda Ethier]

Reviewed in July 14/15 WSJ.

[Remy]

Fantastic read! Two great men at the same time in our country's history...I highly recommend this if you are a fan of American history and literature.

[Tim Ferreira · Rating 4 out of 5]

The timelines don't match up neatly enough for the chronology of the book to be tidy. Otherwise, great (and fair) book with plenty of interesting stories.