Susie dear, I don’t know how to sufficiently thank you & Ben for writing me such good letters & so faithfully. And I want to thank you both for making Jean say things to be sent to me, too. I called at Gen. Grant’s the other morning, & when I saw all his swords, & medals, & collections of beautiful & rare things from Japan & China, I was so sorry I hadn’t made Mamma go with me. And Mrs. Grant was sorry, too, & made me promise that I would bring Mamma there to luncheon, some time. Gen. Lew Wallace was there—he has an article in this month’s Century about the great Victory of Fort Donelson—& when I told him Mamma was close at the reading the other night & was sorry I didn’t make her acquainted with the author of Ben Hur, he was very sorry I was so heedless himself. Mrs. Grant got up & stood between Gen Wallace & me, & said, “There, there’s many a woman in this land that would like to be in my place & be able to tell her children that she had stood once elbow to elbow belttween two such great authors as Mark Twain & General Wallace.” We all laughed & I said to Gen. Grant; “Don’t look so cowed, General; you have written a book, yourself too, & when it is published you can hold up your head & let on to be a person of consequence yourself.”

Kiss ’em all for me, sweetheart—& I send love & kisses to you, too.