6 July 1875 • Hartford, Conn. (Henkels 1932, lot 281, UCCL 01248)
Gentlemen: Who can I buy your safety matches of in Hartford? I cannot find any agency.1explanatory note
The first safety matches, patented in Sweden in 1855, were developed to correct two problems associated with phosphorus friction matches, in common use since 1836: spontaneous combustion, and necrosis of the jawbone among factory workers exposed to phosphorus fumes. By 1875, several kinds of safety matches were available, all of which required a special striking surface for ignition and were made without phosphorus, or with a nontoxic form of it. Two of the most well-known brands were the American Safety Parlor Match, made in Erie, Pennsylvania, and the Hendrickson and Leigh Safety Match, made in Trenton, New Jersey. Because these products often created a dangerous explosion of sparks, and were easily damaged by moisture, toxic phosphorus matches remained in wide use until 1911 (Manchester, 35–36, 46–47, 57–58, 71–75).
References
- Henkels. Autographs, Letters, Documents, Manuscripts. Sale no. 1464 (17 May). Philadelphia: Stan V. Henkels. 1932
- Machlis, Paul, ed. Union Catalog of Clemens Letters. Edited by Paul Machlis. Berkeley, Los Angeles, London: University of California Press. [In some cases, UCCL catalog numbers cited in this volume supersede those assigned in 1986 and reflect corrections or additions to the catalog since publication. An updated version of the catalog can be consulted via the Letters Search page at MTPO.] 1986
- SLC (Samuel Langhorne Clemens). Mark Twain’s Letters, Volume 6: 1874–1875. Edited by Michael B. Frank and Harriet Elinor Smith. The Mark Twain Papers. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Also online at MTPO[bib32371]. 2002
- Rains. Choice Books from the Splendid Library of a Well-Known New York Collector. New York: Rains Galleries. Sale no. 545 (13 and 14 April). 1937
- Manchester, Herbert. The Diamond Match Company: A Century of Service, of Progress, and of Growth, 1835–1935. New York: The Diamond Match Company. 1935
Henkels 1932, lot 281, which describes the letter as an “A. L. S. 4 lines, 12mo.”
L6 , 507; Rains, lot 153, paraphrase.