Clark (1841-1915) was an American journalist, novelist and humorist, most of whose work appeared under the pen name Max Adeler. He was also known by the pseudonym John Quill. He served in the Union Army during the Civil War, after which he became a reporter on the Philadelphia Inquirer. Within two months he was promoted to editorial writer, later taking on the same position with the North American. His interest in economics led him to become editor and proprietor of the Textile Record, a founder and secretary of the Manufacturers' Club and editor of its organ, the Manufacturer. His best known work was the humorous Out of the Hurly Burly (1874), which was popular on both sides of the Atlantic. Clark is also known for his claim that Mark Twain plagiarised his 1880 novella Fortunate Island with A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1889). Twain wrote a rebuttal to the charge, but compared Yankee to Clark's story An Old Fogey which appears in the same volume as Fortunate Island. The feud between the two writers dated back to the early 1870s with each accusing the other of plagiarism. Clark disliked his own reputation as a humorist and gave up writing in the genre for a while before returning to it in the early years of the 20th century, contributing light pieces to magazines. This collection of five stories is reprinted from an edition of 1882 with six full-page illustrations. In addition to the title story, the collection includes The City of Burlesque, An Old Fogy, Major Dunwoody's Leg, and "Jinnie".