Portrait of samuel clemens as a young man holding a printer's composing stick with letters sam. Daguerreotype; sixth plate. Plate mark: scovill. Inscribed in case well: g. H. [?] jones [or jonco?] / hannibal mo / 1850 / nov. 29th. On case pad: samuel l. Clem-/ens - [illegible] / taken dec. 1850 / age 15. It's worth noting that the photo is a mirror reproduction (as were all daguerrotypes). This is highlighted by the letters on the composing stick being readable - they would in reality be reversed to print correctly. I have no doubt that young mr clemens was aware of this.
