DOROTHY QUICK, POET AND AUTHOR
Mystery Writer Dies - Was Friend of Mark Twain
Mrs. Dorothy Quick Mayer of 880 Park Avenue and East Hampton, L.I., a writer who treasured a childhood friendship with Mark Twain, died yesterday at her home here after a long illness.
Miss Quick was a girl of 11 in 1907 when she met the famous author on an Atlantic crossing. She was returning to Plainfield, N.J., from Europe with her parents, the late Mr. and Mrs. Henry Quick.
Recognizing Twain (Samuel L. Clemens) by his wavy hair and white suit, she walked around and around the deck, passing very slowly by his chair each time, until he finally came over and introduced himself.
"It was the beginning of a friendship that was to last until the very day of his death," [1910] she recalled in 1954.
After the voyage she received a telegram from Twain asking whether she would prefer as a birthday present "one elephant or 10,000 monkeys." She replied that she would prefer his books - which he sent her, along with a tiny white elephant.
Her memories of Mark Twain were published last year by the University of Oklahoma Press under the title "Enchantment."
Miss Quick was married in 1925 to John Adams Mayer, who died in 1940. She continued to write under her maiden name. Her collected poems were published by the University Press, Washington. She also wrote mystery stories and contributed a weekly column for many years to newspapers in East Hampton and Riverhead, L.I.
Since 1960 Miss Quick had been honorary president of the Mark Twain Association of New York. Her other literary memberships included the P.E.N. Club, Pen and Brush, the National League of American Penwomen, the Brooklyn Poetry Circle, Women Poets of New York, and the Society of Composers, Artists and Authors.
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