Mark Twain Pays Income Tax, Writes Satire

     An income tax was in force from 1862 to 1872 in the United States. In 1870 Mark Twain was visited by an IRS representative at his home in Buffalo. He describes the experience in Sketches New and Old, A Mysterious Visit.
     He was assessed an income tax of $10,650, based largely on royalties from Innocents Abroad, lecture circuit income, and income from several articles written for newspapers and magazines.
     According to the author, there was a $1,000 personal deduction and then a 5% tax on all income defined as profits. There were several deductions for business expenses. He sought the advice of his father-in-law to create sufficient expenses to lower his final tax. He paid the IRS $1,250.40.