Satire

The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg

by Mark Twain

The town of Hadleyburg is proud of being incorruptible, until a stranger it once insulted leaves behind a sack of gold and a riddle. Twain’s story is a perfect trap, and every respectable citizen walks into it. It is one of his darkest pieces, and one of his funniest.

The librarian

Read it in the Library After Dark Or read it as plain text

Reading time

About 1 hr 15 min

Where to find it

The Evening Room

Edition

Project Gutenberg, eBook #1213. In the public domain in the United States.