Mark Twain was briefly Senator Nye’s secretary. In Sketches Old and New he gives an account of their parting, which occurred after Twain supposedly wrote ridiculous letters to constituents, following the Senator’s orders not to address controversial issues.
http://is.gd/ZS4sLH
http://www.nevadaobserver.com/Reading%20Room%20Documents/Senator%20Nye%20and%20Mark%20Twain%20(1867).htm