Diary of John Quincy Adams, volume 2

9th.

11th.

10th. JQA

1788-08-10

10th. Adams, John Quincy
10th.

Mr. Kimball supplied the place of Mr. Andrews this day. I observed none of Captn. Coombs's family were at meeting, and heard in the afternoon that his Daughter Polly, had left this world; and I trust for a better, this morning; after an illness of four or five months. In the afternoon I went to Mr. Spring's, meeting and heard a Mr. Story1 preach there hammering away in 441the true stile upon predestination and free-will. None but an atheist he said could doubt of the former; and no man that had common sense of the latter. He endeavoured to soften his system as much as possible; hoping thereby, I suppose, that he might be employ'd in the other parish.

I walk'd with Stacey and Romain, in the evening. We met Amory who was returning from Cape Ann with Miss Fletcher. After he had carried her home, he went at about 9 in the evening with Stacey to Ipswich.

1.

Probably Isaac Story, minister of the Second Congregational Church of Marblehead (James McLachlan, Princetonians, 1748–1768: A Biographical Dictionary, Princeton, 1976, p. 655–657).