Diary of Charles Francis Adams, volume 2
1828-07-10
After passing a little while with Abby I rode into Boston. Found at the Office for me three letters, one from my father, very short merely to preserve the regular series and two from my Mother. She seems to have felt the observations of my letter of the 28th of last month much more than I had intended.1 It is difficult to deal with sensitive women. Read Kent and in the afternoon, Copied Executive Record with a short notice of Cicero. Rode to Quincy and passed the evening partly in weeding the Nursery and partly with Thomas in conversation.
CFA’s missing letter of 28 June apparently referred in a tone of dissatisfaction to the financial arrangements which JQA and P. C. Brooks were planning to make when his marriage took place. Calling CFA’s excessive expectations “an absolute farce,” LCA reminded her son that P. C. Brooks’ promise of a $20,000 dowry and JQA’s pledge of a yearly allowance amounting to the interest on a similar sum, plus the gift of a Boston house, were indeed generous (LCA to CFA, 3 July 1828, Adams Papers).