I remained at home this morning for the purpose of bringing up the work that was deficient. Wrote up the arrears of my Journey which I might have made longer had I had more leisure. There is much of reflection which takes place in the mind upon a trip like this which passes away forever if not fixed at the moment. Perhaps it is as well that it should.

Walked down at noon to see my Mother fish at Mr. Greenleaf’s Wharf. The rest of the time divided between a letter to Mr. T. B. Johnson upon his affairs1 and the examination of the MSS of my grandmother. This work goes on with very great slowness and embarrasses me with it’s extent. I find the most astonishing confusion of valuable and worthless papers. Yet I fear to destroy any thing, the property in them not being mine, and my estimate of their value per-228haps not likely to prove the same with that of others. My fear is also great of putting valuable papers out of the way, in attempting to give them a new direction. But I console myself with the idea that if the drudgery must be done, the sooner the better. If longer delayed, the whole might be lost. Afternoon spent in like manner. Evening conversation with the family and Journal.