On this day I am seventeen years old. Early in life and full of hopes, entering into the world at an earlier age than usual, I can look back and say to myself, this has been spent, how? I have had some variety in my course, part of it laziness, part of it study, part of it folly and part of it dissipation. I have thought much for a young man and had some experience and am become somewhat vain. I now am gradually advancing to the time when either my visions will either be realized or else I shall be a—I will not, I cannot predict what. I am thinking sufficiently often on this subject.

I spent the morning in reading the remainder of the first volume of Redgauntlet. I have been considerably interested in the last part of this book although I do not think he has kept the same standing in this. His scenes appear to be made up in the same style but joined together without care. Indeed this author has made one dangerous innovation in letters and that is he writes with so much rapidity that he astonishes his inferiors who endeavour to imitate him. Hence we have such a crowd of novels in our day. Every one writes fast, thinking that he cannot get hold of the public without it. Scotch novels are all the rage and every body who can write brogue writes well. It is a thing to tickle the world because it is so natural. I was thus employed all the Morning and in the afternoon continued select parts of the Italian. This is one of the fashionable stories of the last age when horror presided and the school of mysteries was so much supported. The inquisition in this novel is made quite a good sort of a place, with more justice than I had any idea was attributed to it before.

I could not stay any longer here and therefore ordered my horse and returned to Cambridge in order to be there for drill this Evening. 294I got there to Prayers which however I did not attend. The Cambridge light Infantry returned this Evening. After Prayers we had a drill which I performed with unusual correctness because I was less interested in it than I ever was before. My being absent for some time has affected me strangely and made me enormously indifferent. After drill we invited the Guides and Markers to our usual Evening’s entertainment as a treat or, in other words, a fish for them. They were all there but one and we spent a pretty agreable evening making speculations about the weather, our dresses for tomorrow &c. &c. I returned home, spent an hour at Sheafe’s and then went to bed. X:30.

Missed Prayers and recitation this Morning, it being the last Exercise in the term. We found the day to be a pretty pleasant one, except that it was likely to be close and hot. I lounged and loitered for an hour or two about the Colleges waiting for the assignment of the parts for the next Exhibition to be declared. I had some interest in the matter myself as I have been talked of for some time as a candidate for one. My rank, I presumed, should have given me one but they did not think so or, from some other motive, I was left out. I was not sorry as I have a contemptible opinion of the exercise and have expressed myself desirous, if the Government would allow it, to be left out altogether. Should this not be the motive, or a desire that I might have an opportunity to rise still farther, I must confess, I should feel a little hurt, for it is depressing me in the opinion of the students and doing me no personal advantage as a recompense. Chapman received the Oration, according to expectation. I went in at different times, to catch a few words of the Exercises. It was a very wretched Exhibition. The parts in my own Class appeared as puerile as those I have seen at School,1 and the Oration fell short most astonishingly. The fact is, I doubt most exceedingly the powerful talents of Wilder, and always have as he, in my opinion, has never been more than a hard student.

This over, I dressed and prepared myself for Parade. We went over to the Captain’s room where we received company, from thence we went to Blake’s, and there formed the Parade. The company looked very well and the Officers were well set off. We went through the ceremony of receiving the standard and, after a recess of fifteen minutes in which we saw company again, we went to Professor Everett’s according to invitation. We were very politely received, I obtained an introduction to Mrs. Alexander Everett2 and had some pleasant 295conversation with her. She is quite an agreable woman. We went away in about an hour, after having spent it very agreably, our troops not in the best state. We marched them some time and then dismissed them before Prayers which I attended in Uniform. We spent the Evening at the Captain’s room in amusement but I was glad to get away to go to bed being much fatigued. X.