Arose very late this morning, the weather more cold than at any preceding time this Winter, and I feeling unwell from a severe cold caught upon my preceding one which had not altogether left me. Went to Meeting at Mr. Frothingham’s this morning and heard him deliver a much better Sermon than usual. I was quite pleased with it though I felt severely the cold during the Service. I was glad to get home, from which I resolved that I would not again stir, during the day.

Miss Julia Gorham and Mr. Edmund Quincy dropped in, the former by chance, the latter by invitation and they dined with us very pleasantly. Quincy remained all the afternoon, conversing about things in general. He is tolerably agreeable, and has a kind of superiority about him to the generality of our young men which I do not dislike. He has tastes which are in themselves rare and which do ennoble a man, let people say what they will. He left us at dark when I felt much 142worse with the oppression from my cold, than heretofore. Being somewhat upon my breast it alarmed me a little.

After tea, I read to my Wife a little of Clarissa Harlowe but we were soon interrupted by the entrance of my friend Edward Blake who came in and talked with us agreeably for a couple of hours. It would give me a good deal of pleasure if I could select a number of young men to frequent my house such as these and a few like them. I reject many of the coarse and disagreeable persons I meet in Society and even the rough in manners, for with these I cannot coalesce. But my notions are perhaps a little too fastidious upon these subjects—And I shall only succeed in quite excluding myself out of young men’s society. Be it so. I am independent. After he had gone and Abby had retired, I sat down and wrote a long Letter to my Father in reply to his two last, which took up until near twelve o’clock.1 The weather was cold and I was glad to retire.

The morning opened cold and dark, the weather moderating produced snow, and the day was dull throughout. I went to the Office but was not occupied so pleasantly or properly as I might have been. Mr. Gilbert called to let me know that he declined taking the House owing to the high rent, a thing I very much regret though I do not see how I can diminish it more in conscience. I then went to inquire how Mrs. Brooks was. Mr. B. seemed much discouraged and told me to go and ask Mrs. Frothingham to go out to Medford with him which I did and then returned to give her consent. I do not know what to think of the case, but I cannot help feeling as if it was not yet so bad.

Mr. Curtis called to see me to let me know part of the scandalous transaction of Petty Vaughan and the course thought advisable to be taken in the case by Mr. Lowell.1 Josiah Quincy also dropped in, for a minute only and did not seem able to say what he wanted. Returned home and passed the afternoon reading Mitchell’s Translation of the Knights with Brumoy’s remarks upon the same Play. There is great spirit in the Translation though the Comments upon republican usages are altogether unjust. He gives a dash, I notice at the Americans in one of his Notes, though manifestly ignorant to a great degree of our Institutions.2 This rather affects the correctness of his inferences in the others. Yet he is amusing. As to the merit of Aristophanes I have not yet made up my mind, but La Harpe’s opinion is deserving of consideration. My Cold was very severely upon my Chest all day, but I 143felt on the whole better. I read aloud to my Wife in Clarissa in the Evening. Edward Brooks and his Wife called to tell us his report from Dr. Stevenson, which was rather encouraging.3 I then read part of the Clouds of Aristophanes.