My birth day, and I am twenty nine. The past year has little changed my position in life, although it has been productive of the same prosperity with it’s predecessors. I feel humbly grateful to the Deity for preserving us all so carefully and pray that he may continue 73to dispense his blessings and at the same time make us worthy to deserve them.

I went to town, accompanied by my Wife who proposes to make the experiment of a town visit. I left her at Mrs. Frothingham’s and went to the Office, thence to the House after some things for her. Mr. Sparrel brought to day his plan in Indian Ink and I accepted it. The great plainness of the undertaking must prevent any thing like a great display of beauty. In my opinion it looks bald, but I can afford nothing out of the common way in this case. Mr. Ayer came afterwards and having explained all the details as well as my intended mode of proceeding, I gave over to him the plan to base estimates upon, which he is to bring in on Saturday of next week. So far, so good. I must now consult Mr. Brooks upon the best mode of going on.

I called at the Athenaeum to look at the Newspapers for a day or two past and then to Gorham Brooks’ to dine. There were nearly all the family—P. C. B. Jr. and his Wife, Mr. and Mrs. Frothingham and Mr. Brooks. Dinner tolerably pleasant after which we returned to Quincy. Nothing further. Quiet evening.

Cloudy day with a Southerly wind and tendency to rain which it did not. I remained at home very quietly. My morning divided between writing, which is very nearly finished and Livy in whose account of the war with Hannibal I again take great interest. I also devoted some time to the MS of my Grandmother which exceedingly need examination. Many of the letters written abroad, I read with great interest. They pourtray the female character in it’s best form very exactly.

After dinner I walked up to see Elizabeth C. Adams. My father has decided upon paying the balance due to her. He has therefore given the sum to me as her Attorney. I walked up there to get her to give up the Notes and to ask her what she would incline to have done with it. She left it in a great measure to me, but she intimated that Mr. Coombs had been tempting her and her brothers with golden visions in Eastern Lands. In other words I fancy Mr. Coombs is a speculator. I told her that I should not advise her to go into any thing of that kind. If her brothers chose it, they might adventure. If they lost, they would only be in just the same condition with the present one. With her it would be different. Returned home. Continued my examination of the Papers.