Rain storm. At home all day, distribution as usual.

A very heavy gale from the Eastward brought with it rain and kept me rigidly confined to the house. I worked pretty steadily on my Review of Mr. Tucker which goes on pretty well. Continued Lessing’s Nathan the Wise and read Lucan finishing all but about ninety lines of the fifth book of the Pharsalia. I continue to think his great fault to be extravagance. Read Grimm whose criticism is just and keen. One of 246my wonders in the present day is the low standard of it in this country. We are all praise or blame.

Evening at home. The continuance of this very unpleasant weather here has a slight tendency to depress our spirits. Yet we have a fine opportunity for improvement if the disposition was coexistent.

Cloudy. At home all day. Distribution as usual.

The weather promises better. I hope we shall enjoy it for hitherto we have had little of the true pleasure of the country.

I continued my work upon Tucker and made a pretty deep dive into the business. It is a peculiarity of mine to become rapidly tired of any occupation which lasts a great while. This makes it very difficult for me to develope my own thoughts fully enough to be readily understood by others. I am afraid I am falling into this error in the present instance.

Read Lessing, Nathan der Weise and Lucan 5 and 6 books, 100 in each. Dined and took tea at the Mansion. Evening visit to Mr. and Mrs. T. Greenleaf.

Lovely day. To town. Afternoon study. Evening at the Mansion.

I rode to town. Occupied in making up the Quarterly Statements for my father and in expediting Mr. Johnson’s affairs as usual.1 This with commissions, a visit to the house for things &ca. took up the morning. It is my season of leisure at present from Agency business, the rents being all collected.

Home to dine. Afternoon Lucan 6 book 100–300 and attending to out door work, in which I waste much time. Evening at the Mansion. No news.

Warm day. To town and Medford to dine. Evening home.

I rode to town accompanied by my father. Finished the quarterly Accounts mentioned yesterday, and I now must begin to prepare for the annual balance. Nothing new.

Went with my father to Medford according to invitation. Annual dinner to the trustees of the agricultural Society. Messrs. T. L. 247Winthrop, J. C. Gray, H. Codman, E. H. Derby, Josiah Quincy Junr., Phinney, J. Welles, B. Guild, Judge Prescott, Mr. N. Appleton, Mr. Colman, Govr. Everett, Mr. B. Gorham, with Gorham Brooks and ourselves. I have never been much of an admirer of these state occasions but this appeared to me more stupid than usual. The members either had the spirit of dullness or else of caution. They are generally intelligent but few of them are at all brilliant, and the dinner was rather calculated for stuffing with good eatables than for any thing else. They have made a sumptuary law against champagne which is even more stupifying still. We started early for home and got there by eight o’clock. Spent an hour at the Mansion and then home.