Rain and damp but warm. At home. Evening at home.

My head was not entirely at ease this morning and I was apprehensive of a bad day but it passed off before evening entirely.

I devoted a large part of my morning to my Lecture which I brought to a close at last. But I fear it will not do. At any rate I now mean to lay it away for a month or two, in order to give myself the advantage of cool criticism. This is what I rarely have been able to bestow upon a work, and as this is not designed to be flashy I must try and make it up with substantial merit, although New York is not the precise sphere for that article.

A little but not much of Menzel. Mrs. T. B. Adams dined with us. Afternoon, Tacitus, finish book 3 and read 20 sections of book 4. Evening the family took tea with us and remained until nine o’clock. The children none of them very well, rather suffering under the change of season.

Fine day. At home all day. Evening at the Mansion, and dine there.

I this morning resumed my labour in copying the letters which I remitted in order to make a draught of my Lecture. This is necessarily slow and tedious, but I hope it will come to something. Read a little of Menzel also, whose work rather hangs heavily with me in the theological part. I know none of the writers of whom he speaks even by name and do not put much faith in his entire theory respecting them. There are however occasionally acute remarks and happy illustrations. Dined at my father’s. Read Tacitus b. 4. s 20–40. This is all I can do. The evenings which I do not employ now grow long.

Beautiful day. To town. Afternoon at home. Evening, visit to Mrs. T. B. Adams’ and Mansion.

My time in town today was taken up for the most part in attending upon the mechanics who are working at my house. I got them in train today so that the work will I hope steadily go on, but it threatens to be a pretty heavy job. Then to the Athenaeum to see about the return of some books which had not yet been made. On my return to Quincy, I was accompanied by Miss Mary B. Hall who is to make us a visit of a few days.

Afternoon, Tacitus b 4. s 40–60. and this was all. I have been upon occasional half hours looking into Herschel’s Essay on Astronomy. In the evening I walked up to Mrs. T. B. Adams’ on business. Met there with Mr. Greenleaf and Mr. Miller. The evening was uncommonly beautiful. Home at ten by way of my father’s.