Sunday, July 4, 1858.–This is Communion Sunday and quite a number united with the church on profession of their faith. Mr Gideon Granger was one of them. Grandmother says that she has known him always and his father and mother, and she thinks he is like John, the beloved disciple. I think that any one [...]
June.–Cyrus W. Field called at our house to-day. He is making a trip through the States and stopped here a few hours because Grandmother is his aunt. He made her a present of a piece of the Atlantic cable about six inches long, which he had mounted for her. It is a very nice souvenir. [...]
May 1858.–Several of us girls went up into the top of the new Court House to-day as far as the workmen would allow us. We got a splendid view of the lake and of all the country round. Abbie Clarke climbed up on a beam and recited part of Alexander Selkirk’s soliloquy: “I’m monarch of [...]
March.–There is a great deal said about spirits nowadays and a lot of us girls went into one of the recitation rooms after school to-night and had a spiritual seance. We sat around Mr Chubbuck’s table and put our hands on it and it moved around and stood on two legs and sometimes on one. [...]
February 24, 1858.–The boarders at the Seminary had some tableaux last evening and invited a great many from the village. They were splendid. Mr Chubbuck was in nearly all of them. The most beautiful one was Abraham offering up Isaac. Mr Chubbuck was Abraham and Sarah Ripley was Isaac. After the tableaux they acted a [...]
Christmas.–Grandfather and Grandmother do not care much about making Christmas presents. They say, when they were young no one observed Christmas or New Years, but they always kept Thanksgiving day. Our cousins, the Fields and Carrs, gave us several presents and Uncle Edward sent us a basket full from New York by express. Aunt Ann [...]
September 1.–Anna and I have been in Litchfield, Conn., at Father’s school for boys. It is kept in the old Beecher house, where Dr Lyman Beecher lived. We went up into the attic, which is light and airy, where they say he used to write his famous sermons. James is one of the teachers and [...]
August 8.–Grandfather has given me his whole set of Waverley novels and his whole set of Shakespeare’s plays, and has ordered Mr Jahn, the cabinetmaker, to make me a black walnut bookcase, with glass doors and three deep drawers underneath, with brass handles. He is so good. Anna says perhaps he thinks I am going [...]
Friday, July.–I have not kept a journal for two weeks because we have been away visiting. Anna and I had an invitation to go to Utica to visit Rev. and Mrs Brandigee. He is rector of Grace Episcopal church there and his wife used to belong to Father’s church in Morristown, N.J. Her name was [...]
June 2.–Abbie Clark wrote such a nice piece in my album to-day I am going to write it in my journal. Grandfather says he likes the sentiment as well as any in my book. This is it: “It has been said that the friendship of some people is like our shadow, keeping close by us [...]
May 9.–Miss Lizzie Bull came for me to go botanising with her this morning and we were gone from 9 till 12, and went clear up to the orphan asylum. I am afraid I am not a born botanist, for all the time she was analysing the flowers and telling me about the corona and [...]
April.–Grandfather gave us 10 cents each this morning for learning the 46th Psalm and has promised us $1 each for reading the Bible through in a year. We were going to any way. Some of the girls say they should think we would be afraid of Grandfather, he is so sober, but we are not [...]
March 6.–Anna and her set will have to square accounts with Mr Richards to-morrow, for nine of them ran away from school this afternoon, Alice Jewett, Louisa Field, Sarah Antes, Hattie Paddock, Helen Coy, Jennie Ruckel, Frankie Younglove, Emma Wheeler and Anna. They went out to Mr Sackett’s, where they are making maple sugar. Mr [...]
January 8.–Anna and Alice Jewett caught a ride down to the lake this afternoon on a bob-sleigh, and then caught a ride back on a load of frozen pigs. In jumping off, Anna tore her flannel petticoat from the band down. I did not enjoy the situation as much as Anna, because I had to [...]
Saturday, December 20.–Lillie Reeve and her brother, Charlie, have come from Texas to live. He goes to the Academy and she boards with Miss Antoinette Pierson, Miss Pierson invited me up to spend the afternoon and take tea with her and I went and had a very nice time. She told me about their camp [...]
Thanksgiving Day.–We all went to church and Dr Daggett’s text was : “He hath not dealt so with any nation.” Aunt Glorianna and her children were here and Uncle Field and all their family and Dr Carr and all his family. There were about sixteen of us in all and we children had a table [...]
Sunday, August. – Rev. Anson D. Eddy preached this morning. His text was from the sixth chapter of John, 44th verse. “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me, draw him.” He is Tom Eddy’s father, and very good-looking and smart too. He used to be one of the ministers [...]
Saturday Night, July. – Grandfather was asking us to-night how many things we could remember, and I told him I could remember when Zachary Taylor died, and our church was draped in black, and Mr Daggett preached a funeral sermon about him. and I could remember when Daniel Webster died, and there was service held [...]
Sunday, June 1. – Rev. Dr Shaw, of Rochester, preached for Dr Daggett to-day and his text was: “Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again, but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst.” He said by this water he meant the pleasures of this life, wealth and fame [...]
March 3, 1856. – Elizabeth Spencer sits with me in school now. She is full of fun but always manages to look very sober when Miss Chesebro looks up to see who is making the noise over our way. I never seem to have that knack. Anna had to stay after school last night and [...]
February 6 (1856).–We were awakened very early this morning by the cry of fire and the ringing of bells and could see the sky red with flames and knew it was the stores and we thought they were all burning up. Pretty soon we heard our big brass door knocker being pounded fast and Grandfather [...]
January 30 (1856).–I came home from school at eleven o’clock this morning and learned a piece to speak this afternoon, but when I got up to school I forgot it, so I thought of another one. Mr. Richards said that he must give me the praise of being the best speaker that spoke in the [...]
January 23. (1856)–This is the third morning that I have come down stairs at exactly twenty minutes to seven. I went to school all day. Mary Paul and Fannie Palmer read “The Snow Bird” to-day. There were some funny things in it. One was : “Why is a lady’s hair like the latest news? Because [...]
December 20, 1855.–Susan B. Anthony is in town and spoke in Bemis Hall this afternoon. She made a special request that all the seminary girls should come to hear her as well as all the women and girls in town. She had a large audience and she talked very plainly about our rights and how [...]
(1855) November 25.–I helped Grandmother get ready for Thanksgiving Day by stoning some raisins and pounding some cloves and cinnamon in the mortar pestle pounder. It is quite a job. I have been writing with a quill pen but I don’t like it because it squeaks so. Grandfather made us some to-day and also bought [...]