Saturday, March 13, 1830

1830

March

Saturday 13

7 10/..

12 1/4

A cross last night thinking of all Miss MacLean had told me of Mr. Long’s wanting her to consent to his debauching her for her health’s sake.

Twenty minutes on pot this morning, then left leg asleep.  Leaned back on the bed and dozed till eight.

Fahrenheit 48° at 8 a.m..  Fine morning – rather frosty –

At my desk at 8 50/.. – doing I cannot even now (11 a.m.) remember what – Nothing –

Breakfast at 9 1/4 in 25 minutes – Then reading and nodding over Cloquet, urinary organs and a little of ditto de la generation – No M. Julliart – Then reading Dumas, Volume 2 here and there till 11 3/4 –

Out at 12 10/.. to the bois de Boulogne – Walked my usual (short) walk 1 25/.. hour – Got to the College de France at 2 1/2 – One of the young men who had been fighting in lecture room on Tuesday (the one not the aggressor) read a paper expressive of his apology, saying he had called out the young man who had attacked him, but he refused to fight, saying he was a Christian – The young man left us to judge whether it was from Christianisme or from lâcheté that this person refused to fight – This was well received and the reader of the apology and explanation was applauded –

Lecture 23rd, shorter than usual from 3 to 4 5/.. only 1 5/.. hour long – on the monkish writers – Albert the Great, Saint Thomas Aquinas, Duns Scotus, and Roger Bacon last and greatest –

Saw M. Audoin – Had not meant to go to Cuvier’s tonight, but would go if I went – No! no! said I – I will go there next Saturday instead of tonight –

My little apartment will be ready on Thursday – The frotteur only ordered today – For there was a little difficulty at 1st about the apartment not being at liberty till the 1st of next month – The people very civilly let me have it directly as they themselves do not want it –

My aunt drove about while I was at the lecture – Called at the patissier’s rue du Coq St. Honoré about pains au lait for breakfast tomorrow and at No. 300 St. Honoré about pain bis (brown bread) and home at 5 –

Dressed – Found come from Treuttel and Würtz the ‘Conversations on Botany with plates, 6th edition, London, printed for Longman, Rees, Orne, Brown, and Green, Paternoster row 1828’ for Miss Pickford – To be sent to Geneva – 1 volume duodecimo, pages 278, price 7s/6d, charged 10 francs 75 centimes – Quite an elementary book for children! Can it be – but surely it must be what Miss Pickford meant – Only one work called Conversations on Botany?

§§ Reading a few pages of this –

Dinner at 6 10/.. – Read, partly aloud, the paper.  Came to my room at 8 35/.. – Wrote the last 16 lines – Glad to be quietly at home – Coffee at 9 20/.. – talking to my aunt about Mariana – taking Little Mariana – sending her to school, etc. etc.

I did not much relish this.  π [Mariana] had not shewn much tact.  The tie of money matters between [us] almost at an end.  She spent all she could on her family, and now less than a hundred pounds would pay her all I owed her.  Quite uncertain whether we come together or not.  If anything better falls in my way, I will not answer not to take it. if π had kept up the tie of money more strongly by letting me have all she could, I am convinced I never should have felt to sit so loosely as I do now.  But I say nothing.  Let her not dream this sufficient till the day is the evil thereof  She thinks to come next winter.  ’Tis well, but reasons on her side may prevent it.  If not, when the time comes, I can say we mean to go to England next year. She had better wait and I will make a tour with her afterwards.  Thus she is in fact not likely to come to us here at all.  She little thinks that I am in reality planning against it.  Her best chance for me is something happening to Charles soon –

Came to my room at 10 3/4, at which hour, Fahrenheit 46°.  Very fine day – Wrote the last 11 lines –                

§§  See from the advertisements served up with the Conversations on Botany that it must be ‘Conversations on Vegetable Physiology, 2 volumes, duodecimo with plates, 12/., by the author of Conversations on Chemistry that Miss Pickford wants – Sat reading to page 64 of this book which I must keep, having ordered it –

 

WYAS Finding Number SH:7/ML/E/13/0011