Sunday, March 28, 1830

1830

March

Sunday 28

7

1 35/..

N Vc

Fahrenheit 50° at 8 a.m. 

Out at 8 – to the pont St. Michel, rue St. Audré des Arts where a good furniture shop – A very nice, large, new bibliothèque to stand on the ground, a considerable height 40/. – I gave the man yesterday too much for the one I bought – walked along the streets in that quarter – rue de l’École de Medicine, etc. – Returned by the Hall au Bled, and place des Victoires and rue Neuve des Petit Champs and home at 10 –

Little de Hagemann had only been come a very little while – Breakfast at 10 20/.. – Dressed – Prayers and Sermon 4, Bishop Ogden, at 12 10/.. in 3/4 hour  – Never was so sleepy –

Slept immediately afterwards in my chair in the salon 1/2 hour  –

Wrote  a little note to Miss Poore to ask if I should call for her at 10 tomorrow morning to go to Sèvres –

Took little de Hagemann out at 2 1/4 – Called at the Poores’ – All out – Left my note for Miss Poore, then drove to the Tuilleries Gardens – Walked there 3/4 hour  – Then to M. Martin’s menagerie des animaux, rue Basse Porte Saint-Denis No. 22 – There from 3 3/4 to 5 20/.., and got home at  5 35/.. –

A fine lion, lioness, tigress, hyæna so tame M. Martin into its cage and played with it (a male?), put his hands into his mouth, etc., etc.  

2 boas (constrictors) about 10 feet long each.  Had eaten on Thursday, so would not eat again today – though 2 rabbits put into the cage to them, and after much agaçante and tempting them to eat, one of the boas seized one of the rabbits twice but then let it go again –

2 crocodiles (6 or 8 feet long?) – Lifted by the keepers from their dry tub where they lay close together; and put into a tub, the bottom of it covered with warm water – M. Martin gave them some slices of raw beef – Never saw living crocodiles before –In the printed description it is observed ‘On est obligé dans tes contrée de les tenir dans un état d’engourdissement, par défaut de chaleur, pour la sureté du public et celle des personnes qui les exposent; car s’ils avaient 36 à 40 degrees, comme parfois dans leur contrée, il serait impossible de les exposer à la curiosité publique sans causir le plus grand danger’. –

The menageire belongs to M. Martin and compagnie, of which compagnie one is a German from Hamburg, another a Hungarian, another a Swiss, and M. Martin probably German – speaks French with a strong German accent?

A fine Lama de Péru – Un Zébu nain (sort of buffalo) – etc. etc.

Dressed – Dinner at 6 10/.. – Left the dining room at 7 35/.. – Never looked at the paper –

Little de Hagemann went at 8 25/.. – Not a fiacre to be found on 4 stands – to take if met with by the way –

What a potheration to have this, and somehow I like him less well than at first.  He is so sheepish about saying what he likes or not till it is pothered out of him, and I begin to think I begin to think Mamma is right – the boy is not or quick or clever, but perhaps rather backward, though he has more geographical knowledge than most boys of his age – As to languages, perhaps he does not speak well any of the 4 he knows (Danish, German, English and French) –

Sat talking to my aunt (asleep till 9) from after coffee at 9 to coming to my room at 10 10/..  George told us Lady Isabella Blatchford was come – Had been here about  a fortnight – Her maid came to see Cameron today –

Very fine day – Fahrenheit 55° at 10 35/.. p.m., at which hour, had just written all but the 1st 7 lines of today –

Settling accounts and skimming over the La Mode of yesterday (that came this morning ) till 11 35/.. – From then to 1 10/.. (had my hair done at 12 in ten minutes), putting together the map of France in departments – Began and could not leave it –

WYAS Finding Number SH:7/ML/E/13/0019