| Description | [Diary Transcription]
98
1827
January
Vc
§
§
§
Saw all the Senés — went with Monsieur Sené to see the 2 cellars we are to have etc. etc. — At 1 1/2 went to call on and inquire after Madame Droz —
out — left my card — then to the chautier, No. [Number] 32, rue de la Madeleine, about a cart to lead our wood from here tomorrow —
the people very civil — have not carts of their own, but carters always about ready to agree for their carts — spoke to a man — he
wanted 1/25 per voie — this slippery weather could not put more than 2 voies into the cart at once — would have to come and go 5
times with our nine voies — Monsieur Sené had said I ought only to pay 1/50 per voyage — I offered the man 6/. for the whole — could not
agree — came away determined to get our porter’s wife to manage the matter — back to our new apartment — the tapis d’occasion
linen brought for me to look (8 feet by 7 feet,) at 36/. so shabby I would not have it — went to Mrs. Barlow Madame Galvani there — advised me to have
nothing to do with the buffet I was to look at, Piliers de la halle, No. [Number] 45, for fear of bugs — waited some time for Mrs.
Barlow then, rue Royale, took a fiacre at 3, and went where Dr. Tupper had yesterday recommended Mrs. Barlow rue des Vieux
Augustins No. [Number] 11 — determined to go again tomorrow there would be a very good mahogany buffet at 90/. — what determined
me was the woman would engage to take all she sold (supposing it not to be much injured) at a loss to me of only 1/6 of what
I paid for it — for whatever I paid her 1500/. she would give me 1250/. i.e five-sixths — saw a pair of bronze candlesticks with giramboles for 3 lights each at 70/. the pair — at this rate, will get all
I can there — ’Tis a good sort of place to know of — thence to Ravrio, rue des Filles St Thomas No. [Number] 19, for bronze
candelabra — a very handsome pair at 160/. Ditto at 84/. and a pendule I think of having at 170/. said I would go again
tomorrow — Mrs. Barlow bought a bougeoir at 15/. — thence to Daveune’s rue neuve des petits champs — there dismissed our fiacre
at 4 50/60 —the man so civil, engaged him to come at 1 on Monday to take my aunt in the carriage (our own) to our new
apartment — ordered dining room carpets to be taken to our new apartment at 11 tomorrow Mrs. Barlow and I to be there to look at them —
walked — home with Mrs. Barlow — left her at her own door downstairs, and got home at 6 5/60 — Dinner at 6 20/60 — afterwards slept
a little — wrote the last whole of this page — Fine day — frosty — yet from the power of the sun? some of the the streets dirty — went to my room
at 10 10/60 — my aunt not near so low tonight as yesterday — in fact, not apparently low at all — just as usual — though last
year at this time how different! — how different this 1st anniversary of my uncle’s death!
Saturday 27
7 3/4
11 50/60
my bowels pretty well — In my room at 8 20/60 — finished dressing — dawdling over 1 thing or other till 9 10/60 — till after 10 considering
and writing out a regular list of what I have to do today — Breakfast at 10 10/60 — skimmed over the advertisements and just
looked to see what else in the paper — Mrs. Barlow came at 10 50/60 — went out at 10 55/60 — Mrs. Barlow and I direct to our apartment —
George soon came after me — the wood was to have been removed today — the man I saw yesterday had told the porter I had
agreed with him for 8/. a voie then came down to 12/. for the day — to lead the whole for 12/. — I went with George to
the chautier — the fellows asked 20/. — I offered 10/. for the whole — came away — ordered the wood to be let remain till another
day — went back to our new apartment — had left Mrs. Barlow with the Senés — the carpet man there — my salon would take
18 ells to do it completely façon et poser 1/. per aune — doublure 1/60 per aune — the jaspè I liked
8/. l’aune — would last they calculated 4 years — said I would consider about it — Monsieur Sené and Mrs. Barlow against my having a
carpet — chose a dining room carpet and rug — Mrs. Barlow and I then went to my potshop Boulevard de la Madeleine —
a long while there — thence to Galle’s the great bronze magasin rue de Richelieu, 93. some magnificent pendules
and candelabra, etc. etc. — agreed to take a pendule at 120/. but finding it 180/., determined to take the one at
Ravrio’s — the latter certainly cheaper than Galle — Galle sends things to London charging 30 per cent which includes
duty and everything — a longish while at Galles — nothing in candelabra under 200/. or 250/. — thence to Rauvrio’s —
took the pendule at 170/. — and ordered this and 2 patterns of candelabra to be sent to our new apartment at 3 on Monday — thence
to rue des Vieux Augustins No. [Number] 11 — bought the buffet, a pair of candelabra at 90/. a work table for my aunt etc.
parted with Mrs. Barlow at her own porte cochère and got home at 6 5/60 — Dinner at 6 20/60 — afterwards wrote the above of
today — the porter’s wife came a little after 8 — (sent for her to order about the wood going tomorrow), and staid till 10 — then
came to my room — bright with a little fire, and made up a fire to undress by — Snowy morning — small snow, and the ground white —
very thinly covered over — fair by 11 — afterwards during the day — a few small flakes of snow every now and then with a few drops of small
rain — but on the whole generally fair after 11 a.m. —
[margin text:] ground white with sprinkling
of snow and snowing small snow
Fahrenheit 30° at 8 20/60 a.m.
32° — 10 3/4—
28° at 6 20/60 p.m.
26° — 10—
99
1827
January Sunday 28
7 35/60
11 55/60
L
§§
Vc
my bowels tolerable — In my room at 8 10/60 — finished dressing — Breakfast at 9 50/60 — before and after, till 2, packed my Imperial
and boot-trunk, and did up all my books in 3 large parcels — done up in a pair of the servants’ sheets and in my dirty
clothes bag ready to go tomorrow — tidied all my room — I shall leave it very tidy tomorrow — I am sorry to leave this
apartment after all — Mary was here with me — She never saw our new apartment — I think of her perpetually — I shall not be
at ease till I hear whether she ever got my last letter but one, and how she is — Surely the sooner we are together the
better our being separated is more and more insupportable to us both ~ about 1 the porter brought me a letter from
Miss Maclean (Tobermory) — read it at 2 — 3 ppages and the ends, and the 1st crossed — The Robertsons ruined her Miss Maclean’s brother
taken in she and Albane will suffer will not have the fortune they were to have had more about the Quaker
vide I think he would like to be serious she thinks I do not like her correspondence with him she her
self half repents it he must be a vulgarish travelling merchant — went out at 3 10/60 to our new
apartment — George had been there all the morning making fires and airing the beds, the commissionaire having taking 2
crochets of wood — all the chimneys do well except that of the drawing room which smokes terribly unless one the
windows be open — went to the Senés to speak about it — to have the fumiste tomorrow — much yet to be done — it
will be sometime before we can be comfortably settled — then to Mrs. Barlow’s — got there about 4 — asked her to walk —
we went some distance beyond the barrière de l’Etoile — then took a turn in the Champs Elisées and got back to her
house at 5 40/60 — went upstairs with her for 1/4 hour, and got home at 6 5/60 — Dinner at 6 1/4 — went into the drawing [room] at 7 1/2 — slept a little then
came to my room at 7 40/60 — wrote all the above of today, and the washing bills all which took me till 10 10/60 — o..~
[margin text:] hard frost
all the day —
Fahrenheit 21° at 8 1/4 a.m.
29° — 2 p.m.
28° — 6 1/4 —
25 1/2° — 10—
Monday 29
7 1/4
2 10/60
§
my bowels pretty well — In my room at 7 50/60 — finished dressing — Busy over 1 thing or other — getting all my things
quite ready to go — settled with the washerwoman etc. etc. very hard frost — the hardest we have had — for on putting down my
sponge for a moment on the marble chimney piece in my bedroom, it froze to the marble — the water, too, more frozen — more ice
in my great cruche than ever before — Breakfast at 9 50/60 — skimmed over the paper — off in a fiacre at 10 50/60 with my books to
our new apartment — went a 2nd time with divers other things — then left George to go with the fiacre full of other things a 3rd time — had
the porter’s wife in my room for above an hour talking over 1 thing or other — told her pretty plainly I suspected the Actons’ servant (an
Italian) of taking our spoons — paid her for the apartment up to the 7th of next month, and gave her 25/. over — told her from the 1st, if she
let the apartment I would do so — Dawdling and waiting for the carriage being got ready for my aunt — the cocher I bespoke on Saturday not coming,
kept the one I had, and he took his horses off the fiacre and put them to our carriage — he wanted some cord to fix his harness —
I could not wait (expecting people at 3), and therefore came away at 3 10/60 — Called at Roland’s en passant, and at Bocquet’s
to desire him to take back the fourneau, and give me what he chose for it — got here (Place de la Madeleine No. [Number] 2)
au coin du Basse Rempart at 3 1/2 — Mrs. Barlow had been here from 3 — my aunt found the apartment better than she expected —
on entering found Mr. Sené did not mean me to have the coachhouse I took, but a larger — we had some words about it —
at last, he promised I should have it all to myself — all the hay and everything should be taken out, no other should be put into it — he
explained how it would convenience him, and I agreed — the pot woman — sent the pots I bought on Saturday — because I did not pay — was
busy — said I would pay tomorrow — the man would not let me have the note though not acquittée — Angry — followed him to the shop —
told the woman never to send that man to me again — she very civil — said it was a new shop — a gaucherie of the man’s —
she very sorry and gave me the note — in returning called at the butcher’s rue Godot de Moroy — would not let me have meat
at 12 sols — but would at 13sols but I objecting to rejouissances (little bits of bone etc. sent to make up weight) came away,
and would have nothing to say to her — sat talking to Mrs. Barlow in my salon — then began to put away some of my things — my aunt
all the while busy in her own room and well amused and marvellously active and well — the buffet, work table for my aunt
etc. came — George’s room not ready — not the same room I took — another which the workmen were dividing into 2 — would have Mrs. Barlow
stay dinner — Dinner at 8 10/60 — sent for Monsieur Sené — not at home — sent for Madame Sené mentioned how I was disappointed not to have the room I had
agreed for — said I would leave the apartment if I had not it — she very civil but did not know what to do etc. etc. the countess de Coux
would have this and that — I said the countess this or that was nothing to me — at last Monsieur Sené came — he explained — promised me the room his own nurse and child
had quite near the kitchen — promised all that was fair — said I was satisfied — Madame Sené had almost cried — I was then mollified — expressed my sorrow to
have said anything to annoy her — would in future have all business with Monsieur Sené — Mrs. Barlow explained that I expressed myself strongly from not knowing the
language — I shook hands with Madame Sené — they went away at 10 10/60 — just wished my aunt good night and Mrs. Barlow sat with me till 11 — then sent
[margin text:] nothing but nonsense about bringing the wood — only part came this afternoon — the bois de hêtre — George home with her — tidied my room and wrote all but the first
3 1/2 lines of today which took me till 12 20/60 — a little small
snow once or twice during the day — hard frost, very cold—
very hard frost. Fahrenheit 17° at 8 a.m.
George’s proper room not being ready he
took his bed into the drawing room tonight —
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