| Description | [Diary Transcription]
276
1830
January Saturday 2
9 55/..
1 10/..
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Vc
Breakfast and read the paper and wrote to Messrs. Rawson to pay to Messrs. Hammersley and company London £300, and off (my aunt with
me) at 12 25/.. — En passant the post off rue de seine put in my letter to ‘Messrs. Rawson, Bankers, H-x [Halifax] Yorkshire
Angleterre’ at the Jardin du roi a minute or 2 before the lecture began — from 1 to 2 — interesting as usual — on the crâne
du crocodile — then drove by the river and Passy and Auteuil through the porte d’Auteuil and the bois de Boulogne got out
there and walked to the Boulogne gate, there by the route des Granvilliers and allées reine marguerite and d’armenon-
-ville to the porte Mayot, got into the carriage there after walking 1 5/60 hour — left a card at Dr. Tupper’s asking
him to come this evening — bought almanac at Galignani’s, and home at 5 20/.. — annoyed at George about finding the cheese
had not been taken into the cellar but was left on the cabinet water reservoir covered with dirty dusters —
the poële wood, too, all cut in 3 instead of 4 — Dinner at 6 20/.. — George gave me the cellar door key — shall give it
to MacDonald and see if she will take care of the cheese and with it therefore the wine etc. — Came to my room at 7 3/4 —
Mr. and Mrs. Charles Droz left their card today — wrote the above of today — Dr. Tupper came to tea at 8 1/2 —
and Monsieur de Favière came almost immediately after him and staid till very near 9 — Dr. Tupper staid till 10 1/4 —
Asked him (from Miss Pickfords last letter) the principle of the French inkstands (vide 23 December) and the difference
between the eyes of men and fish — on neither subject could he give me any information — said some nonsense
about that when the eyes of fish were boiled the round white ball was the crystalline humour which of course
was telling no secret — then mentioned Mr. Long — shewed him the book — he just looked at the 1st page or 2
said Mr. Long did not know much of his subject — it would be wasting time to read his book — cared nothing for
the signatures — there was no signature of any medical man — he had not heard of Mr. Long — Told
him I had seen blood and matter produced on rubbing on his ointment in the course of about 20 minutes — did
Dr. Tupper know of anything that would produce this effect — no — he did not — he doubted much that I had seen
real pus produced — I said yes! I was sure of this — could swear to it in a court of justice —
Came to my room at 10 35/.. — wrote out from lecture 4 to 1/2 of lecture 10 Flourens on comparative anatomy, and
then wrote the last 12 lines of today which took me till 12 1/2 — fine day — hard frost — but much
milder — Fahrenheit 30° at 10 a.m. —
Sunday 3
8 50/60
12 5/..
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Incurred a cross just before getting up thinking of π [Mariana] Looking at vocabulary (Boldoni) — breakfast at 10 1/4 in 1/2 hour — then 1/2 hour reading over the 2 first dialogues
of my little selection from Lucian — Write copy of letter to Hammersley Prayers liturgy and communion service
and sermon 5 Ogden from 12 20/.. to 1 — Came to my room at 1 1/4 — wrote to Hammersleys advising them of the check I had given
to William Alexander Milne on order and asking them to let me me have their circulars for £300 to be sent with the account
directed to me under cover to Miss Hobart Honourable Lady Stuarts Whitehall — went out at 2 10/.. my aunt with me
put into the Post Office in passing my letter to ‘Messrs. Hammersleys and company Bankers London Angleterre’ — walked
1 40/.. in the bois de Boulogne my usual walk from the porte Mayot to Boulogne, Auteuil, and thence to the La Muette
entrance but instead of getting into the carriage there as usual walked back to the porte Mayot — home at 5 — Letter from Miss
Pickford — small sheet, 3 ppages and the ends and under the seal — dated Place Noailles 249 Marseilles Bouches
du Rhone 27 December 1829. It seems her almanac and pocket book are sent here by the ambassador’s
and other things are coming by some conveyance or other directed to my care — her style is always odd — ‘the road along
277
1830
January
Vc
‘Lake como is not finished hardly yet through the black marble rock — I heard the Splugen road was much damaged
‘but not quite broken up ..... the 2 smart Maitlands’ (the 2 girls we saw at spa) are no relations of Lord
‘Lauderdale — The Rhine I delight in — the view from the terrace at Heidelberg beautiful — the confluence of the two
‘rivers I much admired — Villa Sablonaria I most admired of the Como villas — finest views of the lake’ —
Dressed — dinner at 6 — came to my room at 7 10/.. — wrote all but the first 2 1/2 lines of today — It seems Miss Pickford
and her friend Miss Maitland are en pension — Place Noailles 249, Marseilles — they go to Nismes montpelier
etc. etc. then Nice, and then Lyons, and thence to Geneva another pension Chemin des philosophes no. [number] 282 Plain Palais
‘How cold you are in Paris — thermometer I observe to be 24° at noon when at Marseilles at 10 at night
out of a north window it was 34°’ — on the 27th ultimo at Marseilles 1 1/4 p.m. Fahrenheit 32° — the Sénés
(Monsieur and Madame) 2 cards brought in this evening — wrote 1 1/2 page to Miss Hobart coffee at 9 1/4 — came to my room at 10 20/..
fine day, but rather hazy — much milder — Fahrenheit 40° in my bedroom at 10 20/.. p.m. and 31° at 11 3/4 p.m.
lying outside my bedroom window — sat looking over volume 1. Hall’s voyages —
Monday 4
8 20/..
1 35/..
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Dressed in 3/4 hour — an hour at vocabulary — Desultory reading — on the eye Gregory’s economy of nature — vide volume 3.
page 401. note — on the difference between the human eye and the eye of fish will give the answer to Miss Pickford’s question —
not much either in Gregory or Thompson’s (Thomson’s) chemistry on naphtha — Nothing about Pietra mala
(except as frequented by murderers) in Forsyth’s Italy — turned to Itineraire d’Italie (Milan 1824)
vide page 109 á Pietramala douane de frontière aux confins de la Toscane [border custom on the edge of Tuscany] — between Florence and Bologna —
vide page 110 ‘un petit volcan toujours allumé’ [a little volcano still active] — at a little distance from this acqua buja, source
d’eau froide, qui s’enflamme à l’approche d’une lunière. C’est une émanation de
gaz hydrogène [source of cold water, which ignites on approaching a light. It is an emanation of hydrogen gas] — Breakfast at 11 and looked over all the paper till 12 — article from Dr. Hutton’s mathematical
dictionary on the great frosts in England — in 1788 Thames frozen over and booths on it — not frozen over this
present year as yet — at 12 at my desk — wrote full 1/2 sheet note to Lady Stuart Some blotting out
so wrot the note over again — Kind chit chat note — mentioned Fahrenheit at 29° out of my bedroom window
at 9 this morning — might be lured to join some friends now at Marseilles in a coastal tour along the medi-
terranean were I not expecting Miss MacLean shewed Mr. Long’s book the other day to our physician — he had
not heard of him begged to see his book ‘for a quack may throw light upon his subject — ‘examined the
‘signatures (none but medical names have weight with medical men) — then on beginning to read, stopt at page
‘4 of the Introduction, declaring it would be waste of time to read more’ — .... ‘Lady Stuart de Rothesay was annoyed
‘on Thursday at the surprise expressed that Mrs. Lisle Follet should be at the party — yet this lady had been
‘introduced by Mrs. Foster (veuve of the late chaplain) as the aunt of Mr. Canning to whom Lady Stuart de Rothesay would be
‘glad to shew civility — In spite of all the care that can be taken, disagreeables of this kind will occur sometimes —
‘and yet there is a great deal said just now of the difficulty of getting invited to the soirées — But the friends of Lord and Lady
‘Stuart defend them very strongly; and if it be possible for me to judge at all, I do think they may be well satisfied
‘with their popularity — On dit, there is another affair à la Polignac — ten packages belonging to the
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