[Boston—Wednesday, 16 January 1867]
Wednesday. Had a touching note from Whittier with reference to my verses in memory of his sister “Elizabeth’s Chamber.” My day grew very sunshiny—should it not be always so, this and every day, with so much love to shine upon me so little deserved, a pure gift.
Sat at home all the morning with the sun looking in at window over the blue bay, with my books about. Fell upon Kirke White’s sonnet “Retirement” & Shelley’s wondrous sonnets in L.H.’s books, especially the one on Wordsworth & Ozyma[n]dias filled me full.
Went to see Lucy Larcom in her new establishment of one room, in the afternoon; neat and cosy. She was sitting by the fire apparently making selections from Wordsworth to use in her lectures I fancied on English Literature at the school where she is now engaged. She showed us some of her paintings. She likes the bohemianism of her present life.
Lissie went to dine with Mrs Dorr and see something of the best of fashionable life. Appleton, Rowse, Miss Anna Robbins, founder of hospital & Miss Whitwell were the company. Appleton witty and kind as ever. Jamie went to Longfellow’s—Lowell was absent from the circle but a queer little man, looking 30 but 46 years old by the name of Squier was there and as much at home as if he had lived there always instead of having come in to find Mr Norton and having engrafted himself on the company. They could not help being amused with his rattling talk. J. said he did not know when he had laughed so much, if only to see this careless blatant fellow (noisy as Hepworth Dixon) slapping Norton on the back and doing all the talk. He has been a traveler in Central America & has written several books of travel. Glidden who brought the mummy out here some years ago was a friend of his. Glidden died at Panama and he said he sent out some first rate Philadelphia bricks to build Glidden a tomb, some time after on going to Panama he discovered the bricks had been stolen and put into a house so he had the house pulled down, recovered $350 damages and built a first rate tomb in which he put all the “remains” he could find—so he rattled on. He had brought 200 crania from Peru to Dr Wyman which delighted him much.
Howells & J. thought the small man a bit worse for liquor—but any way he was a queer enough character drunk or sober & a sufficient surprise to the usually so studious little company assembled at L’s house. Sam Longfellow was present. What is Sam L. doing in Cambridge asked J. of Norton. “He is residing here” was the curt & pointed reply.
