Diary of Annie Adams Fields

May 11. Gail Hamilton in town—described herself as incapable of keeping anything—occupied with reading the bulletin boards, a Fayel hat dropped from her hands—she loses all her worldly goods.

Sunday May 14 [sic]. Terrible days of war and change. Dr Holmes came in in the afternoon to correct his Shakspeare poem—said he was ashamed to be troubled about so slight a thing when the battles were raging, he had written “Where Genoa’s deckless caravels were blown” when Columbus...

May 19. Hawthorne is dead.

We came hither from Boston on the 11th day of June. The day was quite cold but clear when we left. A bridge burned near Manchester forced us to walk some distance and we congratulated ourselves at being able thus to catch a refreshing walk of two miles and see the woods for the first time. I was...

Sunday morn. started soon after breakfast in the freshness of the cool and lovely day to walk about four or five miles. We went down to the Pemigewasset ford gathering Linnea and leaves as we went. Jamie had a severe headache in the afternoon perhaps from taking too deep a draught of the fine...

Campton Village. Selden C. Willey’s. June 22. 1864. The desire of “nicking down” as Jamie calls it something of the delight of our glorious days in this retreat, has been strong on me for some days. It has been ripened on this most glorious of afternoons by reading the account of Ludlow...

June 23. Last night visited the plantations down by the river. One cottage attracted us with its pretty woodbine and garden—all abloom and a fine pine wood in front with the river at the right hand. Went to “Sweet Brier Hill” this morning and read “The Excursion.”

Sunday 26. Very hot. The heat a visible presence on the hills. Read Carlyle’s life of Sterling. Before breakfast walked down June Avenue to the Goodhue plantation by the river. A heavenly scene.

Monday morning. Night exhaustingly hot. At 4 o’clock a grand shower burst, the birds became silent. When over Jamie went to the woods gathered an exquisite and plentiful array of ferns, rock maple, and nearer home roses which he carried by the stage at 10 o’clk to Boston (it had rained again...

Campton. Thursday June 30. Weather breezy, cool, almost cold at night and morning. J.T.F. away since Monday in Boston. Walked about five miles after 7 o’clk last night. Trying to find a good specimen of Linnea to send to H.P. stopped at the Durgins while deep in the woods beyond their house a...

Friday Drove to Plymouth yesterday afternoon to send a telegram to J.T.F. he being threatened with erysipelas and told not to come back. Mr Willey drove and shopped there with his wife. I sat in the wagon and saw a horse “cribbing” that is biting. He was like a child biting on an India...

Friday July 23 [sic]. Boston. Laura Johnson her husband, baby and nurse with us. Lovely days! Days full of suffering for the country but we all are ready to do what we can and Laura has given her dearest and for these few days we are looking at the glory and loveliness of God’s world and...

July 25. Laura went away. It makes home still sweeter to remember her presence and quiet folded ways. She is forty years old I have to say sometimes for she is all youth and life and love, a little creature half unveiled to this world, or to herself.

July 28. Still hot with a russet sun. Mr and Mrs Henry James called in the evening. He talked of Sterling, “he was not stereotyped but living, his eye burned; he was very vivacious, although he saw Death approaching. He was one of the choicest of friends.” Afterward he talked of Alcott’s...

Sunday July 31. Dry and warm with South wind. May God send the land rain. Petersburgh is mined; and a portion has exploded and is in flames. Jamie passed the morning with Charles Sumner. In the evening Mr S., Henry Cary of Pa. & Mr & Mrs James were here.

Manchester. August 3. in a cold easterly beating rain which refreshed the whole earth.

August 17. Easterly fog & rain—until this except an hour’s rain one evening no rain since we came. The drought and heat have been almost unprecedented.

August 19. Seraphic day. Went to Pigeon Cove—saw Col. Higginson and his wife.

August 30. Passed at Hamilton in the woods and driving about with Mary Dodge. The day was the very ripe heart and culmination of summer.

Sepr 1st Another wondrous day—perfectly clear and cool. The drought has been so terrible this summer that these days bring an especial benediction on their wings. Passed the morning alone in Dane’s woods.

Thursday Sep. 15, returned from Manchester, the weather blue and gold, breezy ripe with a full moon. From dawn till dusk Nature wears a pellucid smile.

Sepr 29. Mr Fields went without me to Newport and saw La Farge & Vedder about illustrating Enoch Arden. As he passed Portsmouth Grove hospital Bishop Clark of R.I. pointed out the graveyard where our men and the rebels lie side by side. He said the undertaker had planted the graves of our men...

Oct. 6. Professor Goldwin Smith came to breakfast with the Governor Profr Holmes and his son the Colonel. We had a happy time. Goldwin Smith is earnest, fearless, thoughtful, indeed a powerful and interesting man, thin in figure but more active and lithe than most Englishmen. He is of active...

Tuesday October 19 [sic]. Mr Whittier dined and past the evening here. He read “Esbern Snare” to ask how we liked it. Jamie went to Cambridge to Charles Norton’s to meet Goldwin Smith while Mr Whittier sat and talked of his sister and his own life and work. Ten years of his life he devoted...

Oct. 20. The Deweys, Miss Brewster of Phila. here to lunch.