Memoirs Of Aaron Burr, Volume 1, Matthew L. Davis [book club suggestions .txt] 📗

Chapter XIII Pg 214

I Am, However,

Not Fortunate In Finding Judge Yates. He Is From Home. G. Civil, But

Unwell. The Room Promised Me Is Not Fitted; Must Therefore Seek Other

Lodgings. Bon Soir. Visit Me In My Slumbers.

 

 

Friday Night, December 4Th.

 

 

Till Sunset I Was In Doubt Whether I Should Not Be Obliged To Leave

Albany For Want Of Quarters. Have At Length Found Tolerable. No Price

Yet Fixed. Probably Not Less Than Trois Piasters The Week. A Day

Completely Lost, And I, Of Course, In Ill Humour With Every Thing But

Thee.

 

 

Saturday, December 5Th.

 

 

A Sick Headache This Whole Day. I Earned It By Eating Last Night A

Hearty Supper Of Dutch Sausages, And Going To Bed Immediately After. I

Am Surprised It Did Not Operate In The Way Of My Disorder, Which Was

Formerly The Certain Consequence Of Every Error In Diet; But No

Symptom Of That, Though I Was Very Restless.

 

 

I Took The True Indian Cure For The Headache. Made A Light Breakfast

Of Tea, Stretched Myself On A Blanket Before The Fire, Fasted Till

Evening, And Then Tea Again. I Thought, Through The Whole Day, That If

You Could Sit By Me, And Stroke My Head With Your Little Hand, It

Would Be Well; And That, When We Are Formally United, Far From Deeming

A Return Of This Disorder Un Malheur, I Should Esteem It A Fortunate

Apology For A Day Of Luxurious Indulgence, Which I Should Not

Otherwise Allow Myself Or You.

 

 

Most Unexpectedly, Lewis Called Upon Me This Evening, Civilly Offered

Me His House, And Asked Me To Dine. I Was Wrong, I Think, To Accept

His Invitation, But This Did Not Strike Me Till I Had Engaged. Must

Dine There To-Morrow.

 

 

Sunday, 6Th December.

 

 

This Is The Third Day In Town, And No Business Done. These Two Days

Past I Have Been Studying The Second Volume Of Rousseau. G. Is

Returned. He Never Appeared More Unlike Himself. I Was Somehow

Uncommonly Stupid, And, Would You Believe It, Even Awkward. Said Very

Little, And That Little With Hesitation. You Know There Are Days When

Every Thing Goes Against One. Paid Little Attention To Anybody (That

Little, Somehow, Ill Timed), And Received Still Less From Them.

Chapter XIII Pg 215

How Could We Forget Latimer? He Has Sung Theodosia'S Praise Among The

Southern Army In Terms With Which Her Best Friends Must Be Pleased. He

Has Also Established The Character Of A. Burr. Quackenbush Is

Determined To Be Civil. Says His Visits Will Be Frequent.

 

 

Yates Is Returned. More Of Him To-Morrow. An Old, Weather-Beaten Lady,

Miss Depeyster, Has Given The Whole History Of Burr, And Much Of

Theo., But Nothing Unfavourable. In A Place Where Burr Thought Himself

A Stranger, There Is Scarce Any Age Or Sex That Does Not, Either From

In Formation Or Acquaintance, Know Something Of Him.

 

 

I Am Surprised I Forgot To Advise You To Get A Franklin Fireplace.

They Have Not The Inconvenience Of Stoves, Are Warm, Save Wood, And

Never Smoke. The Cost Will Not Be, Probably, More Than Ten Or Fifteen

Dollars, Which Will Be Twice Saved This Winter In Wood And _Comfort_,

And They May Be Moved Anywhere. If You Have Fears About _Brat_,

[Foonote: Mrs. Prevost'S Youngest Child.] I Have None. He Will Never

Burn Himself But Once; And, By Way Of Preventive, I Would Advise You

To Do That For Him. It Will Be Put Up In A Few Hours By Anybody. I Am

In Doubt Whether It Will Be Best To Have It In The Common Room Or One

Of The Back Rooms. The Latter Will Have Many Advantages. You May Then

Have A Place Sacred To Love, Reflection, And Books. This, However, As

You Find Best; But That You Have One I Am Determined, Unless You Can

Give Some Better Reason Against It Than I At Present Know Of. Indeed,

I Would Wish You Had Two. You Will Get Them With No Trouble From The

Salisbury Furnace. It Is Of The First Importance That You Suffer As

Little As Possible The Present Winter. It May, In A Great Measure,

Determine Your Health Ever After. I Confess I Have Still Some

Transient Distrusts That You Set Too Little Value On Your Own Life And

Comfort. Remember, It Is Not Yours Alone; But Your Letters Shall

Convince Me. I Waive The Subject.

 

 

I Am Not Certain I Shall Be Regularly Punctual In Writing You In This

Manner Every Day When I Get At Business; But I Shall, If Possible,

Devote One Quarter Of An Hour A Day To You. In Return, I Demand One

Half Of An Hour Every Day From You; More I Forbid, Unless On Special

Occasions. This Half Hour Is To Be Mine, To Be Invariably At The Same

Time, And, For That Purpose, Fixed At An Hour Least Liable To

Interruption, And As You Shall Find Most Convenient. Mine Cannot Be So

Regular, As I Only Indulge Myself In It When I Am Fatigued With

Business. The Children Will Have Each Their Sheet, And, At The Given

Hour, Write, If But A Single Word Burr, At This Half Hour Is To Be A

Kind Of Watchword.

 

 

Monday, 7Th December.

 

 

I Keep Always A Memorandum For You, On Which, When I Think Of Any

Thing At Any Time Of Day That I Wish To Write, I Make A Short Note In

A Manner Which No Other Person Would Understand. When I Sit Down To

Write I Have Nothing To Do But Look At My Memorandum.

Chapter XIII Pg 216

I Would

Recommend The Same To You, Unless You Rather Choose To Write At The

Moment When You Think Of Any Thing.

 

 

I Have Continually Felt Some Apprehensions About The Success Of Troup

With The Court. The Springs Are But Twenty-Eight Miles From Albany; I

Will Meet You There.

 

 

Phil. Van Rensselaer, Whom I Have Never Before Seen, Has Been To

Introduce Himself, And Tender His Services Of Every Kind. He Is Of The

Most Respectable And Richest Inhabitants.

 

 

Tuesday, 8Th December.

 

 

No Place Yet; But, That Time Need Not Be Lost, I Have Been Looking

Over Rousseau'S 4Th Volume. I Imagine ----- Gathered Thence His

Sentiments On The Subject Of Jealousy. If So, He Has Grossly Mistaken

The Ideas Of Rousseau. Do You Discover A Symptom Of It? Far Otherwise.

You See Only Confidence And Love. That Jealousy For Which You Are An

Advocate, He Condemns As Appertaining To Brutes And Sensualists.

Discard, I Beseech You, Ideas So Degrading To True Love. I Am

Mortified With The Reflection That They Were Ever Yours.

 

 

I Think ----- Must Have Taken Pains To Have Overlooked The Following

Paragraph, When, In Enumerating The Duties Of A Woman Towards A Lover

Or Husband, He Makes It Principally To Consist "In Respecting

Themselves, In Order To Acquire Respect. How Delightful Are These

Privileges! How Respectable Are They! How Cordially Do Men Prize Them,

When A Woman Knows How To Render Them Estimable." I Fear ----- Will Be

Convinced Of This But Too Late. I Am Glad To Find, However, That The

Idea So Often Urged (In Vain) By Me, Is Not A Mere Vagary Of My Own

Brain, But Is Supported By So Good Authority.

 

 

Wednesday, 9Th December.

 

 

I Have This Day Made A Feint At Law. But, Were My Life At Stake, It

Could Not Command My Attention.

 

 

Thursday, 10Th December.

 

 

We Have About Twelve Or Fourteen Inches Of Snow. When You Read My

Letters I Wish You Would Make Minutes At The Time Of Such Facts As

Require An Answer; For, If You Trust Your Memory Till The Time Of

Writing, You Will Omit Half You Would Otherwise Say.

Chapter XIII Pg 217

Friday, 11Th December.

 

 

I Really Wish Much To Know The Conduct Of -----. It Is, However, More

Curiosity Than Anxiety. It Would Be Childish To Build Any Part Of

One'S Happiness On A Basis So Unstable.

 

 

The Van Rensselaer Before Mentioned, And Henceforth To Be Designated

By _Ll_., Proves To Be A Phenomenon Of Goodness And (Can You Believe

It) Even Tenderness. Tenderness, I Hear You Cry, In A Hollandois! But

Hold Your Injustice; The Character And Fine Heart Of Van Rensselaer

Will, I Think, In Future, Remove Your Prejudice, Especially When You

Add To This His Marked Attention And Civility.

 

 

Saturday, 12Th December.

 

 

Van Rensselaer Finds Fault With My Quarters, Which, Indeed, Are Far

Removed From Elegance, And, In Some Respects, From Convenience. He

Insists That I Suffer Him To Provide Me Better.

 

 

I Have Not Hitherto Had An Hour Of Yates. His Reasons, However, Have

Been Good. On Monday We Are To Mangle Law.

 

 

Sunday, 13Th December.

 

 

Van Rensselaer Has Succeeded Perfectly To My Wish. I Am With Two

Maidens, Aunts Of His, Obliging And (Incredible!!) Good-Natured. The

Very Paragon Of Neatness. Not An Article Of Furniture, Even To A

Teakettle, That Would Soil A Muslin Handkerchief. I Have Two Upper

Rooms. I Was Interrupted At The Line Above, And Cannot Now, For My

Life, Recollect What I Was Intending To Write. I Leave It, However, To

Plague You As It Has Done Me.

 

 

Monday, 14Th December.

 

 

I Really Fear Yates Is Playing The Fool With Me. Still Evasive, Though

Plausibly So. I Have Just Had An Interview. To-Morrow I Must And Will

Come To A Positive Eclaircissement.

 

 

I Am Determined, In Future, When Doubt Arises In My Mind Whether I

Shall Write A Thing Or Not, Invariably To Write It. You Recollect

-----'S Advising That Carlos [3] Should Learn The Violin.