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January [Centered] Friday, 31 [Right] 1873

Studies are resumed today. What a miserable race we are. Here we have had two weeks recreation and where we wish to resume our classes we fuid [find] that we are lazier than before we got those two weeks. And look what is ahead of us: thirteen theses of logic. I received a letter from Bayard Brasher today. He says he “has just left my house where he went in the hope of seeing my friendly face thinking that I had come home to stay the rest of the week after ‘doing myself so proud’.” He adds “My feelings were rather mixed at that time (when he heard that I had come and gone) but the one which predominated was anything but charitable when I thought of those who had allowed you to come home for two or three hours a time just about long enough to make you want to stay longer.” It is unnecessary perhaps to say that I “fully concur” in all that has been said by my friend. Today is the last of January truly the month of snows. Last night’s “Advertiser” (Newark paper) has quite a notice of our Exhibition and among other things notices me as the son of my father as I don’t mean that as the son of W. E./Robinson.

February [Centered] Saturday, 1.

Ye month of February puh [puts] in our appearance today. Feb old boy proved to be anything but agreeable in on his first introduction. Some people might have though [thought] that with him would come the sun would go the snow. Short-lived Feb made answer “Oh dear no not for Joe not for Joseph if Feb knows it.” Hence it is that instead of getting better the weather is as bad as ever. Enough for one day at least about weather. The South Orange Bulletin has got a notice of our Exhibition in it. Although the account is almost taken almost word for word out of the “Newark Advertiser” our village paper does not acknowledge it’s obligations to the Advertiser in the least put sticks it under the column “Doings at Home” (or some such heading) as if it obtained it all by itself. Talk about city impudence? Give me Jersey and South Orange and I will say “Come on McDuff.” Of course I do not mean to say anything against the Bulletin for considering the rise of the village it is quite a remarkable little sheet.

[Centered] Sunday, 2.

What did I do today? Such is the question which John asked of himself. The result a pounding of the head a state of excitement a gradual subsiding into settled despair. H.W. Beecher speaking of the seasons says of February “The day opens, but the night shuts the Earth with its frost-lock. They strive together, but the Darkness and the cold are growing weaker. On some nights they forget to work.” Henry Ward may be a very fine speaker and is without doubt a pleasing writer but he often makes mistakes in his assertions. The idea to say that “the Darkness and the cold are growing weaker.” No indeed! They are growing stronger, at least the cold. Instead of acting according to the way the great speaker preacher and writer has said it ought old cold has been cutting up in a manner that would indicate anything but a disposition to give up the battle. I fill up a good deal of space writing about nothing! How would the Pastor of Plymouth Church feel if he found out I was using his name only in order to fill up the pages or rather lines of a diary.