Tues. night [March 22, 1853]
Severe pain in the right side — and rheumatism in my head. Suffered Wed, Thurs. Frid. rather better, except cough & pain in the side.
Sat.
Mr. Phipps too sick to preach in Bridgewater. Laura went to Boston to see about it. Dr. E.A. too sick to go out. He took a violent cold. So we had 4 on the gruel list.
Sund.
None fit to go to church except Watty.
Mond.
I worked about considerably but not well.
Tues. 29th March
Raised some blood, suffered a great deal of distress in my chest. had to keep very still & feed on castor oil & gruel. Sunday last I wrote to Susan.
Wednes.
Mary Cushing came from Prov. to take home L. & children. L. went to Boston Germania rehersal.
Frid. April 1st
Morning the precious load went in a bus to Rox. station. M.C., L. Phipps, two children, Ellen H. & A. Arnold and in the afternoon Rachel C. + Rev. Phipps left us Sat. morn for Bridgewater. The house quite empty.
Sund.
Charly and I too unwell to attend church.
Mond. 4th.
A steady rain. Dr. E.A. better and I feel somewhat better. Can sew some &c. I have agreed to give M. Curley 1’50 per week from the first of April.
Tues. 5th
I cut a green vest for Watty and in a few days made it and finished two shirts for Charly, besides mending drawers for E.A.W. Rev. P. came home Mond. & Wednes. returned to Bridge — to preach a fast sermon — and stay over Sund.
Sat.
Watty got home early & went to Boston with his father who bought him a fine coat & vest. Ann gave warning that she wanted to quit & live in Boston.
Sund. 10th
I went to church with Charles, Wat & Rachel.
Mond.
A fine day for washing. quite a treat. Dr. spent Thurs. 7th in N.P. at the auction. Rachel C. spent a week in Provid. & returned Frid. 8th. She was hoarse with a cold. She paid her board up to the first of April. 52. Deduct 5$
Mond.
Mr. P. came from B. & then fled to see his loves in Prov.
Tues. 12th
A. Ferguson eng. to take Ann’s place.
Frid. 15th
I filled a pillow & cushion with my hen’s feathers — packed things from moths. Sent a bundle of old clothes — to Mrs. L. to make me some matts. We have had two beautiful days. Frogs & turtles peeping Wednes.
Tues. April 19th
I went over to Cambridge. Dr. & Miss Cushing called at Mrs. Whipples to meet Mrs. Fisk & see about Emily’s things. I cut & made me a dress this week, mohair lustre. Mr. Phipps & I went to the musical Fund rehearsal. Frid. 22
Sat.
Took up stair carpet, put down rods.
Sund. 24th
Rev.d Phipps preached in Fall River. Then goes to Prov. I rec. a letter from Susan Frid. A letter from Laura fr. Prov. She said that Anna had been sick with croup.
The Germania Musical Society was an orchestra of German emigrés that performed in the United States from 1848 to 1854. Emily Dickinson attended a performance at Amherst College three weeks after the rehearsal mentioned here. Dickinson, in a letter to her brother Austin, wrote:
Ann Ferguson, hired to replace the other Ann who apparently followed through on her desire to quit and live in Boston. This Ann Ferguson may be the same one, born in Ireland c1833, who was listed with the James & Mary Williams family in Brookline in the 1850 Census.
Mary makes frequent reference to putting down and taking up carpets with the change of seasons, though this is the only mention of stair carpet. Stair rods were used to hold carpet in place on stairs. They are still used but largely for decorative purposes. It is unclear what Mary means when she says "put down rods" after taking up the carpet. It could mean they were put downstairs somewhere for storage until the next winter.
An auction of 40 acres of farmland -- "fine meadow, orchard and tillage land...well supplied with water" -- remaining unsold from the 1851 auction of land (see p9) that had belonged to Mary's mother.
It's not clear who Mrs. L. is, but making "matts," or rugs, from old clothes, was a common practice. Read more about it in this post -- "Rag Rugs, Mats & Carpets" -- on the blog Old & Interesting: History of Domestic Paraphernalia
Mrs. Whipple was the widow of Emily Jennison's first cousin William Jennison Whipple. It's unclear who Mrs. Fisk is, but Emily's uncle had married a Sally Fiske.
