Page:Some unpublished letters of Henry D. and Sophia E. Thoreau; a chapter in the history of a still-born book.djvu/127

 —the mother, I should say, about sixty-five, the daughter [Sophia] forty. The conversation drifted readily to [the subject of] the son and brother. Mr. X. called and planned a walk for both of us to-morrow. Found him sociable and attentive. During the evening more talk about Thoreau's last illness. His mother said: "Why, this room [their parlor] did not seem like a sick-room. My son wanted flowers and pictures and books all around here; and he was always so cheerful and wished others to be so while about him. And during the nights he wanted the lamp set on the floor and some chairs put around it so that in his sleepless hours he could amuse himself with watching the shadows."

Sept. 4. Fitful sleeping last night: too full of thinking. This A. M. called upon Alcott with Miss Thoreau. Had a fine interview with him. He talked about Carlyle, Thoreau, books, his own experience, etc. I did not see his daughter Louise. She had just come back from the Army Hospital at Washington; had lost part of her hair and so was unpresentable.

This P. M., X. Y. Z. and I took our walk. Went off to the S. W. of the village (on 'the old Marlborough Road,' I think) and finally struck Concord river in a. curve where X. said