ad abundance) except the first, ended with rain, by
which means the snow was so hardened that strong gales at NW soon turned
it, & all above ground to ice, which this day seven-night was from one
to three, four & they say, in some places, five feet thick, in the
streets of this town. Last saturday morning we had a snow storm come on,
which continued till four o'clock P.M. when it turned to rain, since
which we have had a warm air, with many showers of rain, one this
morning a little before day attended with thunder. The streets have been
very wet, the water running like rivers all this week, so that I could
not possibly go to school, neither have I yet got the bandage off my
fingure. Since I have been writing now, the wind suddenly sprung up at
NW and blew with violence so that we may get to meeting to-morrow,
perhaps on dry ground. Unkle Ned was here just now & has fairly or
unfairly carried off aunt's cut paper pictures,[50] tho' she told him
she had given them to papa some years ago. It has been a very sickly
time here, not one person that I know of but has been under heavy
colds--(all laid up at unkle Storer's) in general got abroad again. Aunt
Suky had not been down stairs since her lying in, when I last saw her,
but I hear she is got down. She has had a broken breast. I have spun 30
knots of linning yarn, and (partly) new footed a pair of stockings for
Lucinda, read a part of the pilgrim's progress, coppied part of my text
journal (that if I live a few years longer, I may be able to understand
it, for aunt sais, that to her, the contents as I first mark'd them,
were an impenetrable secret) play'd some, tuck'd a great deal (Aunt
Deming says it is very true) laugh'd enough, & I tell aunt it is all
human _nature_, if not human reason. And now, I wish my honored mamma a
very good night.

Saturday noon Feb. 23d--Dear Pappa, do's the winter continue as
pleasant at Cumberland as when you wrote to me last? We had but very
little winter here, till February came in, but we have little else
since. The cold still continues tho' not so extreme as it was last
Thursday. I have attended my schools all this week except one day, and
am going as soon as I have din'd to see how Unkle Ned does. I was
thinking, Sir, to lay up a piece of money you sent me, but as you sent
it to me to lay out I have a mind to buy a chip & linning for my feather
hatt. But my aunt says she will think of it. My aunt says if I behave
myself very well indee