“After about a week a vessel was seen off Siasconset, and boarded by a pilot.  Her captain said he would go anywhere and take anybody, as all he wanted was a harbor.  Two men whose business would suffer if they remained at home took passage in her, and with the pilot, Patterson, she left in good weather and was seen off Chatham at night.  It was hoped that Patterson would return and bring at least a few newspapers, but no more is known of them.  Our postmaster thought he was not allowed to send the mails by such a conveyance.

“Yesterday we got up quite an excitement because a large steamship was seen near the Haul-over.  She set a flag for a pilot, and was boarded.  It was found that she was out of course, twenty days from Glasgow, bound to New York.  What the European news is we do not yet know, but it is plain that we are nearer to Europe than to Hyannis.  Christians as we are, I am afraid we were all sorry that she did not come ashore.  We women revelled in the idea of the rich silks she would probably throw upon the beach, and the men thought a good job would be made by steamboat companies and wreck agents.

“Last night the weather was so mild that a plan was made for cutting out the steamboat; all the Irishmen in town were ordered to be on the harbor with axes, shovels, and saws at seven this morning.  The poor fellows were exulting in the prospect of a job, but they are sadly balked, for this morning at seven a hard storm was raging—­snow and a good north-west wind.  What has become of the English steamer no one knows, but the wind blows off shore, so she will not come any nearer to us.

“Inside of the house we amuse ourselves in various ways.  F.’s family and ours form a club meeting three times a week, and writing ’machine poetry’ in great quantities.  Occasionally something very droll puts us in a roar of laughter.  F., E., and K. are, I think, rather the smartest, though Mr. M. has written rather the best of all.  At the next meeting, each of us is to produce a sonnet on a subject which we draw by lot.  I have written mine and tried to be droll.  K. has written hers and is serious.

“I am sadly tried by this state of things.  I cannot hear from Cambridge (the Nautical Almanac office), and am out of work; it is cloudy most of the time, and I cannot observe; and I had fixed upon just this time for taking a journey.  My trunk has been half packed for a month.

“January 23.  Foreseeing that the thermometer would show a very low point last night, we sat up until near midnight, when it stood one and one-half below zero.  The stars shone brightly, and the wind blew freshly from west north-west.

“This morning the wind is the same, and the mercury stood at six and one-half below zero at seven o’clock, and now at ten A.M. is not above zero.  The Coffin School dismissed its scholars.  Miss F. suffered much from the exposure on her way to school.

“The ‘Inquirer’ came out this morning, giving the news from Europe brought by the steamer which lies off ’Sconset.  No coal has yet been carried to the steamer, the carts which started for ’Sconset being obliged to return.