life must have been
scarcely less dreary than the rest of the surroundings. Accordingly,
with this change of scene, the Diary, so long a record of festivities
sometimes dull and formal, but generally collecting interesting and
distinguished persons, ceases almost wholly to refer to topics of
society. Yet, of course, even the foul streets could not prevent
people from occasionally meeting together. There were simple
tea-drinkings, stupid weekly dinners at the President's, infrequent
receptions by Mrs. Monroe, card-parties and conversation-parties,
which at the British minister's were very "elegant," and at the French
minister's were more gay. Mons. de Neuville, at his dinners, used to
puzzle and astound the plain-living Yankees by serving dishes of
"turkeys without bones, and puddings in the form of fowls, fresh cod
disguised like a salad, and celery like oysters;" further, he
scandalized some and demoralized others by having dancing on (p. 103)
Saturday evenings, which the New England ladies had been "educated to
consider as holy time." Mr. and Mrs. Adams used to give weekly parties
on Tuesday evenings, and apparently many persons stood not a little in
awe of these entertainments and of the givers of them, by reason of
their superior familiarity with the manners and customs of the best
society of Europe. Mrs. Adams was, "on the whole, a very pleasant and
agreeable woman; but the Secretary [had] no talent to entertain a
mixed company, either by conversation or manners;" thus writes this
same Mr. Mills, whose sentiments towards Mr. Adams were those of
respect rather than of personal liking. The favorite dissipation then
consisted in card-playing, and the stakes were too often out of all
just proportion to the assets of the gamesters. At one time Mr. Clay
was reputed to have lost $8,000, an amount so considerable for him as
to weigh upon his mind to the manifest detriment of his public
functions. But sometimes the gentlemen resident in the capital met for
purposes less innocent than Saturday evening cotillons, or even than
extravagant betting at the card-table, and stirred the dulness of
society by a duel. Mr. Adams tells of one affair of this sort, fought
between ex-Senator Mason, of Virginia, and his cousin, wherein the
weapons used were muskets, and the distance was only six paces. (p. 104)
Mason was killed; his cousin was wounded, and only by a lucky
accident escaped with his life. Mr. Adams had little time and