10 A.M. W. just finished breakfast. Stopped in to leave "The Red Rover" with him. He spoke of "the good illustrations" of his "first-rate remembrance" of Long Tom Coffin. Gave me for reading, Carpenter's red-covered volume—"Civilization—its cause and cure." "No," he said to my question, "I have not read it all—it is solid reading"—his tone implying "too solid."
I had my much-marked pocket copy of Leaves of Grass with me. He took it and looked it over curiously. "This appears to be a good copy—one of the best—for printing: most of them are damnably poor—so poor a fellow is ashamed to think of them." As to the poor binding of Carpenter's book: "I understand that certain of the English books are bound with reference to being bound again." I am betting this is one of them.
"The day looks heavy," he remarked, and he was dubious about getting out. But he sounded better than last night.