New-York daily tribune., 1859-02-11

The books | read 10 Mt. fIescott al this P"li"n
were Of miscellaneous character. Among then
I remember Mscauhy's E.says which he admired
Greatly and Liked 10 hear read and re-read; that
ps,t Of Humes England, which narrates the reign
~ Elizabeth: Hallsm's Middle Ages, which ne
valued highly for its Judicial impartiality. He hsd
taken fancy at this time To theological investlga
,on and read To him several works on the evidences
of Christianity, among them those Of Palfrey and
Norton. / read also Theodore Parker's Discourse
of Religion 70 which bis attention had been drawn
By the praises ayished on il by some German critic.
He void often stop TO converse upon what we
read. criticsing freely, without much profundlty,
but always with good nature, good sense and
acutepess ] began 10 read 10 him Strauss Life OF
Jesus, but he soon got tired OF il and put 1t aside
saving it Was nothing but piece of literary petit
fogging written upon a system by which you could
prove or disproye any thing by series of sudacous
assumptions and special pleadines.
MI Prescott had house at Nahant, a cottage,
As he himself described il in a letter ''where for
more than twenty years have passed the sum
- mer months, as it is the coolest spot in New
England. The house stands on bald cliff over
looking the ocean, so near that in a storm the
spray is thrown over the piazza, and, as 1t
stands on the extreme point of the peninsula, Is
many miles out at sea. 1t is not bad place
4" this sea.girt citadel-fOr reyerie and writing
=" with the music of the winds and waters lnces-
- below. 1his place is called FItful Head, ana
/" NOTba's was not wilder.
This cottage was a small, plain structure Of wood
an ordinary New-Engsnd dwelling. house, IN
short with yeranda running round three sides OF
it. There were, perhaps, three or four acres OF
ground attached to it, treeless snd shrubless, snd
covered in Summer with scanty growth Of grass.
From the house, on three sides, pebble could DC
tossed into the ocean.
One morning, about the middle Of June when
Boston had become hot aud dusty a grave and
respectable looking elderly man quietly entered
Mr. PrescO,t's study. He had been for forty years
a confidential servant OF the Prescott family, and
was man of substance, with house and family,
and stocks and other investments. Of his own. lie
lived in neghbOTing street, and Mr. Prescott had
sent for him earlier in the morning.
Nathan said Mr. Prescott we shall go to
"Nahant on Monday by the nine o'clock BOAT. See
if the cOttage needs repairs and furniture, ana
have these books sent down pointing TO pile OF
volumes on Spanish history which had selected at
his direction Nathan bowed and withdrew. Mr.
Prescott gave himself further trouble about the
removal At half past eight on Monday morning, be
stepped into carriage, and in couple OF hours
found himself a resident OF Nahant, surrounded Dy
the requisite servants furniture, books, clothing
the quiet and experienced Nathan having thought OF
every thing, and provided everything went down
By the same boat and took possession OF a room at
the great hotel which Nathan had engaged for me,
as he had for former secretaries in many past
year. AT one o'clock, / went to the cottsge and
found Mr. Prescott waiting for Inc in the study-a
plain room about sixteen feet square, the furniture
of which have forgotten except that it contained
dcsk for each Of US, his desk so arranged that as
usual he set with his back to the light. common
set Of hanging shelves contained the books ne had
sent from Boston. The Daily Adreriiser was al
ready skinned over aud put away.
Mr. Prescott usually worked hard at Nahant,
the air Of which refreshed and exhilirated him He
vas now going to begin his history of Philip the H.
" Let us begin with Robertson" said be. took
down the fret volume of the history Of Charles v,
the father of Philip, and read for an hour and a
half, till dinner time. He invited me to dine with
him, TO test, he laushngly said, the extent and
completeness of Nathan's arrangements, for whose
skill as major domo, had expressed some adj
miIatOn. Nothing lnting. The dinner was
perfectly served. He drank, usual, two mod
crate glasses of sherry and then said that IN honor
OF Nahant he WOud indulge in a glass OF champagne.
He remarked that IN the damp atmosphere 0l Ma
hant as that OF Ens land, he could drink twice the
same quantity of wine, without injury, that he
could in the dry interior OF our country. lie SAT
long al the table, eating very moderately, and chat
ting ard Joking with his inyincib,e cheeriulLess,
exeIting himself TO induce every one present TO
take a due share in the conversation. he was a
good listener, and had much tact in leading those
around him TO talk, invariably paying the most
patient attention 10 whatever was said, skiliiuly
avoiding disputation, though be was remarkably
fond Of gOOd-natured, animated discussion. When
the ladies withdrew we lighted our cigars, OF which
he gave me handful, saying should probably not
find any 30 good at the hotel and We adjourned IL
the yeIanda, where he walked about for some time
talking OF Nahant pointing out to the pecullarl-
ties of the scenery, aud dwelling with interest on
the particulars OF dreadful shipwreck which had
taken place on a reef that lay almost beneath the
windows of his house. BY the time his single
cigar was smoked, his hour for exercise had ar
rived, and left him.
His walks at Nahant never varied In the morn
ing ard evening" unless it was stormy, he walked
through the main street of the hamlet to the long
beach, turning back when he reached a certain
rock on the beach, and retracing his steps. In the
middle of the day, or when the mornings were hot,
be resOrttd to a sort Of valley meadow i'll the IN
terror of the peninsula, where there were trees
enough to give some shade, aad psced backward
and forward certain number of times along a
path whi:h the villagers had worn l think, IN
going 10 church. If the weather was very hot be
would put on bis hat, take his cane and walk on
the vcIanda. Several times during the Summer
when the hour Of intermissiOn, from ~ to |, ar
rived, the weather was so stormy that neither OF
US cared TO 60 forth, 10 the yeraDda. On these
occasions be would put on his hat, take his cane
and opening the door of the study, walk briskly t.
and fro across the room and along the adjoining
entry, sometimes when composing, in silence,
f, while l read to myself; but generally he would
start some topic of conversation and talk loud
enough for me to hear him when he was trayersng
the entry.
Weremained at Nahant through June, July and
August. / read TO Mr.. Prescott there, beside
some Light literature, Robertson's Charles ",
Watson's Philip H., that portion of Rankes Ot-
and xxhtch l.ta 20 Snsip