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Basin Harbor, Vt. Friday, Aug. 9, 1940. This morning to our great regret all the bass were dead on their line - presumably because the string through their gills kept them from breathing properly. The children were very sad about this and I felt pretty guilty about it myself. Commodore Taft and I drove over to Vergennes this morning to shop and look around and wound up in the tap room of the Stevens Hotel, 153 years old, where we imbibed a couple of nice cold beers that went down very nicely. One thing I notice about Taft is his keen interest in nearly everything. He's very observant - can enjoy just walking down the street in a place like Vergennes and noticing everything that's different. That seems a common faculty of interesting talkers - he is a good conversationalist and has a good memory for all he see and does. I have noticed the same characteristic in Herman Emmet who also is a very good conversationalist. Dominay isn't in shape yet to play tennis but I am more and more certain that he is out of my class particularly since I've had no practice. I knocked the ball around with Bab for a while today but that wasn't much help - she has improved a lot over last year though. She, Rog and I had a good row on the lake afterward and I decided maybe the sun does burn here after all. This evening they had an exhibition tennis match - mixed doubles - followed by a masquerade or rather costume party. Mrs. Pirtsch let me have a blue beach robe and hat of hers and Taft went in a dressing gown and turban that made