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Park with a party consisting of himself and his wife, her two sisters, the Misses Blake and Mr. James Deforest. They are to have their private car will go to Duluth and other points thereabouts, then at the Park for eight or ten days and perhaps down the Columbia river. I should like very much to go. He wrote me that the only expense to me would be the fare from here to St. Paul and return about $100. I was obliged to decline however, as I have been obliged to decline many nice invitations to go with him. It made me feel badly for a little while to think how I am obliged to miss such pleasant occasions, for I would dearly love to go there and with such pleasant people, but I put it out of my mind as an impossibility and went over to my studio and painted on the little picture I brought up from N.Y. with me. Sara urged me to make an effort to go, had I haven't even the hundred dollars, and if I had I have a hundred places to put it. Marion came by the Powell this evening. She has been absent about two months. 

Wednesday, July 28th 1886. Have been at work in my Studio, on the picture I worked on yesterday which I will put aside now for a while. I also painted a little picture of Dwighty from a little pencil sketch I got two or three days ago. He is very attractive and I wish I could paint him as Sir Joshua Reynolds could have done it. I also painted a little landscape and am trying to get my mind in my work. Sir Joshua's life is most stimulating. His entire devotion to his art is something which ought to be a lesson and an example to all artists. I am going to read now as far as possible what will fix and continue my interest in art.

Thursday 29" I had a long letter from Weir about his brothers death. He writes calmly and philosophically and tries to accept it as a part of the design of Providence. It is well that he can feel so for in the trying circumstances with which he seems so frequently visited it must be a great source of strength. I believe as he does and seem able to meet the great disasters of life while the little daily annoyances fret and worry me continually. I have tried to work in my studio but I seem to command no impelling notions for serious work. I ought to be able to use my invention and think out some work but I do not seem able to. There are too many distracting things to occupy my mind. Have been reading some of Sir Joshua Reynolds lectures and am surprised to see how thoroughly I agree with his idea of art, treating it always as a matter of expression first and always. I do not agree with his estimate of Paul Veronese, whom he treats rather as a decorative painter. His pictures to me have great dignity and nobility and these qualities are not to my mind incompatible with his manner and his fine color. Still Sir Joshua is to me a good authority, even while I am not ready entirely to surrender my individual feeling to him. I wish I could get to work on a fine, large subject and am trying to that end.

Friday 30" We had hard showers last night with incessant thunder and lightning. Today has been damp and close. I have tried to work over in my studio, painting on a picture of Gertrude experimentally, but with a house full of people and anxieties of all kinds hampering me I am in no condition to work. The idea that an artists best work comes out of trouble and worry I do not believe in. I had a postal card from Kurtz simply saying all my pictures were in except the Autumn from Detroit which they wrote him ten days ago they expected to sell. As they have not returned it I am hoping it is sold and probably they have not been paid for it which is why they have not written. It would be a great help to me if it is sold. Andrews and Jamie came home from Wilmington this evening, Jamie troubled with a wisdom tooth. The apple stealing has begun and now I can fight all the rest of the summer. I chased four boys out of the orchard today and got the hat of one of them which fell off in their flight. I am unstable, cross, and unhappy, doing every thing I do not want to do. 

Transcription Notes:
---------- Reopened for Editing 2023-05-06 14:57:48 5/6 this had been closed for review with barely two paragraphs transcribed and these had lots of [[?]]s, please complete transcribing everything before marking for review 5/9: I finished a FULL pass on it. There remain some questions. Kf 5/10: corrected lots of small errors. Think it is done now. -parrish501 ---------- Reopened for Editing 2023-05-10 13:48:38