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[[underlined]] 1862
[[underlined]] Dec 13th
his authority when he received the unexpected tidings his only words were "I was so certain of success" Burnside superseded his friend with great reluctance McClellan was closeted with him for several hours before he left the camp giving him all the information & such knowledge of his plans as he thought might be useful to him. The parting of the Gen. with his men was touching in the extreme They crowded round him to shake his hand & eager for some parting words & when his receding form made them realize they were losing their beloved commander they ran to him with tears & lamentations crying "come back to us McClellan! come back to us McClellan!" The army has since then been on the Rappahannock opposite Fredericksburg which is in possession of the enemy. The news yesterday & the day before was that our army had crossed the river fired the city & that the Southerners had retired.

Congress has commenced. The President's message is flat. The principal point in it is the renewed recommendation of the second clause of his Proclamation relative to the gradual emancipation of the slaves. Sec. Seward in his report recommends several methods of preventing the too great inflation of the currency. One is by taxing bank note issues, another by forming bank companies for the issue of Government notes, in other words, a great national bank with branches. Gold is now worth 30 per cent.
Father has grown touchingly gentle since Will's 
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[[underlined]]1862
[[underlined]]Dec. 13th
death. He speaks of him quietly & cheerfully but we can see that it is telling upon him. He has given us several talks lately upon architecture. He was the first to introduce that study in Princeton college. He had models of temples ^made & other facilities contrived for the improvement of the pupils but afterwards gave up the department to Prof Dod. Will enjoyed a similar talk last summer.

The lectures have commenced. We have had two from a Prof from Toronto entitled [[underlined]]"Unwritten History." The insolent lecture committee applyed for the room but were refused. Will was very useful to Father lecture nights.

I commenced a head of Father to day in clay. Father looked in upon ^me about noon & seemed much amused at the singular mass I expected one day to look something like him. He left his work one bright day last week to have photographs taken for me.

Mon. Dec. 15th.     Yesterday was a day of excitement. We learned after church that the fighting at Fredericksburg had been very severe 5 000 of our men killed. Gen Bayard a promising young officer lost his life. He was to have been married next Thursday to Miss Bowman daughter of the superintendent at West Point. From nine o'clock until after three to day we heard the distant booming of cannon. It is conjectured that a division of troops under Gen Slocum sent to reenforce Burnside may have been intercepted by the enemy. I met M. Gurley on the [[strikeout]] after [[strikethrough]] Avenue this afternoon. He said he had just come from Willard's Hotel
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