8.—My week’s book is nicely kept, and so far is reasonable.

Milk and sugar 7d., bread 6d., butter 8d., marmalade 6d., eggs 1s.

8d., laundress 2s. 9d., oil 6d., attendance 5s.; total 12s. 2d.

The landlady has a son who, she told me, is “somethink on a

homnibus”. He comes occasionally to see her. I think he drinks, for he

talks very loud, regardless of the hour of the day or night, and

tumbles about over the furniture downstairs.

All the morning I sit indoors writing—articles; verses for the

comic papers; a novel I’ve been “at” for three years, and concerning

which I have dreams; a children’s book, in which the imagination has

free rein; and another book which is to last as long as myself, since

it is an honest record of my soul’s advance or retreat in the struggle

of life. Besides these, I keep a book of poems which I use as a safety

valve, and concerning which I have no dreams whatsoever.

Between the lot I am always occupied. In the afternoons I generally

try to take a walk for my health’s sake, through Regent’s Park, into

Kensington Gardens, or farther afield to Hampstead.Heath.

Oct. 10.—Everything went wrong to-day. I have two eggs for

breakfast. This morning one of them was bad. I rang the bell for

Emily. When she came in I was reading the paper, and, without looking

up, I said, “Egg’s bad.” “Oh, is it, sir? ” she said; “I’ll get another

one,” and went out, taking the egg with her. I waited my breakfast for

her return, which was in five minutes. She put the new egg on the

table and went away. But, when I looked down, I saw that she had taken

away the good egg and left the bad one—all green and yellow—in the

slop basin. I rang again.

“You’ve taken the wrong egg,” I said.

“Oh! ” she exclaimed; ” I thought the one I took down didn’t smell

so very bad.” In due time she returned with the good egg, and I

resumed my breakfast with two eggs, but less appetite. It was all very

trivial, to be sure, but so stupid that I felt annoyed. The character

of that egg influenced everything I did. I wrote a bad article, and

tore it up. I got a bad headache. I used bad words—to myself.

Everything was bad, so I “chucked” work and went for a long walk.