December 16, 1832
Early, dreary, overcast sky; hazy horizon. At seven thirty, 3°R [38.8°F, 3.8°C]. Unhealthful damp weather conditions. It remained dark so long that at about eight o’clock one could hardly read the thermometer. Today I finished a long letter to Neuwied and another one to Mr. Volz in Pittsburgh, accompanied by a little box of seeds for Professor Treviranus at Bonn, which I hope a traveler to Cincinnati will take along. Rain was falling, which toward noon deteriorated into large snowflakes, which, however, will not remain on the ground. At twelve o’clock, 2°R [36.5°F, 2.5°C] with wet, falling snow. In the streets, endless mud. I struggled through it to Mr. Say’s and there saw some new American journals, including one (The Monthly American Journal of Geology, June 1832), in which Murtrie’s translation of Cuvier’s Règne animal is sharply criticized.
When I came home, Mr. Lesueur was there, and we talked for a long time about our favorite plan, a general work on zoology that would bring together everything known up to now in the various branches of this science. Mr. Bodmer went out with the shotgun and returned about five thirty but had not shot anything.
In the evening we visited Mr. Say, where we had an interesting conversation. I learned that John Dunn Hunter’s work is largely fabricated and thus has no value at all. On the other hand, the history by Tanner, who likewise grew up among the Indians, is completely based on facts. Mr. Say had seen Tanner himself.