Monday, January 12:
Memories of earlier days and sufferings, for which R. pities me, as if he had not suffered and borne just as much! My day, both before and after lunch, is given over to the new house, where there are still many troubles. In the scant moments left to me I read Werthers Leiden in the old edition, and am greatly moved once again by the tenderness of the emotions. R. laughs when he sees me reading with such concentration a few minutes before supper, and he offers to read it with me afterward. I start with the letter of May 22, with the dreaming resignation! R. says it is the world outlook which is important in Werther, not the novel itself.
R. has had some dealings with Bonfantini, the printer, and in consequence is making some corrections in the biography. “In business matters I like dealing with Frenchmen, but not when ideas are involved.” Today blue ink, a gift from R.