SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 1861.
It has been a fine winter day. M. this morning stood at 12. Went to church with wife and boys. Heard a Mr Black of Covington K.Y. a near relative of Mr Sec’y Black. He has evidently mistaken his occupation. Wrote a letter this evening to Col. Paine and took it to the P.O. Walked fast down and back without stoping. It took 28 minutes exactly. Requested the Col. to stop in Elmira for Julia as he is coming to Washington. Wife has been reading “Partons Life of Jackson” aloud and it is now 11 o’clock and time to go to bed (rather later than common).
The three diary manuscript volumes, Washington during the Civil War: The Diary of Horatio Nelson Taft, 1861-1865, are available online at The Library of Congress.