FRIDAY 3
Rainy day, cold and chilly. In the Pat office the troops have been drilling in all the Halls. The RI Marine Battery, 6 [Janus?] rifled cannon, 150 men, 90 Horses, &c have arrived. They marched through PA Ave to the Prests with their guns and attracted much attention. There is not much doing in the office at present. I have plenty of time to read and write letters. But there is so much excitement that it is almost impossible to fix ones mind upon any one subject long at a time.
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.