The earliest entry in this diary has been already quoted in the first



CHAPTER of the present biography. On its second page occurs the
following account of his impressions while in church on Easter Sunday:

"Monday, April 17, 1843.--Yesterday I went to the Catholic church
at West Roxbury. It was Easter Sunday. The services were, to me, very
impressively affecting. The altar-piece represented Christ's rising
from the tomb, and this was the subject-matter of the priest's
sermon. In the midst of it he turned and pointed to the painting,
with a few touching words. All eyes followed his, which made his
remarks doubly affecting. How inspiring it must be to the priest,
when he is preaching, to see around him the Saviour, and the goodly
company of martyrs, saints, and fathers! There may be objections to
having paintings and sculptures in churches, but I confess that I
never enter a place where there is either but I feel an awe, an
invisible influence, which strikes me mute. I would sit in silence,
covering my head. A sanctified atmosphere seems to fill the place and
to penetrate my soul when I enter, as if I were in a holy temple.
'Thou standest in a holy place,' I would say. A loud word, a heavy
footstep, makes me shudder, as if an infidel were desecrating the
place. I stand speechless, in a magical atmosphere that wraps my
whole being, scarcely daring to lift my eyes. A perfect stillness
comes over my soul; it seems to be soaring on the bosom of clouds."

"Tuesday, April 18.--I confess that either the Church is not
sufficient for my wants or I have not seen it in its glory. I hope it
may be the latter. I do not want to say it, but I must own that it