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[160] UT [Recollections of Thoreau and Concord] (1897–1898) Amanda P. Mather Amanda P. Mather (1815–1879) was married to William Mather (d. 1868), who served as minister of Concord’s Trinitarian Church from 1844 to 1849 and who shared an interest in natural history with Thoreau. During these years, the Mathers became close friends of the Thoreaus. These letters respond to questions raised by Amanda’s nephew Daniel Mason (1873–1953), a composer and professor of music at Columbia University, who in researching Thoreau for articles later published in the Harvard Monthly, had asked his aunt for her recollections of the Thoreau family. Mason’s “The Idealistic Basis of Thoreau’s Genius” appeared in December 1897, and “Harrison G. O. Blake, ’35, and Thoreau” in May 1898. Mather’s detailed, thoughtful letters to Daniel Mason and to his mother, Helen Mason, recount the facts about Thoreau’s life as she experienced and remembered them. Interestingly, although a minister’s wife, Mather is quite tolerant of Thoreau’s unapologetic public appearances on Sunday mornings, as churchgoers returning home encountered him en route to or from his usual outdoor rambles. Thoreau “took no pains to conceal his doings,” she explains, nor did he show any “spirit of defiance or scorn for others. He simply did his way, and was willing they should do theirs.” To Helen [Mason], 9 August 1897 You asked about my memories of Concord life, Thoreau &c. It’s a big subject but interesting. If I could sit down of an evening with you, and your son, it would be nice. People in these days have nature revealed to them by science as they did not in Thoreau’s time, and many things which he thought and felt, would not be so strange now as they were then. The family lived near us, and there were several reasons why we were more closely drawn together than would have been expected of persons not sympathiz- [161] ing in other things. Your Uncle Mather was fond of scientific studies, always took “The Scientific American,” and nature in the common sense of the word, as it lies around us, was a favorite study with him. This interested Henry. If he, in his tramps off into the woods, found a new grass or plant, he would bring it to Mr Mather and Mr Mather the same to him. The “Unitarian defection,” as it was called, had divided churches a little earlier, and the old ch[urch] in Concord with the narrow creed of orthodox lines at that day, had split into separation. This separation was some five years before we went there. The smaller part came off and formed the orthodox ch[urch] of which Mr Mather was Pastor, and the old ch[urch] becoming more decided in its Unitarian creed remained. The Thoreau family remained with the old ch[urch]. But two Aunts, sisters of Mr Thoreau , the Father came to our ch[urch]. They were ladies of strong character and high social position, and had almost as much influence with Henry and his two sisters, as their own parents. So it happened that these two sisters came to our ch[urch] with their Aunts quite often. Henry was younger, and his taste for nature, led him I think to look for truth and light in it, and in the circumstances, to drop between the two churches. Often times on a Sab. morning, as we went to ch[urch] we met him in his weekday dress going off to the river or woods, and may be on our return, again, with a bunch of plants or branches of trees in his hands. He took no pains to conceal his doings, nor was there any spirit of defiance or scorn for others. He simply did his way, and was willing they should do theirs. His sisters were gifted, were musical and had taste for art &c. Used their pencils and studied nature in sketching and painting. The principle or use of the “Camera Obscura” was described about that time, and Mr Mather was much interested in it and sent away for the lenses and made the box himself , and we had great pleasure in it, it gave very perfect pictures and the Thoreaus used to come in for it, take the view by the Camera, and then by placing an oiled paper on the glass, draw the outline. So our tastes drew us together. It is hard to classify Henry Thoreau, to put him...

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