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Writings of Charles S. Peirce
Volume 6
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By the end of September the first phase of construction at Quicktown was complete. Peirce wrote to Jem with some satisfaction that “our house” is “very comfortable, very pretty” and “not in the least in the Queen Anne nor any other style. It is our own original style” (30 September 1889). He continued with a description of his estate and plans for its development and added: “I am confident that we shall eventually make money from this place.” But this was to remain the elusive silver lining. Peirce’s enthusiasm for Quicktown, his dream of a comfortable, even elegant, country life with Juliette, had already begun to fade. In part this was due to the combined demands of managing the renovations, running the farm, and his professional work, but that was not all. He continued his letter to Jem: “But now I must turn to quite another side of the canvass.” The other side was “dear Juliettes health.” Peirce told Jem that her diseased lungs were even worse than they had been the previous year when she had been warned not to spend her winters in the North. Clearly, she would have to winter elsewhere again this year. To make matters worse, Juliette had become very depressed, a condition Peirce might have been prone to as well.52 On 11 July in an outburst of anger and frustration, Peirce struck a domestic helper, Marie Blanc, and a few days later was charged with assault. Joseph Brent speculates that Peirce may have lost his temper while attempting to upbraid Miss Blanc for not following Juliette’s orders.53 Such domestic tension could only have added weight to the pall that was descending over Quicktown. The case was not resolved until October when Peirce pled guilty to one count of assault and was fined twenty-five dollars plus court costs. Everything taken into account, life for the Peirce’s in the summer and fall of 1889 had taken a decided turn for the worse and tensions were mounting. But Charles and Juliette were resilient and still usually hopeful. In November they added significantly to their land holdings by purchasing an additional 1200 acres of woodland. Apparently Peirce was growing used to his new life. He continued his 30 September letter to Jem: “This living in the country is highly conducive to reading long works in many volumes. I have not a rage for reading; indeed I think an impulse to study and an impulse to read are rather antagonistic; but I get through a good many books here. I find nothing wears better than Sainte Beuve.”
Had Peirce and Juliette been content with modest country living, with an excellent library to fill their idle hours and with only infrequent trips back to New York for a fashionable dinner or an evening at the theater, they might have managed to avoid the terrible poverty that lay ahead. But they seemed determined to amass a great estate—adding yet another five hundred acres the following year—and modest living seemed to be out of the question. When it became necessary to deal with Juliettes winter convalescence, much of Peirce’s inheritance had been used up—the greater part that he had already received. Yet cost does not appear to have been a factor. Peirce explained to Jem that because of Juliette’s depression, he thought it “absolutely indispensable that she should be where she finds amusement” (30 September 89), and he thought that Sicily might be the place for her. As it happened, Jem had been in Europe for nearly three months and would be there for several more. Relations with Jem had improved since Aunt Lizzie’s death, and Peirce was relieved to have him there to watch out for Juliette.
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