I was told often before I left Home that coming into Virginia would bring me into the midst of many dangerous Temptations: Gay Company, frequent entertainments, little practical devotion, no remote pretention to Heart religion, daily examples in Men of the highest quality, of Luxury, intemperance, & impiety: these were urged, by my kind acquaintances, as very strong dissuasions against my leaving home; the admonitions I accepted with great Thankfulness, tho' I could not allow them to turn me off from my purpose & I resolved with as much sincerity & Firmness as I could to carry them with me in every part of my behaviour. The close of the time of my Stay here is I expect now near at hand: And if I may judge myself of the carrying my resolutions into practice, I should pronounce that I have not been wanting in my duty in this respect. Some few who frequently ask me to go from home, say I am dull, unsociable, & splenetic: But the Gentlemen generally here have a good & reasonable manner of judging in this case they are well pleased with strict & rigid virtue in those who have the management of their children, if it does not grow to factious enthusiasm; so that Levity, tho perhaps they would wink at it lessens, & in a while would take away the Reputation & business of a Family Tutor--Of this I was fully convinced in a short time after my coming into the Colony, & saw too the very great advantage of the Precaution which I received from my friends, for they assisted me in setting out on a safe, and prudent Plan, which has, I hope directed me to propriety of conduct with regard to my private character, & likewise to my little lovely Charge. [Illustration: man on ladder in tree] _Thursday 13._ Good Mr Stadley left us this morning. I took leave with great reluctance of this worthy Man, & do not expect to see him more!--After Breakfast Mrs Carter with the young Ladies, rode to Colonel Tayloe's. My jaw continues growling & keeps me uneasy, I very much fear some hurtful humours are collecting themselves there together--To day at twelve o-Clock _Bob_ providentially escaped with his life--He went up into a tall Chesnut tree to cut down Boughs & gather Chesnuts & foolishly he began to cut the Limb on which he was standing, at a little distance from his feet--Chesnut splits extremely easy, so that when the Limb was about half cut off it split down; this so weaked the part on which Bob stood that his weight instantly split it too, & down he must have tumbled upwards of thirty feet but he happily caught a bough on his way down.-- _Fryday 14._