All the girls are keeping a diary because Miss Dearborn was very
much ashamed when the school trustees told her that most of the
girls' and all of the boys' compositions were disgraceful, and
must be improved upon next term. She asked the boys to write
letters to her once a week instead of keeping a diary, which they
thought was girlish like playing with dolls. The boys thought it
was dreadful to have to write letters every seven days, but she
told them it was not half as bad for them as it was for her who
had to read them.

To make my diary a little different I am going to call it a
THOUGHT Book (written just like that, with capitals). I have
thoughts that I never can use unless I write them down, for Aunt
Miranda always says, Keep your thoughts to yourself. Aunt Jane
lets me tell her some, but does not like my queer ones and my
true thoughts are mostly queer. Emma Jane does not mind hearing
them now and then, and that is my only chance.

If Miss Dearborn does not like the name Thought Book I will call
it Remerniscences (written just like that with a capital R).
Remerniscences are things you remember about yourself and write
down in case you should die. Aunt Jane doesn't like to read any
other kind of books but just lives of interesting dead people and
she says that is what Longfellow (who was born in the state of
Maine and we should be very proud of it and try to write like
him) meant in his poem:

"Lives of great men all remind us
We should make our lives sublime,
And departing, leave behind us