She has taken to beseeching me to stop going over the Falls. What harm
does it do? Says it makes her shudder. I wonder why. I have always done
it—always liked the plunge, and the excitement, and the coolness. I
supposed it was what the Falls were for. They have no other use that I
can see, and they must have been made for something. She says they were
only made for scenery—like the rhinoceros and the mastodon.
I went over the Falls in a barrel—not satisfactory to her. Went over in
a tub—still not satisfactory. Swam the Whirlpool and the Rapids in a
fig-leaf suit. It got much damaged. Hence, tedious complaints about my
extravagance. I am too much hampered here. What I need is change of
scene.