"Auri sacra fames!" (manuscript essay), 1798 June 8

Three-page handwritten essay in English by Buckminster on wealth, greed, and economy. The essay is titled with a quote from Virgil that can be translated, "The accursed greed for gold." The essay begins, "The passion for wealth is, like every other passion, often carried to an extreme." The document has edits and struck-through words.

Journal of Charles Coffin and David Gurney, 1781-1785

This diary appears to have been kept by two different students, both members of the Harvard College class of 1785. The first two pages contain entries made by a student named David, believed to be David Gurney because the entries relate to the freshman curriculum and Gurney was the only student named David who was a freshman in 1781. Gurney originally titled the volume "A Journal or Diary of my concerns in College of important matters." He made entries from August 28 through October 21, 1781, recording his lessons on Virgil, Tully, Homer, the Greek Testament, Hebrew grammar, English author John Ash's "Grammar," and a text called "The Art of Speaking." At the top of one of the pages recounting these studies, Gurney wrote in large, bold letters: "About how I misspent my precious time." Charles Coffin's entries begin on October 25, 1781 and fill the bulk of the journal. Coffin kept this diary while a student at Harvard College from 1781 to 1785. Although most of Coffin's entries are written in Latin, an account of his July 1781 examination for admission to the College is in English.

Student essay composed by Curtis Guild, 1795

Two-page handwritten essay written in English by Curtis Guild when he was an undergraduate at Harvard College. The essay is titled with a quote in Latin from Virgil, "Omnis in Ascanio cari stat cura parentis," that translates as, “All the fond Parent’s Care centers in Ascanio.” The essay begins, “The machinery of man is wonderful…” and discusses parental affection. The essay is signed “C Guild” and dated May 7, 1795.