April 1851 (?)
Bedford, Massachusetts (?)

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        "Will you please give us an answer—and your subject—if you consent to come—by Mr. Charles Bowers, who is to lecture here tomorrow evening." This letter, without date or place of origin, is signed by one "W. Cushing" as "Chairman Ex. Comtee—" (C, p. 653). On 2 April 1851, Charles Bowers, who was a curator of the Concord Lyceum during the 1850-51 season, lectured before the Concord Lyceum on the topic of "Shoemakers" (MassLyc, p. 165). According to the Thoreau Textual Center at CU-SB, a William Cushing lived in Bedford at that time. If Thoreau did lecture in Bedford in or around April 1851, he would likely have read "Economy," "Cape Cod," or "Walking."