"The man, whose head is full of studious thought, or whose heart is full of care, will eat his dinner without knowing whether it was well or ill dressed, or whether it was served punctually at the hour or not: and though absence from the common things of life is far from desirable--especially in a woman--yet too minute and anxious an attention to them seldom fails to produce a teasing, mean, and fretful disposition."
Letters on the Improvement of the Mind, Addressed to a Lady
At least 32 entries in ESTC (1773, 1774, 1775, 1777, 1778, 1783, 1786, 1787, 1790, 1793, 1797, 1800).<br> 
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See Hester Chapone, <u>Letters on the Improvement of the Mind, Addressed to a Lady</u>, 2 vols. (London: Printed by H. Hughs for J. Walter, 1773). &lt;<a href="http://find.galegroup.com/ecco/infomark.do?&contentSet=ECCOArticles&type=multipage&tabID=T001&prodId=ECCO&docId=CW114742139&source=gale&userGroupName=viva_uva&version=1.0&docLevel=FASCIMILE">Link to ECCO</a>&gt; &lt;<a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=_a1bAAAAQAAJ">Vol. 1 in Google Books</a>&gt;&lt;<a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/files/35890/35890-h/35890-h.htm">Project Gutenberg Edition</a>&gt;